AltaVista Feedback AltaVista Home
AltaVista Help AltaVista Home

The fastest way to find a response is to browse our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs). Below you can read the most popular FAQs.

Please email us your comments, suggestions, and questions at search-support@altavista.com.

For a more effective response, tell us:

if you want a reply
your email address and URL
the address of the page you were on when you
     had a suggestion or error.

 For technical problems, please remember to tell us:
what browser, version, & platform you use
a precise description of the problem

AltaVista's Most Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Questions For Searchers:

  1. How can I see more than 200 results? Answer
  2. What does error code 301 or 302 mean? Answer
  3. Why are results sometimes inconsistent? Answer

Questions For Web Developers:

  1. Why did my site became lower in the results? Answer
  2. Can you tell me how to remove my URL from the index? Answer
  3. Why am I getting a message that says 'Too Many Urls Submitted'? Answer
  4. How can I ensure a good ranking for my Web site? Answer
  5. Can you update my URL with the correct title or keywords? Answer
  6. How can I avoid having my site blocked? Answer
  7. Why has my URL disappeared from the index? Answer


Answers For Searchers:

1. How can I see more than 200 results?

If you really need more matches, you can try using our Advanced Search service using only a Boolean Expression. Return to FAQs
Note: You will be able to page through all the matches, but the results will not be organized or ranked.
2. What does error code 301 or 302 mean?
Error code 301 means you have been relocated to a different server permanently so the URL has been redirected. Error code 302 means you have been relocated to a different server on a temporary basis. Return to FAQs
3. Why are the results sometimes inconsistent?
When you search for broad topic areas using one or two keywords, many pages contain relatively equal amounts of the content you requested. The ranking of these pages may change over time. You can narrow your search by making your search terms more specific or rare. You can also use quotation mark around a phrase or try include (+)or exclude (-) values in front of your search terms to achieve more precise results. Return to FAQs

For Example:

Instead of searching for dogs pets
try poodle "golden retriever" +dog -cat

Answers For Web Developers:

1. Why did my site became lower in the results?

When surfers search for broad topic areas using one or two keywords, the search engine sometimes finds multiple pages containing equal or similar amounts of content. The ranking of these pages can change over time. Return to FAQs

Note: We do not sell result rankings to individuals or companies. You can contact our advertisers if you wish to purchase advertising space in the ad banner above specific results pages.

2. Can you tell me how to remove my URL from the index?
You can remove a URL from our index by clicking on the “Add Pages” button on the bottom of the AltaVista search page and then entering the URL in the form provided. If the URL is no longer pointing to a valid page on the web, it will be removed from our index. Return to FAQs
3. Why am I getting a message that says 'Too Many Urls Submitted'?
It's a good idea to submit only the top URL to our index. Our technology will crawl through your document and find the linked pages. To prevent abuse of our Add Pages tool, we limit the number of requests per day for each Web Developer. Return to FAQs
4. How can I ensure a good ranking for my Web site?
The best way to improve the ranking of your web site is to be more specific about the content by using synonyms or locations in meta tags within your HTML document. It's not a good idea to use duplicate words multiple times, use keywords excessively, or include keywords that do not relate to the content of your document. Return to FAQs
5. Can you update my URL with the correct title or keywords?
We cannot make changes to your site. We suggest that you can either update the changes yourself or contact your web designer or administrator to make the changes and then resubmit the address to our Add pages section. Return to FAQs
6. How can I avoid having my site blocked?
Avoid using duplicate words multiple times, including keywords excessively, or using keywords that do not relate to the content of your document. Return to FAQs
7. Why has my URL disappeared from the index?
Periodically, we rebuild an index from scratch and a few pages may be lost during this process. We apologize for any inconvenience. If you would like to resubmit your site,go to our Add Pages section from the bottom of the Search page. Return to FAQs
For more Frequently Asked Questions, see our Help section.

AltaVista Home | Help