i think this election will be a tricky one,.
we dont know who will won the goal..,
but i hope that we will going to choose the right person..
marami sten ang ngpapadala s knlang emosyon n hindi n naiicp kung tama b n magtiwla s taong ito na ng dadahilan s pgkakamali at pgsisisi..,
we just need to pray that we will gonna have a peaceful election..;

i think this coming halalan will be a big show for us..
everyone had their own bets for the different position, but then what are our basis in choosing our bet???
do we base it upon their capabilities? their family background?
I think we should base it upon their capabilities in handling different situation.
we should choose the one who is ready to face all our countries problem. we should think wisely because our country is counting on your votes and decision, and i hope that all of us wont be carried in such promises, not because he's family are good people we should trust him yet everyone of us has its own personality and characteristic choose the one who can help us in our problem..

The Difference Between the Internet
and the World Wide Web
Last updated on October 09, 2009

What is The Internet?
The Internet is a massive network of networks, a networking infrastructure. It connects millions of computers together globally, forming a network in which any computer can communicate with any other computer as long as they are both connected to the Internet. Information that travels over the Internet does so via a variety of languages known as protocols.

What is The Web (World Wide Web)?
The World Wide Web, or simply Web, is a way of accessing information over the medium of the Internet. It is an information-sharing model that is built on top of the Internet. The Web uses the HTTP protocol, only one of the languages spoken over the Internet, to transmit data. Web services, which use HTTP to allow applications to communicate in order to exchange business logic, use the the Web to share information. The Web also utilizes browsers, such as Internet Explorer or Firefox, to access Web documents called Web pages that are linked to each other via hyperlinks. Web documents also contain graphics, sounds, text and video.

The Web is just one of the ways that information can be disseminated over the Internet. The Internet, not the Web, is also used for e-mail, which relies on SMTP, Usenet news groups, instant messaging and FTP. So the Web is just a portion of the Internet, albeit a large portion, but the two terms are not synonymous and should not be confused.

IPv6 is based on IPv4, it is an evolution of IPv4. So many things that we find with IPv6 are familiar to us. The main differences are:

1.Simplified header format. IPv6 has a fixed length header, which does not include most of the options an IPv4 header can include. Even though the IPv6 header contains two 128 bit addresses (source and destination IP address) the whole header has a fixed length of 40 bytes only. This allows for faster processing.
Options are dealt with in extension headers, which are only inserted after the IPv6 header if needed. So for instance if a packet needs to be fragmented, the fragmentation header is inserted after the IPv6 header. The basic set of extension headers is defined in RFC 2460.
2.Address extended to 128 bits. This allows for hierarchical structure of the address space and provides enough addresses for almost every 'grain of sand' on the earth. Important for security and new services/devices that will need multiple IP addresses and/or permanent connectivity.
3.A lot of the new IPv6 functionality is built into ICMPv6 such as Neighbor Discovery, Autoconfiguration, Multicast Listener Discovery, Path MTU Discovery.
4.Enhanced Security and QoS Features.

Answer:

IPv4 means Internet Protocol version 4, whereas IPv6 means Internet Protocol version 6.

IPv4 is 32 bits IP address that we use commonly, it can be 192.168.8.1, 10.3.4.5 or other 32 bits IP addresses. IPv4 can support up to 2³² addresses, however the 32 bits IPv4 addresses are finishing to be used in near future, so IPv6 is developed as a replacement.

IPv6 is 128 bits, can support up to 2¹²⁸ addresses to fulfill future needs with better security and network related features. Here are some examples of IPv6 address:

1050:0:0:0:5:600:300c:326b
ff06::c3
0:0:0:0:0:0:192.1.56.10

AdSense

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding reliable references. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (June 2009)

AdSense

Developer(s)	Google Inc.
Operating system	Cross-platform (web-based application)
Type	Online advertising
Website	www.google.com/adsense

AdSense is an ad serving application run by Google Inc. Website owners can enroll in this program to enable text, image, and video advertisements on their websites. These advertisements are administered by Google and generate revenue on either a per-click or per-impression basis. Google beta tested a cost-per-action service, but discontinued it in October 2008 in favor of a DoubleClick offering (also owned by Google).^[1]

[edit] Overview

Google uses its Internet search technology to serve advertisements based on website content, the user's geographical location, and other factors. Those wanting to advertise with Google's targeted advertisement system may enroll through AdWords. AdSense has become a popular method of placing advertising on a website because the advertisements are less intrusive than most banners, and the content of the advertisements is often relevant to the website.

