Get PHP pages indexed in the Search engines
Client Centers Network
A simple method to convert files from Php to Html Extensions, on an
Apache Server
Most will agree Php has become the common language for creating dynamic
Websites. Although the language is simple and efficient, developers are
finding trouble getting traffic to their Php site. It is believed by
many educated Search Engine Optimization Specialists that spiders do
not read beyond the, ".php," on a URL. Therefore, dynamic pages
that pass a variable will be overlooked. For example, on a PHP
directory, variables may be passed to a file as,
"index.php?category=x". In this instance, the category specified as
"x" will not be read or indexed by Search Engines. Spiders will
open the parent page (index.php). This is supported by the belief that
nothing is read beyond the "?", thus making all category links,
"index.php".
While many dynamic Websites still receive modest traffic, it may be in
a developers' best interest to allow some, or all, dynamic pages to
be seen as well. Having two pages indexed may not double a sites'
traffic, but it will ensure a noticeable increase. Developers' can
easily overcome this problem, if their Site resides on an Apache
Server.
This simple fix will satisfy the problem for a simple script, as in the
example above, where one or more Php files are passed variables to
perform different functions. Bare in mind, if a Php file only performs
one task, this is not required. Files that perform a task without the
"?variable=x" being required will be indexed. Therefore, it would
be useless to transform them to a Static URL (HTML File).
Identify the Php File Needing to be changed to an Html
First, identify the desired file, or files, that require the change,
along with the variables that generate a common page. Generally, this
may be, "index.php". To help readers follow along, I am going to
utilize the above Directory example. On our Directory program, we have
a main page, "index.php," which always displays links to
Subdirectories. The subdirectories are opened by passing a variable to
the index file. For example, a subcategory called, "Arts and
Crafts," is displayed with, "index.php?category=1". Additional
subcategories are displayed with an identical syntax, but the end
variable changes. Because of this, we need to modify the way our server
opens the index.php file, when a variable is attached.
Next, we need to place a simple .htaccess file in the directory where,
"index.php," is located on the server. The .htaccess file is a
simple text file that we name .htaccess. Vdeck users may need to create
a file named something.txt, and then rename the file to .htaccess, from
the admin panel. Now we need to specify some variables to the server.
For this example, I am going to change the, "?category=x," variable
to, "directory-x.html". This step will eliminate our problem of
having the subcategories noticed by Search Engine Spiders.
To start our server variables, we need to create a rewrite engine in
the .htaccess file. Simply put our first line will read,
"RewriteEngine On". This tells the server we are changing the way
certain files are to be handled. No we need to specify our Rewrite
rule. On the next line, "RewriteRule ^directory-([0-9]*).*
index.php?category=$1 [L,NC],". This is delegating, "requests to
this directory, where the file is named, "directory-," followed by
a range of 0 to 9, followed by anything (* = Wildcard) and, "dot,"
anything (* = Wildcard), we are going to display, "index.php," file
with the variable attached. We can create another rewrite rule on
another line of our .htaccess file. However, a meticulous developer
likes to test things out before making changes to the actual Php file,
or progressing ahead of oneself. We can test our, "RewriteRule," by
opening another browser window and entering, "directory-1.htm or
directory-1.html," into the address bar. We should see the same page
displayed as, "index.php?category=1," is called.
Finally, we want the Search Engine spiders to be able to see our
shinning new readable URL that can be indexed. Rather than scurrying
around to every search engine and submitting the URL, we are going to
open up our Php file for editing. Before this is done, make a copy of
each script that is going to be modified. Save the copy to the hard
drive in a memorable location. Then identify the different areas of the
program that create the links being changed. We don't want to change
things on the back-end, just the front-end. The Php file will still be
getting the information as, "index.php?category=x," from the
.htaccess file. We want to change the display part that users to the
site see. This is where links are dynamically created on the Php
Script. We need to replace, "index.php?category=," to read,
"directory-," where, "index.php?category=X," is found and
follow behind the variable (x) with, ".html".
Once the area to be modified is found, check the modification following
your changes. If you make a mistake on a script and get ahead of
yourself, it may be difficult to fix the problem.
To see this exact modification in action, visit
http://links.mjmls.com/index.html. Follow any of the category links on
the page. Then change, "directory-," to, "index.php?cat=," and
drop the html extension.
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About The Author
Michael Medeiros is the founder of http://www.Mjmls.com an
independently owned Internet domain. He has obtained a Bachelors Degree
in Business, and works as an Independent Real Estate Agent in New
Jersey. With the development of Mjmls.com, Michael has performed
extensive research into Website Development. Mjmls.com is a Beta
released free marketplace for businesses and individuals, allowing
consumers to browse nationally or locally by individual state.