About the Open Directory (DMOZ)

Learn all about the Open Directory and how to get listed there.

Craven, Phil. Webcredible (2004). Design>Web Design>Search

Adding Search to Your Site

As long as there's been a Web, there's been a need for search engines. Because of the volume of information that's available out there, people will always need help finding what they want. Nowadays, it's commonplace for individual sites, even personal homepages, to have their own search capabilities, and so a slew of new services have appeared to help you quickly and easily add search to your site.

Rappoport, Avi. Webmonkey (2000). Design>Web Design>Search

Adding Value through Search Engine Optimization

The easiest way to increase your added value is to do small things that have a large positive return for the company. If you’re looking to find something easy to do that has a large positive impact on your value, look no further than thinking about search engines and how your portion of a Web site can be optimized for them.

K'necht, Alan. Digital Web Magazine (2003). Design>Web Design>Search>Search Engine Optimization

Advancing Advanced Search

Advanced search is the ugly child of interface design--always included, but never loved. Websites have come to depend on their search engines as the volume of content has increased. Yet advanced search functionality has not significantly developed in years. Poor matches and overwhelming search results remain a problem for users. Perhaps the standard search pattern deserves a new look. A progressive disclosure approach can enable users to use precision advanced search techniques to refine their searches and pinpoint the desired results.

Turbek, Stephen. Boxes and Arrows (2008). Articles>Web Design>Search

Adventures in Low Fidelity: Designing Search for Egreetings

One of the dirty little secrets about being an information architect is that most of us only bat .500 at best. We labor and agonize over making recommendations and designing information architectures that are supposed to change the world, but many of our designs never see the light of day. Rather than moan about why my designs were not implemented, I want to share my story.

Farnum, Chris. Boxes and Arrows (2002). Design>Web Design>Information Design>Search

All About Title Tags

The title tag is one of the most important factors in achieving high search engine rankings.

Whalen, Jill. High Rankings Advisor (2004). Design>Web Design>Search>Search Engine Optimization

Ambient Findability: Findability Hacks

Findability is one of the most thorny problems in web design. This is due in part to the inherent ambiguity of semantics and structure. We label and categorize things in so many ways that retrieval is difficult at best. But that’s only the half of it. The most formidable challenges stem from its cross-functional, interdisciplinary nature. Findability defies classification. It flows across the borders between design, engineering, and marketing. Everybody is responsible, and so we run the risk that nobody is accountable.

Morville, Peter. List Apart, A (2005). Design>Web Design>User Centered Design>Search

And Then There Were Adwords... An Introduction

If you have been looking into Internet marketing, you have probably seen Adwords mentioned now and again. Why don’t we cover the basics of the program. Adwords is the name of the pay-per-click system offered by Google on its search engine.

Pires, Halstatt. Ezine Articles (2006). Articles>Web Design>E Commerce>Search

Are There Users Who Always Search?

Web designers often tell us that they spend a great deal of their limited time and resources working to improve their on-site search engines because, they believe, there are some people who always rely on the search engine to reach their target content. They find further support for this assumption from Jakob Nielsen who, in his book, 'Designing Web Usability,' asserts that more than half of all users demonstrate 'search-dominant' tendencies by going right to the search engine when they first visit a web site looking for content.

User Interface Engineering (2002). Design>Web Design>Usability>Search

Ask Jeeves and Urinating Canines

First, there were butlers. Then, there were search engines. Today, there is Jeeves, a hybrid less expensive than the former and more user-friendly than the latter. Others have followed in Jeeves's footsteps, but his loafers are hard to fill. While he is no longer an original, he continues to be invaluable for net-novices and net-addicts alike.

Berkowitz, David. WebWord (2000). Articles>Web Design>Search

Basic Search Engine Optimization Guide And Tips

Search engine optimization or SEO is very important to get your website listed in search engines. Even if this is the first website you have built there are a few basic and easy steps that will help you with optimizing your website without being a pro.

DevBay (2005). Articles>Web Design>Search>Search Engine Optimization

Best Practices and Future Visions for Search User Interfaces: Position Paper

The author argues that progress in search requires vigorous inquiry into how search can be embedded into application environments such as those for decision-making, personal information collecting, and designing.

