New version of Yahoo’s Site Explorer could be a sign of things to come

Google’s Webmaster Tools is one of the most useful resources for finding out how Google is reading a website, as well as diagnosing any problematic issues and recording website preferences with Google. In the same line is Yahoo’s Site Explorer which has similar features as Google’s Webmaster Tools, but is not as widely used.

Well Yahoo is offering you to preview and use a new version of their Site Explorer which is now slicker and more dynamic. The new version has surfaced due to the expected expansion of the Site Explorer tool which will compete directly with Google’s version of the tool.

On initial trial of the newest Site Explorer, I have noticed you use up to 10 rules for Dynamic URL rewriting (previously 3) which is bound to come in useful. The navigation bar has now moved position and offers links to other Yahoo services such as the Web Service API, as well as having a ‘Feedback area’ where users can post suggestions and discussions on a suggestion board.

One thing to note at this point is that if you have sites in the standard Yahoo Site Explorer, these are not currently showing in the new version, hopefully this will change shortly.

Keep an eye on the new version of Yaho’?s Site Explorer as you can expect more features to come in the next few weeks, which will help with applying good SEO techniques in the Yahoo SERPs.

William Gardner – SEO Programmer