AOL: results at an all time low

should I even care about this?

[stace]

What is the problem with AOL lately? I've always known them to be one of the most widely fluctuation of the SE's-- one week I'm #1 for a keyword, only to be #20-30 the next week. Have they permanently stopped using Dmoz as a factor in SERP's?

Anybody know how to help optimize a little for them without hurting Google results, which are about 10 times as important?

[seth_wilde]

"Have they permanently stopped using Dmoz as a factor in SERP's?"

Only AOL knows :) ... Dmoz claims that AOL will be bringing them back... but it's already been months since we saw real dmoz listings in AOL

"optimize a little for them without hurting Google results"

You could pay Inktomi to spider a few pages built exclusively for this purpose and than block googlebot from indexing them.

[stace]

Hey Seth- thanks for the advice. I actually already DO pay Inktomi to spider about 10 urls-- but they let you substitute, so maybe I'll create some new pages and ask Google not to visit them. Pretty lame that I'm paying for such #$#$y traffic!

[stcrim]

It appears INK is buying or using DMOZ results to round out their now slipping search results. Serving up only paid results eventually makes the quality of those results rather thin. It appears INK may be trying to balance that problem...

Just guessing

-s-

[minnapple]

DMOZ's database is getting older and older.

It takes site so long to get in, its hardly fresh.

Many SE's are becoming either free old stuff from DMOZ or new payed stuff from Ink or PPC.

Which route would you chose to get in?

That is, if you are trying to make money.

[chiyo]

I agree Mivox re the staleness in DMOZ, but also see it in other big mainstream directories and also medium level search engines. (no specific names)

That is why the hints that Google is incorporating "freshness" in their alogos is exciting. Overture listings may be commercial and useless for many surfers but due to their model, they are probably the freshest on the Web. Free non commercial content also must have a way to be indexed freshly.

Sorry - off topic i realise now..

[stcrim]

You're not that far off topic. I think the stale results and decisions like AOL to use 100 percent INK (perhaps with some DMOZ thrown in) and Go-verture offering only paid results (theirs and INKs) - it's almost like thay want to help Google remain #1...

-s-

[Mike_Mackin]

SERPs are junk.
Just did a query on our STUFF and got one site about diamonds. We didn't want any diamonds AOL.

<----Google