After having released MTLookup, I received a lot of suggestions about which websites to include in future versions. There was one suggestion that almost anybody mentioned: the Movable Type User Manual.

My initial plan was to keep the database stable in July and extend it next month together with the new version of MTLookup. I ignored this plan, and made the MTLookupBot read parts of the Six Apart hompeage. As a result, the User Manual and some other documents are now included in the index.

How is a Document included?

MTLookup is made up of two important components:

• MTLookup is a standard SQL-based application. A user can enter some search phrase. Based on this, a result list is created by executing a fulltext query. You as a user are working with this component.
• Moreover, there is an information-collecting component. It reads web pages and stores extracted data into the MySQL database. This is the MTLookupBot.

Basically, the MTLookupBot is very similar to many other search engine bots. However, there is one major difference: the MTLookupBot does not work on its own. It is not a programm seeking for information by itself.

I manually direct the MTLookupBot to specific websites, that I or you regard as interesting. Currently, there are no plans to change that behavior. The quality of the database will become worse, if the MTLookupBot decides, whether a web page is to be included or not.

So if you find interesting information that should be included in the MTLookup database, or you want to have your own Movable Type related articles be indexed, please let me know. Use my email address given on contact.

Next month, with the release of the new version of MTLookup, a specification will be given, that allows a smooth cooperation between an author and MTLookup. With the help of an XML-file that can be created by a simple index template, an author can tell MTLookup where his/her Movable Type related articles can be found. The XML structure and some tools will be finished in late July. If you want to be informed early, and take part in the tests, please contact me.

Summary

If you want to know more, you should open the category »MTLookup« in this website's sidebar. It contains several articles about this tool. Moreover, the MTLookup website has additionaly information. For example, there is an introduction to the subject, a detailed help and some words about plans for the future.

Want to read on?

If you are interested in this subject, please select the category »MTLookup« from the sidebar. It will show all related articles in chronological order.

mgs | 07/12/2005

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