Search engines-how do they work?

[TheBigDino]

Does anyone know how a seach engine work - ie google, is it done by searching ips and retreiving their host names, then search the meta tag and put them in sections?

[Cap'n Refsmmat]

Search engines work with what are called "robots." These robots automatically go through the internet, using every link they can find. They index all of the words on that page (skipping some common words to save space) and then put that on their server. When someone searches a word, and a page contains that word, it's put on the results list. To determine how high up on the list a page should be, they use an algorithm that puts the page most linked to on top.

[TheBigDino]

Thanks for your reply, but I don't get how these "robots" automatically go through the internet and use every link they can find, is that done on a word based system or is it done on ip addresses?

[bloodhound]

google has a different search method. It looks at how many times a site is linked from other sites. thats how google bombing works. some pple just create loads of pages which link "miserable Failure" to GWbushes bio. and when you search for miserable failure. the page comes up first. this strategy works only for a rare combination of words.

[5614]

The term "search engine" is often used generically to describe both crawler-based search engines and human-powered directories. These two types of search engines gather their listings in radically different ways.

 

Crawler-Based Search Engines

 

Crawler-based search engines, such as Google, create their listings automatically. They "crawl" or "spider" the web, then people search through what they have found.

 

If you change your web pages, crawler-based search engines eventually find these changes, and that can affect how you are listed. Page titles, body copy and other elements all play a role.

 

Human-Powered Directories

 

A human-powered directory, such as the Open Directory, depends on humans for its listings. You submit a short description to the directory for your entire site, or editors write one for sites they review. A search looks for matches only in the descriptions submitted.

 

Changing your web pages has no effect on your listing. Things that are useful for improving a listing with a search engine have nothing to do with improving a listing in a directory. The only exception is that a good site, with good content, might be more likely to get reviewed for free than a poor site.

 

"Hybrid Search Engines" Or Mixed Results

 

In the web's early days, it used to be that a search engine either presented crawler-based results or human-powered listings. Today, it extremely common for both types of results to be presented. Usually, a hybrid search engine will favor one type of listings over another. For example, MSN Search is more likely to present human-powered listings from LookSmart. However, it does also present crawler-based results (as provided by Inktomi), especially for more obscure queries

[Dave]

I don't know how many times I'm going to have to say this, but please don't copy and paste pages of stuff from other sites!

 

The aforementioned post was from: http://searchenginewatch.com/webmasters/article.php/2168031

 

It's all written down in the rules, you know.

[Dave]

Thanks for your reply, but I don't get how these "robots" automatically go through the internet and use every link they can find, is that done on a word based system or is it done on ip addresses?

 

Firstly the search engine has to have a pool of places to start with; this is mainly done by people submitting their sites to the engine. From there, the robots look at the various links in the pages and then follow those links, do the same for that page, and soforth.

 

It's all quite sophisticated really.

[5614]

I don't know how many times I'm going to have to say this' date=' but [b']please don't copy and paste pages of stuff from other sites![/b]

 

The aforementioned post was from: http://searchenginewatch.com/webmasters/article.php/2168031

 

It's all written down in the rules, you know.

 

i know, odburo told me to say it was a link, but i said no coz:

 

(a) i alread knew it was all correct

(b) it was all read through and checked.

 

next time i post the link though... soz

[Dave]

i know' date=' odburo told me to say it was a link, but i said no coz:

 

(a) i alread knew it was all correct

(b) it was all read through and checked.

 

next time i post the link though... soz[/quote']

 

That doesn't matter. It could be a load of tripe and still against the forum rules.

 

Anyway, back on topic now please.