Anchor text vs. the alt attribute

Are they treated equally by SE's?

[Bonusbana]

I realise the power of anchor text and SEO. But if I advertise with graphics instead, would the alt tag count just as much as the anchor text? Or are text links generally more SE-effective than graphics?

Thanks

[ncw164x]

No your anchor text would always count more than alt text and text links are more se-effective than graphics.

The alt tag has been abused from it's original purpose which is to give alternative text if no graphic is available or for text only browsers

[Bonusbana]

Ok, so my next question is:

Could a solution to the lack of graphics and SEO be something like this:

<a style="display: block; background: url(img.gif) no-repeat; width: 100px; height: 50px; text-indent:-10000px;">Anchor text</a>

Then the anchor text would be equally acounted for as regular text links right? Even if I use CSS to replace the anchor text with a background image.

[ncw164x]

You would be better posting that question in the css forum

[webmasterworld.com...]

[Bonusbana]

Yes, but I know the CSS works. I just like to know whether search engines would treat such code equally as a normal text link without style attributes in the anchor tag. Or maybe it is considered to be spam?

[Marcia]

>><a style="display: block; background: url(img.gif) no-repeat; width: 100px; height: 50px; text-indent:-10000px;">Anchor text</a>

What is that linking to? Like <a href="targetpage.htm">anchor text</a> It's putting a background behind what's supposed to be anchor text, but is it a link, except to the background graphic within the style designation?

[ncw164x]

This is a variation of an already established method of image replacement, and the anchor text will will be weighted the same as regular anchor text.

This is Phark Method image replacement (code courtesy of Mezzoblue):

<h3 id="header">
Revised Image Replacement
</h3>

/* css */
#header {
text-indent: -100em;
overflow: hidden;
background: url(sample-opaque.gif);
height: 25px;
}

[edited by: ncw164x at 12:01 pm (utc) on Nov. 23, 2004]

[Bonusbana]

Sorry I though it was given that there was to be a href attribute as well, I just didn't include it in the example.

The CSS hides the text beyond the viewable screen (text-indent) and the rest puts a graphic background image there instead. Since it is displayed as a block, the whole background image will act like a link.

The question is: would this be an acceptable technique to produce banners that has the same SEO value as normal text links?

<edit>Thanks ncw164x, you answered my question at the same time I re-posted it</edit>