PHP v html

indexing

[Nicky_uk]

Hi all
My apologies if this question has been asked and answered umpteen times before, I did check ;)

I have a website mainly with html links. However, I have just added a drop down menu list and the links are php. On the sitemap all indexed links are currently in html, however, the new pages are discribed as "shortcut to widget.php" rather than hard links "shortcut to widget.html"

Will this prevent the new pages from the drop down list being indexed or spidered or is it neither here nor there?

Thanks in advance for your replies.

[lorax]

.php versus .html is really a moot distinction. However, I'd be concerned about those drop down links especially if we're talking about the form element <select> or some dynamic javascript menu system.

[Nicky_uk]

Why would you be concerned? The <select> function is there - do I take it it's a bad idea? if so, why? and what are the alternatives.

[lorax]

If your <select> box is part of a form then the only link the bots might follow will be the form's action. So, your options are effectively hidden from the search engines.

To get around this issue, put your links right out in the open in a list. Sure it takes up more room but the bots will follow those links right into your sub-pages.