Good Way To Check For Real PR Update...

Ok, due to the fact that very few people will actually read all of the posts in the current (and the past, and most likely the future) "PR Update" threads, I thought I'd post a nice little example of how to make sure something is actually happening.

When PageRank is updated (talking visual update here, anyone who thinks they're being intelligent by pointing out that behind the scenes PR is updated constantly should be slapped), Google bases it on a single snapshot from a specific point in time (same goes for BL updates, btw). That point in time is usually a few weeks prior to the actual export. When you are looking at PR, it is calculated by all using all of the links that Google knows about at that time. Any links you get to your site after than snapshot won't be counted, even if you get them prior to the actual PR itself being exported.

One of the spinoffs of this is that any webpages that didn't exist before the update will not have PR until the next update. This is important, especially with the current out-of-sync datacenter situation that Google has at this time. Currently there are certain datacenters that are still showing pre-August PageRank values for sites. What this means is that if someone looks at a webpage at different times, if the pre-August PR is different from the latest PR, sometimes they will see different results. Same thing when using a multi-dc PR checking tool... some DC's will have one value, while others will have the older, last year values.

People who do not realize this, and check their PR say, every couple of months using a multi-dc tool, might see what they think is a PR shift, and assume that the difference in values means a recent change. Hence, a new flurry of "PR Update" threads get spawned.

However, while this makes it slightly more difficult nowadays to check for PR updates, it does not make it impossible. You cannot reliably use pages that had existed going back 2 updates, but you can always use newly created pages, ones that did not exist prior to the last snapshot date. A good source of tracking down pages that we can pinpoint a date on and assume Google knew about the page back then, is popular blogs.

Look, for instance, at this page on Matt Cutts blog:

http://www.mattcutts.com/blog/good-charities-or-places-to-help/

That page was created on 12/28/2006. We can safely assume that Google know about that page within a day or two (at most) of it being posted. Therefore, we know that the last snapshot date had to be after that post. Now, the very next post after that:

http://www.mattcutts.com/blog/my-thoughts-on-recent-google-tips/

which is dated 12/29/06, is PR0. What's more, it is PR0 across all datacenters.

Works for other popular blogs as well, here's TechCrunch on 12/28 vs. TechCrunch on 12/29. Obviously the last PR snapshot date was around 12/29/06.

Therefore, before starting a PR Update thread, it is probably a good idea to base it around observations where you can actually show before and after data, rather than just "I see changes" types of responses.

-Michael

 

Thanks for this post, rep added.

 

A useful guide for those unfamiliar with the concept of and science behind PR. I think I'll rep you for the obvious effort you've made.

 

I love that line. There is always that person. Why bother trying to guess behind the scences PR when visual PR are the only tangible facts we have to go by?

Nice post and rep added.

 

MV... you cut me off at the pass.

I was just about to start a thread saying that I think I'm seeing some PR changes on some of the DP topics!

/*tom*/

 

hmm, maybe this should be stickied - and then we can just point all of the annoying threads this way

 

Finally a good post about PR. Thanks.

 

Very Nice Post, thanks.. Rep added

 

This is some very good info and hopefully will help quell the storm of pr update threads. PR is like crack to people at DP.

 

Nice post.

Do not forget old PR.

 

IMO.. serp updates is much more useful to my site. and glad to see one by one.. craw to top 10.

to me PR just and indicator.. and its not updated much. 4 month once maybe.

 

nice post

thanks man

 

Nice post. Rep added

 

Good thread. I've noticed for some time that the new pages in my sites that pick up PR during the updates were first indexed at least 30 days prior to the update, so I firmly believe that updates are based upon a snapshot.

 

Thanks for the very useful post, Michael

I hope we will see lesser PR update thread in this visual PR update..

 

Now the big question is how can you tell when a snapshot is taken for the next PR update ??

 

Not sure when will have a snapshot
But in order to gain PRs
according PRs history reports
also Google do major PR update about around quarterly...
So suggest... every time better have your websites ready be exposed "two months ahead of each quarter".

 

Very imformative! Thanks for the post, sending a greenie your way.

 

good post..green rep added.

 

Nice observation, it brings alot of light to the PR situation. Thanks for the post and nice read.