Hendry, David G. Earthlink (2003). Design>Web Design>Search

Better Readability for Improving the Number of Site Viewers

Web content readability is an often underestimated aspect for a web site. There are design rules for designers to follow, and there are SEO tips and tricks for SEO experts to use. But this is not all. Though beautiful designs and search engine optimization are extremely important, there are also other issues that a web marketer needs to consider in order to run the site successfully. Readability is one of them.

Stoyanova, Tsvetanka. SEOchat (2005). Articles>Web Design>Writing>Search

Better Search Engine Design: Beyond Algorithms

Search engine accuracy is important, but convenience may be more important than squeezing the last few ounces of performance out of your system. Peter Van Dijck demonstrates simple but effective query analysis, best bets, and controlled vocabularies -- tools to make your search engines more effective.

Van Dijck, Peter. O'Reilly and Associates (2004). Articles>Web Design>Search>Controlled Vocabulary

The Big Dig: Mining Nuggets of Value  

It is difficult to apply the lessons learned from e-commerce search interfaces to more complex ones, such as those for libraries or technical material. This article provides a guide to tailoring search interfaces to users with a persona-based approach.

McDaniel, Scott M. User Experience (2002). Design>Web Design>User Interface>Search

Big List of Blog Search Engines

My new theory on blogging is that whenever I can't find a particular piece of information on Google I should just create it myself. What's the point of all this easy-to-use publishing technology if you don't publish stuff, right?

Aripaparo.com (2002). Articles>Web Design>Search>Blogging

Build a Search Engine in PERL

Everything you wanted to know about using PERL to build a simple search engine for your site (but were afraid to ask).

Ryan, Joseph. List Apart, A (2002). Articles>Web Design>Search

Build Up Links to Your Website

Link building is an essential part of any online marketing strategy. Learn how to in this article.

Moss, Trenton. Webcredible (2004). Design>Web Design>Marketing>Search Engine Optimization

Building a Synonymous Search Index (Thesaurus)

The value of a thesaurus stems from the inherent problems of natural language indexing and searching. Different users define the same query using different terms. Document authors, indexers, and information architects describe the same concepts using different terms.

Morville, Peter. Semantic Studios (1999). Design>Web Design>Search

Buying Text Links

Discusses buying text links, and whether it's good or bad for your SEO campaigns.

Whalen, Jill. High Rankings Advisor (2006). Design>Web Design>Search>Search Engine Optimization

Casing the Competition

Welcome to the murky world of search engine optimization (SEO). Before you throw your hands up in frustration, I have good news for you: You can learn how to reverse-engineer your archrivals' tactics and join them at the top of the search results heap.

Spencer, Stephan. GotoMedia (2005). Design>Web Design>Search>Search Engine Optimization

Common Sense Search Engine Optimization

For years, when people thought about search engine optimization, in all likelihood, gateway pages, doorway pages or informational pages probably came to mind. If you're a search engine optimization specialist, you've probably had clients requesting that you create these types of pages for them.

Whalen, Jill. High Rankings Advisor (2004). Design>Web Design>Search>Search Engine Optimization

Compelling Headlines to Improve Your Search Engine Ranking

Write compelling headings that attract both search engines and your desired kind of site visitor.

Jackson, Steve. Webcredible (2005). Articles>Web Design>Search>Search Engine Optimization

Comprehending the Google Dance to Stay Updated

The updating of massive indexes by Google is not a smooth affair by any means. Notably, as a result of updating process, old indexes do not simply yield to new indexes, but there is quite an haphazard movement in transition. It takes a couple of days for Google to complete its update. Especially during this period, both old and new indexes get their place on www.google.com, albeit alternatively or even in unpredictable ways before new indexes stabilize there for all to see. The fluctuations witnessed on Google between transition from old indexes to new indexes seem as if Google were dancing. Hence, in SEO parlance comes the word Google Dance. Varying indexes have a say in the final rankings just when PageRank calculation sets in action. So, the fluctuating indexes of your site should not be a cause of concern when Google is dancing. Wait for Google to come to a halt and you will see all the things stabilize.

Azam, Rahbre and Tabassum Naz. Amateur Writerz (2008). Articles>Web Design>Business Communication>Search Engine Optimization