The use of proxy is allowed but if you use a proxy to enter your adsense account your account will be disabled. It has been seen lately that you can use proxies for logins, but sign up must be from a real computer. Proxies like hidemyass, armyproxy, schoolproxy, etc., can be used after signup.

Many websites use AdSense to monetize their content. AdSense has been particularly important for delivering advertising revenue to small websites that do not have the resources for developing advertising sales programs and sales people. To fill a website with advertisements that are relevant to the topics discussed, webmasters implement a brief script on the websites' pages. Websites that are content-rich have been very successful with this advertising program, as noted in a number of publisher case studies on the AdSense website.

Some webmasters invest significant effort into maximizing their own AdSense income. They do this in three ways:^{[citation needed]}

1. They use a wide range of traffic-generating techniques, including but not limited to online advertising.
2. They build valuable content on their websites that attracts AdSense advertisements, which pay out the most when they are clicked.
3. They use text content on their websites that encourages visitors to click on advertisements. Note that Google prohibits webmasters from using phrases like "Click on my AdSense ads" to increase click rates. The phrases accepted are "Sponsored Links" and "Advertisements".

The source of all AdSense income is the AdWords program, which in turn has a complex pricing model based on a Vickrey second price auction. AdSense commands an advertiser to submit a sealed bid (i.e., a bid not observable by competitors). Additionally, for any given click received, advertisers only pay one bid increment above the second-highest bid.

[edit] History

Oingo, Inc., a privately held company located in Los Angeles, was started in 1998 by Gilad Elbaz and Adam Weissman. Oingo developed a proprietary search algorithm that was based on word meanings and built upon an underlying lexicon called WordNet, which was developed over the previous 15 years by researchers at Princeton University, led by George Miller.^[2]

Oingo changed its name to Applied Semantics in 2001,^[3] which was later acquired by Google in April 2003 for US$102 million.^[4]

In 2009, Google AdSense announced that it would now be offering new features, including the ability to "enable multiple networks to display ads".

[edit] Types

[edit] AdSense for Feeds

In May 2005, Google announced a limited-participation beta version of AdSense for Feeds, a version of AdSense that runs on RSS and Atom feeds that have more than 100 active subscribers. According to the Official Google Blog, "advertisers have their ads placed in the most appropriate feed articles; publishers are paid for their original content; readers see relevant advertising—and in the long run, more quality feeds to choose from."^[5]

AdSense for Feeds works by inserting images into a feed. When the image is displayed by a RSS reader or Web browser, Google writes the advertising content into the image that it returns. The advertisement content is chosen based on the content of the feed surrounding the image. When the user clicks the image, he or she is redirected to the advertiser's website in the same way as regular AdSense advertisements.

AdSense for Feeds remained in its beta state until August 15, 2008, when it became available to all AdSense users.

[edit] AdSense for search

A companion to the regular AdSense program, AdSense for search, allows website owners to place Google search boxes on their websites. When a user searches the Internet or the website with the search box, Google shares any advertising revenue it makes from those searches with the website owner. However the publisher is paid only if the advertisements on the page are clicked: AdSense does not pay publishers for mere searches.

[edit] AdSense for mobile content

AdSense for mobile content allows publishers to generate earnings from their mobile websites using targeted Google advertisements. Just like AdSense for content, Google matches advertisements to the content of a website — in this case, a mobile website.

[edit] AdSense for domains

Adsense for domains allows advertisements to be placed on domain names that have not been developed. This offers domain name owners a way to monetize domain names that are otherwise dormant. Adsense for domains is currently being offered to some users, with plans to make it available to all in stages.

