rel nofollow for 1 or certain forum?

[dutchbb]

Is it possible to add rel nofollow for chat boards, but not other boards on a forum? Google crawler is always in our chat board, but less in our on topic boards where I want it to be !

[BamaStangGuy]

Adding a rel nofollow to your chat board is not going to make google more active in your on topic forums. It will still index the same amount of threads and posts.

I think this is a very bad idea honestly.

[dutchbb]

When the robot comes to my board it goes 90% of the time to the chat section. (I think because it's so big). So when it can't, it has no choice but to go to other links i.e. on topic boards, and that's the audience/traffic that I want to attract, not the chatters. So I think this is better, it's the same as if you decide what content your site sends to google index.

I don't see why that would be bad. I rather have the right people on the board, and less traffic, than the wrong people and more traffic

[BamaStangGuy]

When the robot comes to my board it goes 90% of the time to the chat section. (I think because it's so big). So when it can't, it has no choice but to go to other links i.e. on topic boards, and that's the audience/traffic that I want to attract, not the chatters. So I think this is better, it's the same as if you decide what content your site sends to google index.

That is not how search engines work. They crawl your content once and that is all they need to do.

All your On topic articles are being crawled regardless of whether or not your Off Topic areas have a rel nofollow link.

Making search engines not follow your Off Topic content reduces your overall content that is searchable via search engines.

You may not see this as important but people still find your site in search engines via your off topic content.

However, it is your site and your funeral so to say so if that is what you want then have at it, you are just reducing your total crawled pages in search engines.

I don't see why that would be bad. I rather have the right people on the board, and less traffic, than the wrong people and more traffic

But it makes no difference, like I said above, how your On Topic areas are crawled if you add a rel nofollow.

They are going to be crawled regardless, you are just cutting back your exposure if you take away your off topic area.

[dutchbb]

Sorry I don't believe you are right. Yes, less overal content is availlable to be added in google index. But more ON topic content will be added. Because they will index the same number of pages, only no off topic. So it's very logic there wil be more on topic content to be found in google index.

That will send more people who are actually interested in your site's main topic, and less chatters who often post useless topics and put more stress on your server. I don't want chatters - I want people who are talking about interesting topics. The point is, you can actually pick who visits your site, by changing the links to be found in search engines. We experience that every day. That's why this would be a good add on for me.

[BamaStangGuy]

Sorry I don't believe you are right. Yes, less overal content is availlable to be added in google index. But more ON topic content will be added. Because they will index the same number of pages, only no off topic. So it's very logic there wil be more on topic content to be found in google index.

I can not understand how you come to this conclusion but ok. Google indexes all the pages it finds on your site and will continue to do so whether or not you have a rel nofollow on off topic or now....

Maybe Jaun can clarify this for the both of us?