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I would like to see chat rooms indexed by search engines. To make this possible, the 'load older messages' button at the top of chat rooms would need to work without JavaScript, or else the chat room page should show all messages if JavaScript is not enabled.

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I sure would like them not to be indexed by search engines.

This is a chat, it's half informal, why would you want that indexed by Google? Questions and answers, ok, that's the whole point, it brings answers to people searching. But chats? I don't see how it would be useful to the world.

It's like comments under questions and answers. They don't bring value which would be interesting to index on a search engine, and as such, are explicitly advising them to not index them (if I understood the whole "nofollow" thing).

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    IRC in 2010, baby.
    – George Stocker
    Commented Jul 14, 2010 at 14:32
  • Good point. In that case it might be a good idea to let users know.
    – Liam
    Commented Jul 14, 2010 at 15:25
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    Chat can't be a secret forever you know.
    – rlb.usa
    Commented Jul 14, 2010 at 16:00
  • The word's going to get out to the world soon and the throngs will be pouring in to expect a better-experts-exchange : insta-SOUFM-answers! (shudder) (Want your insta-answers? Come to SO-chat and just-add-reputation, 20 to be precise)
    – rlb.usa
    Commented Jul 14, 2010 at 16:01
  • Interesting, it may not be indexed by Google, but all content is licensed under cc-wiki, and dumps will be made available. So anything you say on chat will be public, just not quite as prominent as if it was indexed by Google.
    – Liam
    Commented Jul 15, 2010 at 9:14
  • @Liam - comments I make under questions and answers are public too, and in cc-wiki as well. They are not indexed by search engines anyway. I agree that I go too far on the "privacy" issue, the main point is more about indexing, since it doesn't really have a value. It's still publicly available, though.
    – Gnoupi
    Commented Jul 15, 2010 at 9:36
  • I agree. I'm not very comfortable with the situation myself.
    – Warner
    Commented Jul 15, 2010 at 15:06
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Yes, they will be indexed. They are public by default.

(you can't talk in a room unless you have 20 rep on the parent site, but you can listen as much as you want)

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