On December 12, 2008, TechCrunch reported that AdSense for Domains is available for all US publishers.^[6]

[edit] AdSense for video

AdSense for video allows publishers with video content to generate revenue using ad placements from Google's extensive Advertising network.

[edit] XHTML compatibility

As of September 2007, the HTML code for the AdSense search box does not validate as XHTML, and does not follow modern principles of website design because of its use of

• non-standard end tags, such as and ,
• the attribute checked rather than checked="checked",
• presentational attributes other than id, class, or style — for example, bgcolor and align,
• a table structure for purely presentational (i.e., non-tabular) purposes,¹ and
• the font tag.²

1: using a table structure for unintended purposes is strongly discouraged by the W3C,^[7] but nevertheless does not cause a document to fail validation — there is currently no algorithmic method of determining whether a table is used "correctly" (for displaying tabular data or for displaying elements, that get proportionally wider or narrower when browser window resizes in width without active client side scripting).
2: the font tag is deprecated but does not fail validation in any XHTML standard^{[citation needed]}.

Additionally, the AdSense advertisement units use the JavaScript method document.write(), which does not work correctly when rendered with the application/xhtml+xml MIME type. The units also use the iframe HTML tag, which is not validated correctly with the XHTML 1.0 Strict or XHTML 1.0 Transitional DOCTYPEs.

The terms of the AdSense program forbid its affiliates from modifying the code, thus preventing these participants from having valid XHTML websites.

However, a workaround has been found by creating a separate HTML webpage containing only the AdSense advertisement units, and then importing this page into an XHTML webpage with an object tag.^[8] This workaround appears to be accepted by Google.^[9]

[edit] How AdSense works

• The webmaster inserts the AdSense JavaScript code into a webpage.
• Each time this page is visited, the JavaScript code uses inlined JSON to display content fetched from Google's servers.
• For contextual advertisements, Google's servers use a cache of the page to determine a set of high-value keywords. If keywords have been cached already, advertisements are served for those keywords based on the AdWords bidding system. (More details are described in the AdSense patent.)
• For site-targeted advertisements, the advertiser chooses the page(s) on which to display advertisements, and pays based on cost per mille (CPM), or the price advertisers choose to pay for every thousand advertisements displayed.^[10][11]
• For referrals, Google adds money to the advertiser's account when visitors either download the referred software or subscribe to the referred service.^[12] The referral program was retired in August 2008.^[13]
• Search advertisements are added to the list of results after the visitor performs a search.
• Because the JavaScript is sent to the Web browser when the page is requested, it is possible for other website owners to copy the JavaScript code into their own webpages. To protect against this type of fraud, AdSense customers can specify the pages on which advertisements should be shown. AdSense then ignores clicks from pages other than those specified.

[edit] Abuse

Some webmasters create websites tailored to lure searchers from Google and other engines onto their AdSense website to make money from clicks. These "zombie" websites often contain nothing but a large amount of interconnected, automated content (e.g., a directory with content from the Open Directory Project, or scraper websites relying on RSS feeds for content). Possibly the most popular form of such "AdSense farms" are splogs (spam blogs), which are centered around known high-paying keywords. Many of these websites use content from other websites, such as Wikipedia, to attract visitors. These and related approaches are considered to be search engine spam and can be reported to Google.^{[citation needed]}

A Made for AdSense (MFA) website or webpage has little or no content, but is filled with advertisements so that users have no choice but to click on advertisements. Such pages were tolerated in the past, but due to complaints, Google now disables such accounts.

There have also been reports of Trojan horses engineered to produce counterfeit Google advertisements that are formatted looking like legitimate ones. The Trojan uploads itself onto an unsuspecting user's computer through a webpage and then replaces the original advertisements with its own set of malicious advertisements.^[14]

[edit] Criticism

Due to concerns about click fraud, Google AdSense has been criticized by some search engine optimization firms as a large source of what Google calls "invalid clicks", in which one company clicks on a rival's search engine advertisements to drive up the other company's costs.^[15]

To help prevent click fraud, AdSense publishers can choose from a number of click-tracking programs.^{[citation needed]} These programs display detailed information about the visitors who click on the AdSense advertisements. Publishers can use this to determine whether or not they have been a victim of click fraud. There are a number of commercial tracking scripts available for purchase.

