New user - Thumbnails and database indexing

[ms4u]

Hi,

I am interested to use zoom search engine on one of my directory website at my homepage at www.searchukbusiness.com.

Currently my directory is installed at sub-folder level at www.searchukbusiness.com/business-directory/, and I am currently using the PhpLD directory script.

What I am planning to do is, I want to have a search engine at my homepage for my online users to search. My question is, can zoom search engine carry out search by extracting data from my directory database?

Secondly, as in my directory the listing are displayed with thumbshot, does the search result produced by zoom search engine are possible to integrate with thumbnail?

Please let me know. Thanks

[David]

See this page for information about indexing data in databases.
Q. How can I use Zoom to index my site stored in a database (eg. SQL, Access, etc.)?

And this one for thumbs
Q. How do I associate images with my search results?

[ms4u]

Thanks wrensoft,

Thanks for the prompt reply. With regards to the thumbnail, currently my directory script is using thumbshots.org dynamic integration to generate website thumbnail image using the following code:

<img src="http://open.thumbshots.org/image.aspx?url=[my website URL]" border="1" />

Can zoom search engine integrate this type of thumbnail?

[David]

I didn't test it but in theory it should be OK.
In the thumbnail configuration window for the file type in question,

Select,
Display different thumbnails for each file

Enter nothing into the URL folder (leave it blank).

Enter,
<img src="http://open.thumbshots.org/image.aspx?url=
into the "before the name field"

and enter,
" border="1" />
into the "after the name field"

[ms4u]

Hi wrensoft,

In the thumbnail configuration, which type of file should I select? I tried php, aspx and they won't work. My thumbnail is generated dynamicly via thumbshot, so I am not sure how do I make it display along with zoom search results.

I uploaded my files at the following:
http://www.searchukbusiness.com/search/search.php

I can't really see how the thumbnails are going to work with the format of zoom search result.

Also, is there any ways to prevent folders to be indexed, such as in my case:
http://www.searchukbusiness.com/business-directory/business_and_finance/

I only want to index this format of URL with display of thumbnail:
http://www.searchukbusiness.com/business-directory/detail/link-9.html

I tried couple of few time earlier, but it won't work, if I skipped those folders, the rest of the link won't be indexed.

Is it make much sense?

[ms4u]

Hi,

I got another question, currently my search result displayed the context description all the same throughout each listing. Is there anyway to display unique description as similar to my listing description? Such as the following listing details:
http://www.searchukbusiness.com/business-directory/detail/link-15.html

What I want to achieve is something like this website,
http://www.businessgalore.co.uk/results.asp?search=website+design

where each of the listings are displayed as similar to the directory.

[David]

I did some testing and I think thumbnails can work.

Let imagine all the pages on your site a HTML page (.html).

Go into the Zoom configuration window. On the scan options tab select .html, then click on configure. The click on configure images. The use these settings in the image configuration window.

Display different thumbnails for each file

Enter
http://open.thumbshots.org/
into the URL folder.

Enter,
image.aspx?url=http://www.searchukbusiness.com/business-directory/
into the "before the name field"

and enter nothing into the "after the name field", leave it blank.

Enter .html into the file extension field. (this generates a warning, as an image format is normally expected, but in your case your URL doesn't have a file type, so but ignore the warning).

Then for each HTML page on your site a URL like this will be generated. For example for the index.html page, you get this URL.

<img src="http://open.thumbshots.org/image.aspx?url=http://www.searchukbusiness.com/business-directory/index.html" alt="" class="result_image">

Now if all your pages were .php pages, you need to repeat the above process for the .php file extension.

[David]

Also, is there any ways to prevent folders to be indexed, such as in my case:
http://www.searchukbusiness.com/busi...s_and_finance/

Just enter
/business-directory/business_and_finance/
into the Zoom skip list.

See also the Users Guide for more details about skipping pages.

[David]

I got another question, currently my search result displayed the context description all the same throughout each listing.

I did search on your site and didn't see this. The context was different for many pages, as it should be. If the context is the same on some pages, it is becuase the content on the pages is the same.

You should also look at using ZOOMSTOP tags on your common navigation element, menus footers, etc...

See,
Q. How do I prevent parts of my webpage from being indexed (eg. exclude navigation menus, or page footers)?

[ms4u]

Hi wrensoft,

Thanks for your response. I wonder in any part of zoom configuration, is there any ways to include a dynamic URL in the thumbnail code. What I want is to generate individual thumbnail for each independent website, as showed in my directory.

Initially, I through that zoom search engine is able to extract the details from my directory database and display straight away. But unfortunately is not really as straight forward as what I expected. Or, am I missing anything?

[David]

What I want is to generate individual thumbnail for each independent website, as showed in my directory.

Are you saying that you want to display a thumbnail for an external sites, when the results results are for pages on your site?

In your posts above you implied that the thumbnail was for for your own site, "[my website URL]". And that the path to the image was formed from the URL to the page on your site. Or is this a different question from your initial question?

If you just want to display an arbitrary image with a page on your site then see this FAQ.
Q. How do I associate a thumbnail with a particular page?

I through that zoom search engine is able to extract the details from my directory database and display straight away

What details? To display what data?