Is a link to a file a PageRank pit?

[borad]

Assuming you use a normal link, does a file linked from a page garner its share of PageRank (and not hand it back anywhere to the site, thus "wasting" PageRank)?

[egomaniac]

Hi borad,

If I understand your question, then the answer is yes.

If a given page has X amount of pagerank, it will pass X minus some Dampening Factor through to the links coming off that page. Divide this last number by the number of links off of the page, and you would know how much PageRank is being passed to another page.

If you link to a page within your site, then you are recycling PageRank within your own sytem. Because of the Dampening Factor, the PageRank eventually dissipates to near zero. If all links on a page are to pages outside your site, then you have sent all of that pages PageRank away, wasting it if you will.

[BigDave]

I believe he was asking about a link to a file type that google does not spider, like Googlebor-2.1-src.tar.gz .

I would hope that it wouldn't, but is it really worth worrying about. If you need to put in that link, then just go ahead and do it.

[steveb]

I assumed the question was in it's most obvious: you click on a thumbnail, a jpg pops up. No pagerank. I would assume that is worse than an html page poping up with the jpg, whcih then links abck to the main site.

[jomaxx]

My gut feeling is that pagerank effects will only take place for followable links, and a link to a jpg image, for example, is not followable for the standard Googlebot. Same principal would apply for <A HREF="javascript: type links and links to pages excluded in the robots.txt file.

A definitive answer may be somewhere in those long pagerank documents, but I don't think pagerank spirals into a black hole in these cases.

[borad]

To clarify: the initial question was primarily for straight downloadables, but the other query is interesting too.

If "downloadables" that are indexed (ie. acrobat files) can earn pagerank, and keep it all for themselves, there would be a lot of very high ranking files out there. Do we see evidence of this?

[egomaniac]

frankly I found the question vague... what do you mean by "file" borad?

Other than HTML pages, no PageRank is passed. PageRank is only passed to followable links in an <a> tag. It doesn't pass through javascript links. As for cgi links I am not unsure, as Googlebot will follow those links.

[egomaniac]

Now this is an interesting question. Google indexes PDFs and Word Docs. Is PageRank passed through these links, thus diluting the amount of PageRank sent out through the other links on the page?

I don't know the answer to this anyone. Anyone else?

[BigDave]

pdf files are indexable, and they can contain links. You would have to ask GoogleGuy if they follow links within PDF files.

I think you are being too concerned with PR if you are unwilling to link to a pdf that has important information for your user.

[startup]

"does a file linked from a page garner its share of PageRank ". Yes it does. If you were to link to a .swf (shockwave) file to allow your visitors to play a game. The file will garner PR.
I hope that is what your are asking.

[jomaxx]

The toolbar even displays pagerank for PDF files, so they must be handled pretty much the same as HTML pages.

[Dante_Maure]

The "view as HTML" link posted along with all indexed PDF files suggests that Google could treat them like any other HTML page if they so desired.

[Shadow]

Yes, all PDF files have pagerank
Yes, Google is following links in PDF files
Yes, links in PDF files count as incoming, and PR is transferred

I can add, there is one PDF file with a very nice PR pointing to one of my domains.

[creative craig]

I have heard GoogleGuy say before that their bot will try and spider anything it can get its hands on and will give it PageRank when due.

Craig

[Dante_Maure]

I have heard GoogleGuy say before that their bot will try and spider anything it can get its hands on and will give it PageRank when due.

<rushes off to submit his home address to Google's add url page>

Wonder if a high PR will raise the appraisal value on my house? ;)

[jackofalltrades]

>Wonder if a high PR will raise the appraisal value on my house?

Do you have plenty of inbound links? :)

JOAT