The payment terms for webmasters have also been criticized.^[16] Google withholds payment until an account reaches US$100,^[17] but many micro content providers^{[citation needed]} require a long time—years in some cases—to build up this much AdSense revenue. However, Google will pay all earned revenue greater than US$10 when an AdSense account is closed.

Many website owners complain that their AdSense accounts have been disabled just before they were supposed to receive their first paycheck from Google. Google claims accounts have been disabled due to click fraud.^{[citation needed]}

Google came under fire when the official Google AdSense Blog showcased the French video website Imineo.com. This website violated Google's AdSense Program Policies by displaying AdSense alongside sexually explicit material. Typically, websites displaying AdSense have been banned from showing such content.^[18] Some sites have been banned for distributing copyrighted material even when they hold the copyright themselves or are authorized by the copyright holder to distribute the material.^[19]

It has been reported that using both AdSense and AdWords may cause a website to pay Google a commission when the website advertises itself.^[20]

In some cases, AdSense displays inappropriate or offensive ads. For example, in a news story about a terrorist attack in India, an advert was generated for a (presumably non-existent) educational qualification in terrorism.^[21]

[edit] See also

• Google AdWords
• List of Google products
• Pay per play
• Scraper website

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Google AdSense
• Google AdSense patent application
• Inside AdSense — Google's official weblog on AdSense

Search engine marketing, or SEM, is a form of Internet marketing that seeks to promote websites by increasing their visibility in search engine result pages (SERPs) through the use of search engine optimization, paid placement, contextual advertising, and paid inclusion.^[1][2]. Usage of the term "search engine marketing" has been inconsistent. The trade association Search Engine Marketing Professional Organization (SEMPO) includes search engine optimization (SEO), and SEO is also included in the industry definitions of SEM by Forrester Research, eMarketer, Search Engine Watch, and industry expert Danny Sullivan.^[3]. However, the New York Times restricts the definition to 'the practice of buying paid search listings'.^[4][5]

[edit] Market structure

In 2008, North American advertisers spent US$13.5 billion on search engine marketing. The largest SEM vendors are Google AdWords, Yahoo! Search Marketing and Microsoft adCenter.^[2] As of 2006, SEM was growing much faster than traditional advertising and even other channels of online marketing.^[4] Because of the complex technology, a secondary "search marketing agency" market has evolved. Many marketers have difficulty understanding the intricacies of search engine marketing and choose to rely on third party agencies to manage their search marketing.

[edit] History

As the number of sites on the Web increased in the mid-to-late 90s, search engines started appearing to help people find information quickly. Search engines developed business models to finance their services, such as pay per click programs offered by Open Text^[6] in 1996 and then Goto.com^[7] in 1998. Goto.com later changed its name^[8] to Overture in 2001, and was purchased by Yahoo! in 2003, and now offers paid search opportunities for advertisers through Yahoo! Search Marketing. Google also began to offer advertisements on search results pages in 2000 through the Google AdWords program. By 2007, pay-per-click programs proved to be primary money-makers^[9] for search engines.

Search engine optimization consultants expanded their offerings to help businesses learn about and use the advertising opportunities offered by search engines, and new agencies focusing primarily upon marketing and advertising through search engines emerged. The term "Search Engine Marketing" was proposed by Danny Sullivan in 2001^[10] to cover the spectrum of activities involved in performing SEO, managing paid listings at the search engines, submitting sites to directories, and developing online marketing strategies for businesses, organizations, and individuals.

Some of the latest theoretical advances include Search Engine Marketing Management (SEMM). SEMM relates to activities including SEO but focuses on return on investment (ROI) management instead of relevant traffic building (as is the case of mainstream SEO). SEMM also integrates organic SEO and PayPerClick SEO. For example some of the attention is placed on the web page layout design and how content and information is displayed to the website visitor.

