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Posted by Trillium (U2170869) on Monday, 25th October 2010
Allotment tales has acquired a proper search engine courtesy of the Â鶹Éç, though apparently outwith their responsibility. Don't know when, but there it is. Can we have one on the clinic too? And here perhaps?
Thanks awfully
Trillium it's Sakkarin's search facility that is being used on the Allotment Tales board.
Indeed, but the Beeb have added the link to the top of the screen and made it permanently available. Handy that.
Trillium. Jen Host suggested it and Hypercharleyfarley (Ma) said yes please and that's how it came about. Unless, of course, someone knows different!!
It's not being up dated though.
I think the 'compiler' has withdrawn his/her services. I may be totally wrong - as usual.
Hasn't Sakkarin gone into a sulk because of changes on the cookery threads?
I'm glad you said it MDE! That's how I understand the position also. It's so much nicer 'over here'.
I'm no computer geek, but I discovered the other day that you can create a customised search with Google, to search any website. I thought I'd found the 'Holy Grail', but it didn't work on these boards. At first I assumed I'd done it wrong, but I was able to make it work with other websites.
There's something in the way these boards are set up that stops a search working, I expect that's why the allotment search has to be updated from time to time.
, in reply to message 9.
This posting has been hidden during moderation because it broke the in some way.
All we will need then is a 'sticky' thread at the top of each of the boards with useful tips on using the boards, such as how to search, how to post pictures etc.
It's not easy to see what the difference is between the food board, and this one, apart from the cosmetic changes.
If you want to quote the URL for one of the messages on the food board, it looks alomst the same as the URLs for this one. They simply have 'food' in the place of 'gardening'.
The 'customised' Google search, is a completely normal Google search. If you search for any of the topics on the food board, using straight Google, it will find them.
I went onto the food board, a few minutes ago, and picked a phrase that caught my eye: "I am looking for something different to do with my pumpkin".
I put that phrase, in quotes, into straight Google, and it came back with the post on that topic on the Â鶹Éç.
In this case, the Â鶹Éç is the only place, in the entire world, where people are pondering that particular question.
The 'customised' search simply restricts the answers coming out of Google to those from the Â鶹Éç.
Anyway, when this board is 'converted', whatever that means, the information in all of these posts on here, will then be visible to the world at large, so we may get some more international visitors.
, in reply to message 12.
Posted by anothergardener (U14387447) on Friday, 29th October 2010
And have you tried google search on these gardening boards, 'gary'?
, in reply to message 13.
Posted by garyhobson (U11055016) on Saturday, 30th October 2010
The answer is not simple...
I picked a phrase that occurs on this board and that appears unique. I chose 'The Potting Shed, 27 September'.
I put that phrase into Google.
Google didn't seem to find the post itself, but it did find our Â鶹Éç messageboard profiles, and picked out the profiles of everyone who had replied to that thread.
Google also found one reference to 'The Potting Shed, 27 September' on another website called Boardtracker.
Boardtracker had picked out zoomer44. I don't know why Boardtracker picked up on zoomer44, and no-one else. But this linked page on Boardtracker does include the text of all the posts that zoomer44 had replied to, including the messages on this board.
So, somehow, some search engine is able to read the texts of the posts on this board, right now.
Boardtracker also includes an analysis of our posting habits:
"Member Ego Network gives an insight into members' social activity... Is this member an Opinion Leader? Greeter? Answer person? Question person? Initiator? Drive-by shooter? Networker? Maybe a spammer? ... gives an insight into members posting activity over the past year... Move beyond just understanding the post to fully understanding who is behind it... with Member Ego Network, you can quickly understand who members really are."
That page is here:
I've just been on the sight. That's strange wonder why it has just picked up on me.
There's a free 30 day trial. Has anyone joined up for it and if so what does it say on the ego network, I'd be interested to know ptoviding I'm not a spamtoper or flaming warrior
Me now thinks I don't want to sign in or contribute any more to this Â鶹Éç website which is sad because I enjoy gardening so much and value the advise given by you guys yet ticked all the boxes for confidentiality believing the Â鶹Éç have safeguards in place.
I didn't expect my profile to b so globalizsed.
Well that is odd Zoomer. It's not plain why your name comes up.
But the chances of someone taking a keen interest in your posting behaviour are slim, and any of us can get the same post history information by clicking on your name - or anyone else's - on this site.
It doesn't seem to me to be a reason to stop posting here, though I think the hosts might take a careful look at it. Although - is your real name Nick? If so then your personal account information has also been collected, which is less reassuring.
'Nick' before 'zoomer' simply means nickname.
But it does illustrate the sort of things that Spy websites are doing right now.
Short of living inside a sealed box, there's not that much you can do. No sensible person wants to live inside a box, or hide behind a firewall.
In this particular instance, Boardtracker wants to join up all the different forums that each person contributes to, to facilitate spying.
To put a spanner in the works, it's wise to use a variety of different names.
Maybe I'm being a little bit rash, I'll still be coming on this site, but it's a good idea to use different names if using other forums, I'm glad I konw about the boardtracker now.
Can't imagine anyone would want to read old postings or pay to check out someones ego status, I maybe wrong though.
Just for the record I'm not called 'Nick' so the nickname explantion fits.
I've just been back on the boardtracker site and using the search facility you can put in any bodies nickname and it comes up with all the forums visited.
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