Google says...

Google says it does, if it sees a link with the nofollow attributed associated with it. Yahoo and MSN are likely to react in a similar fashion, though I haven't yet spoken with them to get exact details since news of their support only just emerged.

If Google sees nofollow as part of a link, it will:

1. NOT follow through to that page.
2. NOT count the link in calculating PageRank link popularity scores.
3. NOT count the anchor text in determining what terms the page being linked to is relevant for.

That's the situation at the moment. Google is going to evaluate how the attribute works, and it could decide to make other changes down the line, it says.

Now let's look at the impact of each action:

1) Not following the link to the page it points at means that potentially, Google might not index the page at all. As said, the more links that point at a particular page, the more likely it is that Google (and generally the other major search engines) will include that page within its index.

The nofollow attribute DOES NOT mean that someone will prevent a page they do not actually control from being indexed, however. If Google finds even one ordinary link pointing at a page, it may then index that page.

In addition, people can submit their pages directly to Google (and most major search engines). So it's crucial to understand that just because someone might place nofollow in a link pointing at your site, this WILL NOT prevent your page from getting indexed.

2) As for PageRank calculations, it's important to remember that PageRank is a pure popularity score (other search engines have similar scoring mechanisms, just not catchy names other than Yahoo's Web Rank). The nofollow attribute means that a link will not be counted as a "vote" in this popularity contest. That can have an impact on ranking, in cases where the impact of other factors beyond pure popularity come into play.

Huh? Say there are two pages, one with a PR score of 6, the other a PR of 7. Even though the PR7 page is more popular from a link counting point of view, it could still get outranked by the PR6 page if other factors such as the words on the page, or the anchor text pointing at the PR6 page, make it more relevant for a particular search.

It's also important to note that nofollow DOES NOT mean you are flagging a link as being bad in some way. Google isn't going to say, "Aha -- nofollow is on this link -- that's a bad link." Or as Matt Cutts, a Google software engineer who helped develop the attribute, said:

"It doesn't mean that it is a bad link, or that you that you hate it, just that this link doesn't belong to me."

Instead, nofollow effectively will cause Google to ignore the link, to pretend it doesn't exist. This also means you shouldn't worry that people will link to you and use nofollow as a way to hurt you -- Google says that won't happen.

3) This leads to anchor text. Generally much more important in ranking well for a particular term is to get the words you want to rank well for put into a link that points at you. With nofollow added to a link, Google won't associate the anchor text in the link with the page the link is pointed at. This, more than anything else, will sour things for link spammers.

Stop Spam? No. A Start, Yes!

The new attribute won't stop link spamming. Many people may still spam simply because they hope human beings will see the links, click through and perhaps convert. As with email spam, maybe only an incredibly tiny number will do so. But since there's no heavy cost to the spamming, that might still be enough.

In particular, much blog spamming is done through automation. So even with the new system in place, some of that automation will keep rolling along. It will no doubt even evolve to spot blogs and other areas that aren't making use of the nofollow attributes, just as smart spammers currently focus on blogs that have been abandoned, rather than irritating active bloggers.

This means other types of systems of blocking spam will likely still have to be used, such as forcing people to input characters from graphics (captchas), registration and so on (The Solution To Blog Spamming at ThreadWatch has a nice rundown on these, and also see Six Apart's Guide to Comment Spam).

While link or comment spamming isn't going away, it's still heartening that it will be less attractive. Site owners have been given an important new tool that lets them control indexing -- something they've not had offered for years. Perfect or not, I'm glad it's emerged.

Vendor Support

Google started developing the idea of a nofollow attribute several weeks ago and quietly shared it with a number of the major blogging vendors. Many of them have now signed on, pledging to support and implement the tag in the future, if they've not already done so now.

As a result, those using systems provided by one of the major vendors such as Blogger or Movable Type (see here for support news) should find that implementing the tags to be associated in links in comments is a matter of flipping a switch. OK, maybe clicking a radio button or drop-down box! Google provides a list of those supporting it here.

Google said it will soon begin talking with other companies, such as those that making forum software. But makers of these packages or any packages could implement support when they are ready.

May I have this last Dance

May I have this last dance?
it maybe our last chance
the music just moves
me into this evening of romance
I had my eyes on you
at the beginning
and on first glance
the moon out tonight,
making our evening enhanced
so swoon me unto the dance floor
and lets prance
an evening with you,
is like being in France
romantic and charming,
are you thinking I'm to advanced?
I'm falling in love with you
you've led me into this trance
please ...
May I have this last dance?