[edit] Ethical questions

Paid search advertising has not been without controversy, and the issue of how search engines present advertising on their search result pages has been the target of a series of studies and reports^[11][12][13] by Consumer Reports WebWatch. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) also issued a letter^[14] in 2002 about the importance of disclosure of paid advertising on search engines, in response to a complaint from Commercial Alert, a consumer advocacy group with ties to Ralph Nader.

Vested interests appear to use the expression SEM to mean exclusively Pay per click advertising to the extent that the wider advertising and marketing community have accepted this narrow definition. Such usage excludes the wider search marketing community that is engaged in other forms of SEM such as Search Engine Optimization and Search Retargeting.

Another ethical controversy associated with search marketing has been the issue of trademark infringement. The debate as to whether third parties should have the right to bid on their competitors' brand names has been underway for years. In 2009 Google changed their policy, which formerly prohibited these tactics, allowing 3rd parties to bid on branded terms as long as their landing page in fact provides information on the trademarked term. ^[15] Though the policy has been changed this continues to be a source of heated debate.

[edit] See also

• Search advertising
• Digital marketing
• Internet Marketing
• Email Marketing
• Enterprise Search Marketing
• Search engine image protection
• Search Engine Reputation Management
• Search Engine Optimization
• Search Marketing World
• List of search engines

Search engines with SEM programs

• Google - global
• Yahoo! - global
• Bing - global
• Ask.com - global
• Baidu - China
• Yandex - Russia
• Rambler - Russia
• Timway - Hong Kong
• Onkosh - Arabic Search, Middle East
• Ayna - Arabic Search engine, Middle East & North Africa
• Leit.is - Iceland

[edit] References

1. ^ "Does SEM = SEO + CPC Still Add Up?". searchengineland.com. http://searchengineland.com/does-sem-seo-cpc-still-add-up-37297. Retrieved 2010-03-05.
2. ^ ^{a b} "The State of Search Engine Marketing 2006". Search Engine Land. February 8, 2007. http://searchengineland.com/070208-095009.php. Retrieved 2007-06-07.
3. ^ "A Framework For Enterprise Search Engine Marketing Strategy". MediaPost. July 2, 2008. http://www.mediapost.com/publications/index.cfm?fa=Articles.showArticle&art_aid=85941. Retrieved 2008-07-02.
4. ^ ^{a b} "More Agencies Investing in Marketing With a Click". New York Times. March 14, 2006. http://www.nytimes.com/2006/03/14/business/media/14adco.html?ex=1299992400&en=6fcd30b948dd1312&ei=5088. Retrieved 2007-06-07.
5. ^ "SEO Isn’t SEM". dmnews.com. December 5, 2005. http://www.dmnews.com/cms/dm-news/search-marketing/34955.html. Retrieved 2007-06-07.
6. ^ "Engine sells results, draws fire". news.com.com. June 21, 1996. http://news.com.com/2100-1023-215491.html. Retrieved 2007-06-09.
7. ^ "GoTo Sells Positions". searchenginewatch.com. March 3, 1998. http://searchenginewatch.com/showPage.html?page=2165971. Retrieved 2007-06-09.
8. ^ "GoTo gambles with new name". news.com.com. September 10, 2001. http://news.com.com/GoTo+gambles+with+new+name/2100-1023_3-272795.html. Retrieved 2007-06-09.
9. ^ Jansen, B. J. (May 2007). "The Comparative Effectiveness of Sponsored and Nonsponsored Links for Web E-commerce Queries" (PDF). ACM Transactions on the Web,. http://ist.psu.edu/faculty_pages/jjansen/academic/pubs/jansen_tweb_sponsored_links.pdf. Retrieved 2007-06-09.
10. ^ "Congratulations! You're A Search Engine Marketer!". searchenginewatch.com. November 5, 2001. http://searchenginewatch.com/showPage.html?page=2164351. Retrieved 2007-06-09.
11. ^ "False Oracles: Consumer Reaction to Learning the Truth About How Search Engines Work (Abstract)". consumerwebwatch.org. June 30, 2003. http://www.consumerwebwatch.org/dynamic/search-report-false-oracles-abstract.cfm. Retrieved 2007-06-09.
12. ^ "Searching for Disclosure: How Search Engines Alert Consumers to the Presence of Advertising in Search Results". consumerwebwatch.org. November 8, 2004. http://www.consumerwebwatch.org/dynamic/search-report-disclosure-abstract.cfm. Retrieved 2007-06-09.
13. ^ "Still in Search of Disclosure: Re-evaluating How Search Engines Explain the Presence of Advertising in Search Results". consumerwebwatch.org. June 9, 2005. http://www.consumerwebwatch.org/dynamic/search-report-disclosure-update-abstract.cfm. Retrieved 2007-06-09.
14. ^ "Re: Complaint Requesting Investigation of Various Internet Search Engine Companies for Paid Placement or (Pay per click)". ftc.gov. June 22, 2002. http://www.ftc.gov/os/closings/staff/commercialalertletter.shtm. Retrieved 2007-06-09.
15. ^ "Update to U.S. ad text trademark policy (Abstract)". http://adwords.blogspot.com.+May 14, 2009.

