Bots

So I kinda pay attention to the Battletech Encyclopedia and watch the log files, see the images getting created, and so forth.  It actually helps me spot many issues, I'll see a black mech image and notice that I had an extra space in the filename, or pull up a mech to see dozens of APGRs because I had a typo in the database.


Anyway, I submitted the page to google so they could scrape the site, help me get rankings in search engines, and hopefully bring some more fans over so they can shower me with insults and issues, which I can then fix.  


Now, a while back I posted some special features on the site to help you search for stuff.  You can enter in some of the search specs on the URL request and if only 1 entry exists, it'll take you there.  


Well I made a quite site, the "complete listing" on the tabs up top on this page, that had a direct URL to every single unit.


Took around a month, but it looks like google is scraping the crap outta it.  I have 2731 record sheets generated right now (all mechs, its all I'm supporting at the moment) and nearly 4600 quick strike cards.  Wowza!  That is about 4GB of "temp files".  When you view a mech, it'll use the record sheet already generated, so should be a bit faster than usual.  Quick strike cards and the megamek icons (if you use that search method, which I recommend at least once) are being generated each time.


So, lets say your looking for a mech, lets say the SHD-2H Shadow Hawk.  If you go to google, type in "goodsects SHD-2H", it is the 4th link.  Google something less common, like the PRF-1R Prefect ("goodsects PRF-1") and its the first link.  Cool huh?  Now you can basically do a quick and easy google search to find your favorite mech, without having to go through my site at all!  You can use mech names too, like "goodsects Sirocco" and it'll work, often as the first link as my domain isn't too common a string out there.


So basically, remember "goodsects" as your first search term, and use google to hit my site directly and find stuff out.  For those of you more google friendly, using "WHM-6rb site:goodsects.gotdns.com" and specifying the site you can pretty much be assured it'll be the first match, but thats a lot longer to type. 


History Lesson:  "Goodsects" was a technology company I had a few years back, it was short for "Good Sects Technology", and I did contract work for GTE and various smaller companies around the DFW metroplex.  It looks harmless until you say it out loud :)  That is where the domain came from, and may help you remember it.  Oh, and I use "goodsects.gotdns.com" instead of "goodsects.com" so I can host the site at my house, and I have software that updates that domain name with my dynamic IP if it ever changes (which it rarely does).  Eventually I'll probably host this somewhere else, but for now its on a server in my extra room.


Also, I made a HUGE number of updates to the site and database today.  Most relatively minor, but it fixes a large number of units that popped up with errors (if you see an error for a unit and want to see it, leave a comment, I'll fix it that day most likely).  Check out the History page to see more details.


I meant to finish up most of the record sheets tonight, but like most nights the last few weeks I'll be playing Tribes Ascend instead, sorry, and MWO goes beta in a week, which means I may not get to doing it for a while :)  Please please please let MWO not be a typically F2P game and nickel and dime me out of fun.  For the record, I blew $150 on TA, which is most likely because I was a HUGE fan Tribes 1 and 2, but its not quite as fun or team balanced as the predecessors (but the engine is much improved).