Are you guys deleting threads now? But don’t you want the threads to stay up so they appear on google search results? In fact I can tell you right now, Ubuntu Discourse threads never ever show up on google, do you know why that is?
For instance, when I have a problem with Ubuntu and I start googling I’ll see askubuntu and Reddit threads show up but I don’t ever see Ubuntu Discourse threads show up, why is that?
I’m just curious.
No, closed threads are not deleted.
If a post/thread is spam, it’ll be deleted. If the post breaches the Ubuntu Code of Conduct it maybe hidden until edited by Original Poster, or if that’s not done, edited by a Mod or deleted, but deletion is very rare.
Are all posts closed? No, in fact I looked at my own history, and an early post I opened in October 2017 is still open today for replies; but yes some posts in some areas of the site do auto-close if ignored. It helps people search the site, and be less distracted by older threads that may not apply to their newer system/question.
I know that is not true, as I’m regularly using support sites, and want to paste a link that I know is on here, and that usually means I find the link using a search engine to find it, so I’m finding pages easily, though most of the time I’m not search on google (I’m more likely to use startpage, duckduckgo, bing) but I’d expect the same if I did use google search.
As for when google web crawlers find pages, that’s up to how they work; and I’m no expert there sorry.
I do know google finds pages, eg. I just opened a google search & entered a search phrase, the second link was to a page on this site.
Not in the way you are thinking.
Closing != Deleting.
A closed topic simply means no new replies permitted anymore. The topic still exists and is discoverable by users and by search engines.
Support and Help topics close when activity stops. This prevents ancient topics from being resurrected months or years later by new users who don’t look at the date and are misled by the stale or outdated information within. We call that “necro-posting” and it frustrates everyone, and closing is an effective way to prevent it.
Topics in other categories generally don’t close, so be sure you’re looking at the date.
If, for some reason, you REALLY want to add to a very old topic, you can PM to @moderators and ask for the topic to be reopened.
Ubuntu Discourse does not block Search Engines.
Keep in mind that Google (and most other Search Engines) helpfully keep track of what you select and try to show you more of that. If Discourse is not showing up on Google for you, that might say more about your previous selections than about Discourse.
I must agree with the original poster, I have never seen ubuntu discord come up in a search query. Reddit, AskUbuntu, Archwiki, How-to-Geek, Debian Wiki, Linux Magazine, Dedoimedo, Wikipedia, no sign of Discourse when I just Googled Wayland.
Google search result from right now.
You have to keep in mind that there are a lot of factors affecting search results:
Try searching in Private Mode (or whatever your browser calls it).
Another thing to consider is that as a site offering support in the Support and Help category specifically, Ubuntu Discourse is only about 6-7 months old.
As our database of topics grows, I would expect to see more searchable results in the future.
I’ll have to agree here completely with @ian-weisser
I only installed this system ~two hours ago, though it was non-destructively done so my data survived, and opening a page to google and searching for “Wayland Ubuntu” has
as the first result for me. Identical result as I now note @rubi1200 got (I hadn’t read his post when I wrote this reply, otherwise I’d not have left it)
Thanks @rubi1200 for screenshot of page; that idea hadn’t occurred to me ! but my search result is identical.
Here are screenshots of my query:
No sign of Discourse, and I have done many previous Google searches with Discourse in them so it has nothing to do with Google displaying my personalised preferences.
It may be more to do with the DNS servers used by EE in this area (UK).
Well, you explicitly picked “linux wayland” while the others rather searched in an Ubuntu context…
@ogra True, but I would have expected something more from the Ubuntu family of flavours, Debian and Arch are represented, Ubuntu is the leading flavour of Linux, with more installs than all the others, it does seem weird that Ubuntu has zero representation, not even the legacy Ubuntu Forums.
Debian volunteers made an excellent, useful, up-to-date Wayland reference. It deserves to be a top result.
If any Ubuntu volunteer feels that there should be more and better Ubuntu documentation, with correspondingly better Search Engine visibility, then…do it! There are projects asking for exactly that kind of help.
Ian - It’s been many years since I did any SEO stuff, I wouldn’t know where to start these days!
I set up my own website in 1997 when I opened my trailer factory in Perth WA and I still have my own top-level domain (now unused) www.erdetrailers.com
Tony
I’m telling you whenever I have a problem with Ubuntu and I start googling, I never ever see Ubuntu Discourse pop up in the search results, it’s always askubuntu and Reddit that show up. Maybe Ubuntu Discourse is being buried on the second page, as I never ever check the second page, no one does.
I think both of those have been addressed already earlier in this topic.
Unless, of course, there is a suggestion being offered.
Just wanted to report my story.
Thanks to all for participating in this discussion.
Thread Closed.