SEO is an acronym for "search engine optimization" or "search engine optimizer." Deciding to hire an SEO is a big decision that can potentially improve your site and save time, but you can also risk damage to your site and reputation. Make sure to research the potential advantages as well as the damage that an irresponsible SEO can do to your site. Many SEOs and other agencies and consultants provide useful services for website owners, including:

• Review of your site content or structure
• Technical advice on website development: for example, hosting, redirects, error pages, use of JavaScript
• Content development
• Management of online business development campaigns
• Keyword research
• SEO training
• Expertise in specific markets and geographies.

Keep in mind that the Google search results page includes organic search results and often paid advertisement (denoted by the heading "Sponsored Links") as well. Advertising with Google won't have any effect on your site's presence in our search results. Google never accepts money to include or rank sites in our search results, and it costs nothing to appear in our organic search results. Free resources such as Webmaster Tools, the official Webmaster Central blog, and our discussion forum can provide you with a great deal of information about how to optimize your site for organic search. Many of these free sources, as well as information on paid search, can be found on Google Webmaster Central.

Before beginning your search for an SEO, it's a great idea to become an educated consumer and get familiar with how search engines work. We recommend starting here:

• Google Webmaster Guidelines
• Google 101: How Google crawls, indexes and serves the web.

If you're thinking about hiring an SEO, the earlier the better. A great time to hire is when you're considering a site redesign, or planning to launch a new site. That way, you and your SEO can ensure that your site is designed to be search engine-friendly from the bottom up. However, a good SEO can also help improve an existing site.

Some useful questions to ask an SEO include:

• Can you show me examples of your previous work and share some success stories?
• Do you follow the Google Webmaster Guidelines?
• Do you offer any online marketing services or advice to complement your organic search business?
• What kind of results do you expect to see, and in what timeframe? How do you measure your success?
• What's your experience in my industry?
• What's your experience in my country/city?
• What's your experience developing international sites?
• What are your most important SEO techniques?
• How long have you been in business?
• How can I expect to communicate with you? Will you share with me all the changes you make to my site, and provide detailed information about your recommendations and the reasoning behind them?

While SEOs can provide clients with valuable services, some unethical SEOs have given the industry a black eye through their overly aggressive marketing efforts and their attempts to manipulate search engine results in unfair ways. Practices that violate our guidelines may result in a negative adjustment of your site's presence in Google, or even the removal of your site from our index. Here are some things to consider:

• Be wary of SEO firms and web consultants or agencies that send you email out of the blue.

  Amazingly, we get these spam emails too:

  "Dear google.com,
  I visited your website and noticed that you are not listed in most of the major search engines and directories..."

