What are Search Engines?

An Introductory Technical White Paper by webpointmorpheus

      Intro       Search Engine Types       Search Engine Definitions       Document Links

©2005 - material compiled by Bob Carnaghi, www.webpointmorpheus.com

Introduction     Top of Page

Search Engines are an important concept and service in internet and web technology. Search Engines perform an extremely important function of scouring and categorizing the multitude of content on the World Wide Web to make the collection of this information simpler for the user. There are two basic categories of Search Engine: Directory based, and Crawler or Spider based. Each is defined bleow. Additionally there is an entity known as a 'Meta Search' which is a search of several Search Engines.

Below is a basic overview of Search Engines, and a few key definitions.

Search Engine Types      Top of Page

Search engines are essentially one of two basic types:

1. Directory Type: individual web pages are entered into a database by some human method, usually the owner of the website, or someone paid by him/her, or someone from the directory who lists the site.
2. Crawler Type: search engine spiders are constantly trolling the web and categorizing web pages for inclusion into their database. The criteria for categorizing are based upon the content of the site, as well as popularity of the site by links, keyword content, etc.

Important Distinctions

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1. Search engine submission: site has been submitted to a search engine by some method, paid, not paid, user listed, crawled, etc.
2. Search engine inclusion: website has been included into the search engine's database
3. Crawlers, Spiders or Trollers: the Search Engine mechanisms that continually traverse the web and categorize web pages. Links to the pages, as well as other key information about the pages, are then stored in the Search Engine's database for retrieval during a user-specified search
4. Search engine ranking: the relative position that a website attains in a return from the search of a search engine
5. Guaranteed search engine placement: high Search Engine result placement, usually for a price
6. Search Engine Optimization: the act or actions that make a page more likely to gain a high ranking in a Search Engine Result. These include, but are not limited to, frequent and strategic use of keywords, use of Meta tags, use of Title tags, etc.
7. PPC, or Pay Per Click: a guaranteed preference for your website in a search result for which you allow a certain budgetary amount. When that amount is attained by a specific number of 'clicks' on your site in the returns, your site is no longer given the preferential position in the search results
8. Keywords: Specific words that are used in a search of a Search Engine. These words are consistent with the main theme of your website, hence your site is (theoretically) returned in the search result.
9. Search Engine Spam: Illegal, immoral, or unethical methods of attaining higher placement in a search engine result. These methods include, but are not limited to, submitting ghost pages with no content, creating false pages with links to gain popularity ratings, redirecting or cloaking a page to be something that it isn't, using false text on the page that is hidden, etc.

Additional     Top of Page

The website process, the way the web works, Search Engines, and other web & internet concepts are often very confusing, especially for the non-technical person. webpointmorpheus has assembled several documents hoping to simplify these topics. This series of documents are the result of a consistent set of questions posed by current, past, and potential webpointmorpheus clientele. The documents are listed below, and are available in printable/downloadable .pdf form.