MTFCA Forum

Hey guys,
Has anyone else noticed that Google search results are not showing information current and past from the MTFCA site?
A couple weeks ago it was not a problem to search for many topics that have been posted over the years through the MTFCA website. I would usually just google the topic and add MTFCA at the end of the topic. I could easily find articles and images, now the information is not listed as it use to be. I just tried Googling Schrader Valve Stems MTFCA. Google lists it as a topic with a number and it's about the 4th or 5th result and without a description. Take a look at the pics of what I'm referring to. The first one is the search results notice how Google is displaying the search info "No information is available for this page"
Second one is what you get when you click on the link to show you why.

Yes I know that you can search the MTFCA forum using the search bar, but that's only for topics covered 2019 forward, but there is a wealth of info from the previous forum that was accessible just by googling the topic and adding MTFCA at the end, now it seems that Google is not showing it.

Yes.

That is so weird. Don't have an answer either. Was easy way to search old forum posts.
Even trying to use 'quotes' in the terms didn't work.


But just tried search with Yahoo, and got hits on MTFCA FORUM, with search words, so guess I'll have to use another search engine other than Google

I wonder if one of the website admins would know?
They do such a great job at keeping things running.

DanTreace wrote: ↑

Sat Jan 20, 2024 10:00 am

Yes.

That is so weird. Don't have an answer either. Was easy way to search old forum posts.
Even trying to use 'quotes' in the terms didn't work.


But just tried search with Yahoo, and got hits on MTFCA FORUM, with search words, so guess I'll have to use another search engine other than Google

I didn't t try any other search engines... Google seems to be the go to. Crazy that Yahoo does, but Google isn't.

You are right. I just tried a general search as I sometimes do. I have always used a Model T topic such as magnets, transmission or etc plus MTFCA and always earlier forum answers or newer would come up.
Not so now but some from you tube, ford fix, and a few others but not from the forum.
Hmmmm

So whats changed and why.

Yes, I have noticed this also. Seems like whatever the change was happened in the last week or so. I sent an email to Chris B a couple days ago.

I tried a different search engine on a browser other than Google Chrome and I was able to find old forum post results.

It seems like it is only isolated to Google searches.

Did you also notice the filters bar at the top of the google page used to allow the selection of "All" ? Somebody screwed up.

A while back when searching stuff, I must've done "something wrong" 'cause now my search engine is with DuckDuckGo and I just tried recharging magnets on Model T-MTFCA since there's that thread going...and all sorts of stuff connected to MTFCA came up!

Don't know what's going on with Google obviously.

I did some experimenting. Yahoo and Bing don't bring up the volume of posts I used to get on google when I asked a Model T question.... google brings up nothing MTFCA. In Bing and Yahoo it helped to add MTFCA Forum at the end of the search query.

It's almost like MTFCA is either being targeted or is somehow now less accessible to search engines. Administrators???

I even tried Mtfca forum and didn't get a single hit from this site, this will greatly affect new comers to the hobby as they won't even know the site or the club exist unless someone else tells them.

I just did a direct search for "model t ford club of america" and the clubs home page comes up on the first link then NOTHING else related to this site or the club except for other sites.
This is a copy and paste of what showed up


Model T Ford Club of America
Model T Ford Club of America
https://www.mtfca.com
No information is available for this page.
Learn why"
So I cliced why and this is what I got,

"No page information in search results

If a Google search result says that no information is available for a page, like this:

Search result with missing snippet: No information is available for this page

It means that the website prevented Google from creating a page description, but didn't actually hide the page from Google.

If you own this site you can improve this result either by letting Google read the page to create a good description, or by hiding the page entirely from Google Search results. Read below to learn how."


Could it be something moderators did to prevent bots and scammers from hitting this site and google uses those bots?

OK I just used a browser i recently learned about Brave and did a search for recharging magnets in a model T and several links came up to bring folks to this forum.
If you haven't tried Brave you might want to. I find it great for Youtube when I am listening to music and such as it blocks ads.

Well none of you must've read my post...lol....I got all I needed on DuckDuckGo FWIW. Can't answer to why others aren't working of course, any more than anyone else here can. Maybe it'lls "self rectify"?

