seems like such a noob question, but to this day i still dont know for sure. would the answer be make one comment tags with one or two keywords in it at the top of the page (no stuffing) and at least you've covered your bases?
Do you really know that it doesn't count for anything, do you know the components of the google algo? I've seen a site ranked no.1 for a very competitive keyword with loads of html comments. I think the benefit is somewhat off set by reducing the visible text to code ratio!
Why would google use comments in it's algo if a visitor can't see comments? Google know what comments are, They aren't stupid. Show me the site that is ranking #1 for a very competitive keyword.
so i dont feel so stupid now...my guess would be they ignore it, but i guess it cant hurt to have maybe two keyword phrases in a comment tag. Plus yahoo and msn might read them.
Definitly not a stupid question. With no proof to back me up, I would assume it is read and counted for the content on the page. css class names are and those are similar in nature that they aren't actually part of the content. Tread carefully and don't get spammy with this. It is common knowledge that stuffing keywords in areas of a page that cannot be seen in a browser is against the TOS for many search engines. Don't get banned for this when there are many other great areas of HTML to exploit. I'd be interested to hear from someone who has had success or failure with this. Like I said I have never tested as the risk has never been worth the benefit for any site of mine. Interesting thought though.
I don't think Google read the comments. On Google Analytics "Site Overlay" you can check how Google sees your site.