  Reserve the same skepticism for unsolicited email about search engines as you do for "burn fat at night" diet pills or requests to help transfer funds from deposed dictators.

• No one can guarantee a #1 ranking on Google.

  Beware of SEOs that claim to guarantee rankings, allege a "special relationship" with Google, or advertise a "priority submit" to Google. There is no priority submit for Google. In fact, the only way to submit a site to Google directly is through our Add URL page or by submitting a Sitemap and you can do this yourself at no cost whatsoever.

• Be careful if a company is secretive or won't clearly explain what they intend to do.

  Ask for explanations if something is unclear. If an SEO creates deceptive or misleading content on your behalf, such as doorway pages or "throwaway" domains, your site could be removed entirely from Google's index. Ultimately, you are responsible for the actions of any companies you hire, so it's best to be sure you know exactly how they intend to "help" you. If an SEO has FTP access to your server, they should be willing to explain all the changes they are making to your site.

• You should never have to link to an SEO.

  Avoid SEOs that talk about the power of "free-for-all" links, link popularity schemes, or submitting your site to thousands of search engines. These are typically useless exercises that don't affect your ranking in the results of the major search engines -- at least, not in a way you would likely consider to be positive.

• Choose wisely.

  While you consider whether to go with an SEO, you may want to do some research on the industry. Google is one way to do that, of course. You might also seek out a few of the cautionary tales that have appeared in the press, including this article on one particularly aggressive SEO: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2002002970_nwbizbriefs12.html. While Google doesn't comment on specific companies, we've encountered firms calling themselves SEOs who follow practices that are clearly beyond the pale of accepted business behavior. Be careful.

• Be sure to understand where the money goes.

  While Google never sells better ranking in our search results, several other search engines combine pay-per-click or pay-for-inclusion results with their regular web search results. Some SEOs will promise to rank you highly in search engines, but place you in the advertising section rather than in the search results. A few SEOs will even change their bid prices in real time to create the illusion that they "control" other search engines and can place themselves in the slot of their choice. This scam doesn't work with Google because our advertising is clearly labeled and separated from our search results, but be sure to ask any SEO you're considering which fees go toward permanent inclusion and which apply toward temporary advertising.

• What are the most common abuses a website owner is likely to encounter?

One common scam is the creation of "shadow" domains that funnel users to a site by using deceptive redirects. These shadow domains often will be owned by the SEO who claims to be working on a client's behalf. However, if the relationship sours, the SEO may point the domain to a different site, or even to a competitor's domain. If that happens, the client has paid to develop a competing site owned entirely by the SEO.

Another illicit practice is to place "doorway" pages loaded with keywords on the client's site somewhere. The SEO promises this will make the page more relevant for more queries. This is inherently false since individual pages are rarely relevant for a wide range of keywords. More insidious, however, is that these doorway pages often contain hidden links to the SEO's other clients as well. Such doorway pages drain away the link popularity of a site and route it to the SEO and its other clients, which may include sites with unsavory or illegal content.

• What are some other things to look out for?

There are a few warning signs that you may be dealing with a rogue SEO. It's far from a comprehensive list, so if you have any doubts, you should trust your instincts. By all means, feel free to walk away if the SEO:

• owns shadow domains
• puts links to their other clients on doorway pages
• offers to sell keywords in the address bar
• doesn't distinguish between actual search results and ads that appear on search results pages
• guarantees ranking, but only on obscure, long keyword phrases you would get anyway
• operates with multiple aliases or falsified WHOIS info
• gets traffic from "fake" search engines, spyware, or scumware
• has had domains removed from Google's index or is not itself listed in Google

If you feel that you were deceived by an SEO in some way, you may want to report it.

In the United States, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) handles complaints about deceptive or unfair business practices. To file a complaint, visit: http://www.ftc.gov/ and click on "File a Complaint Online," call 1-877-FTC-HELP, or write to:

Federal Trade Commission
CRC-240
Washington, D.C. 20580

If your complaint is against a company in a country other than the United States, please file it at http://www.econsumer.gov/.