The re="nofollow" attribute

The rel=”nofollow” attribute is an easy way for a website to tell search engines that the website can’t or doesn’t want to vouch for a link. The best-known use for nofollow is blog comment spam, but the mechanism is completely general. Nofollow is recommended anywhere that links can’t be vouched for. If your logs analysis program shows referrers as hyperlinks, I’d recommend using nofollow on those links. If you have a wiki that anyone on the web can edit, I’d recommend nofollow on those links until you can find a way to trust those links. In general, if you have an application that allows others to add links, web spammers will eventually find your pages and start annoying you.

I'm Free Now

Bizarre dreams
haunting images of extreme
black world that is cover with blood
tears and rain flooding
the creepy visual creature
trying disparately to find a cure
dancing figures, sounds of thunder
frequently they occur
leaving my heart to halt
grasping for air in this burial vault
my nail broken from scratching
bleeding, underneath my skin
I'm anchored within my own world
when does my life truly begin
is this the ending as I am attack
as I lye here being impacted
My soul fills its drifting
I'm free now
all from within
its always been you I've vowed

Put.............................................

PUT
I put 'em up.
I put "goo" in an official report!
I put a boy into a coma.
I put a bucket in the middle of a circle.
I put a butterfly in my garden.
I put a layer of lasagna noodles on top.
I put a little surprise in there.
I put a lot of faith in us.
I put a mouse in a bag.
I put a price tag on my daughter.
I put a rainbow in the sky.
I put a spell on you.
I put a strip of tape on the carpet about 5 ft. away from the bucket.
I put agents' lives at risk.
I put all the round things together for Eunice.
I put all these diseases into the dog.
I put an asshole Republican oilman in the White House.
I put bone to bone.
I put butts in boats.
I put crap in my mouth.
I put down my beer and began to grope myself.
I put down the butter knife.
I put down the duckie!
I put down the picnic basket.
I put faith in the words of Allah.
I put feces into milk.
I put flesh to flesh.
I put freedom first.
I put horse manure on my head.
I put in my tampons with a bazooka.
I put it all together.
I put it back in the man's brain.
I put it down to "human nature."
I put it forward as an explanation for slime.
I put it in my sister's hair.
I put it into small medical syringes.
I put jellyfish in our sugar.
I put lipstick on my head.
I put little bells on my kid.
I put millions of dollars in off-shore banks.
I put more bucks in my bucket.
I put my arms around you.
I put my budgie in an outside cage.
I put my Dad on a respirator.
I put my daughter through college.
I put my eyes back in their sockets.
I put my faith in a bomb...
and my protection on a cross.
I put my finger in the other hole.
I put my glass on the table.
I put my head down on Baba's feet.
I put my head in the toilet.
I put my jewels back in the casket,
and dressed myself in the plain black gown.
I put my makeup on while driving.
I put my money where my heart is.
I put my psychic powers to work.
I put my sister to the test.
I put my well-manicured finger on the pulse of every crossdresser's dream.
I put myself on the fast track.
I put on a forlorn, pleading look, placed one finger in my mouth...
I put on a little puppet show.
I put on a tattered dress and joined the flower girls on the steps of the fountain.
I put on an elaborate performance
including eight conspicuous pieces of behavior of which four were entirely new.
I put on latex gloves at work.
I put on my green shoes.
I put on my long black coat.
I put on some antlers and walked like a moose.
I put on some death metal.
I put on the black stiletto heels.
I put our children at risk.
I put out raging fires.
I put people in the middle of my war with Satan.
I put priests to death.
I put shit in my dick and it was only $49.95.
I put slime on a string.
I put sports in perspective.
I put squid in the dish.
I put stripes in toothpaste.
I put succulent plants in strawberry pots.
I put the "ass" in punk-ass.
I put the "bra" in Brazil.
I put the "du" in dumb.
I put the asshole on the back-end of the horse instead of on top.
I put the beans in the bucket and put the dishpan in the center of the floor.
I put the belt around my life.
I put the bones in my pocket.
I put the car in reverse.
I put the cart before the horse.
I put the cluck in the duck.
I put the dog in the microwave.
I put the fatal pill in my mouth.
I put the forbidden fruit in the garden.
I put the glass to my lips.
I put the hurt on you.
I put the left leg of my pants on first.
I put the lime in the coconut.
I put the whammee on you.
I put them dinosaur bones in the ground.
I put this and that together.
I put thoughts in your minds.
I put together a 25 minute promotional tape.
I put too much pressure on my kids.
I put Twinkies in my suitcase.
I put two and two together.
I put unwrapped caramels and the water in a medium saucepan.
I put up a good fight.
I put viruses on this planet so people could teach themselves Harmonic accessing.
I put what where?
I put you in a cage with dogs.

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