This is an interesting comparison. I included the links in case you wanted to see more results and do your own compare
Note its better to uses "mtfca.com" than just mtfca"


Looks like GOOGLE is toast. I changed my search to BING a few days ago a Google searches were a waste of time. Tried DuckDuckGo (promises privacy and no tracking) but it didn't seam any better than BING. Same goes for Yahoo. Brave looks interesting will look into it. BING also has an AI help function - its so so helpful.

GOOGLE
https://www.google.com/search?q=recharg ... nt=gws-wiz --
BING its Microsoft's
https://www.bing.com/search?q=rechargin ... cc=0&ghpl= --
Yahoo!
https://search.yahoo.com/search;_ylt=Aw ... op&iscqry= ---
DuckDuckGo
https://duckduckgo.com/?va=h&t=ha&q=rec ... com&ia=web --
BRAVE (no maps or shopping link but was impressed by the IMAGES link)
https://search.brave.com/search?q=recha ... source=web

TWrenn wrote: ↑

Sat Jan 20, 2024 1:09 pm

Well none of you must've read my post...lol....I got all I needed on DuckDuckGo FWIW. Can't answer to why others aren't working of course, any more than anyone else here can. Maybe it'lls "self rectify"?

Tim I've used Duck duck Go before, It's a good search engine.

Tbird wrote: ↑

Sat Jan 20, 2024 2:20 pm

TWrenn wrote: ↑

Sat Jan 20, 2024 1:09 pm

Well none of you must've read my post...lol....I got all I needed on DuckDuckGo FWIW. Can't answer to why others aren't working of course, any more than anyone else here can. Maybe it'lls "self rectify"?

Tim I've used Duck duck Go before, It's a good search engine.

The others are working.Its just Google that isn't. Google gives priority to its advertisers when listing matches.

Another search test to see what IMAGES match got "American field service ambulance"
Not much difference in Bing, Yahoo (owned by Verizon) or DuckDuckGo. Brave shows some matches never included in the other search apps

Google https://www.google.com/search?sca_esv=6 ... 8&dpr=1.67 --
Bing https://www.bing.com/images/search?q=Am ... C3&first=1 --
Yahoo! https://images.search.yahoo.com/search/ ... web&fr=sfp --
DuckDuckGo https://duckduckgo.com/?q=amrican+field ... iax=images --
Brave https://search.brave.com/images?q=ameri ... 0ambulance

I tried it and it says no info available. It has a find out why button. According to google the website hasn’t given them permission to post information. Sounds like an admin issue.

Andy

Isn’t Google the largest or among the largest search engines on the net?
If it is maybe it’s because of too much spam or bots? These days with all of the net issues going on and the comments some have concerns about it. Just guessing.

AndyClary wrote: ↑

Sat Jan 20, 2024 4:50 pm

I tried it and it says no info available. It has a find out why button. According to google the website hasn’t given them permission to post information. Sounds like an admin issue.

Andy

I followed the "Learn Why" the following is from the Internet
That said, robots.txt is used primarily as a “code of conduct” to control the activity of search engine robots (AKA web crawlers). The robots.txt gets checked regularly by every major search engine (including Google, Bing, and Yahoo) for instructions about how they should crawl the website.
--
Since Bing & Yahoo etc have no issue with Robot.txt & recognize the MTFCA web site- so is it a Google issue?

Well that purty much tells me it is the fact the MTFCA doesn't pay Google or let google use it for pop add victims .Sad because google is the common search engine and folks needing help won't find this site.

I've noticed the same thing, trying to look for information on side curtains, and mtfca didnt come up.

Well just in the past couple hours,I have tried to find a couple different things not T related. and google doesn't show them.Copy and paste the same search in Brave, boom,there is what I am looking for. I guess as consumers,we need to start using other search engines, maybe when googles bill fold starts thinning down, they will understand,that good search results put them where they are on the ladder, and not providing them any more will prompt the ladder to be jerked out from under them.

I just reported the issue to Google. We'll see how if they read their support issues

Just a fyi, some of the searches i have done on google for other topics, like a Lazy Boy push mower i am wanting to work on, there is hardly ANY results coming up for the vintage machines,it tries to steer me towards new "lanwboy' machines and off the wall stuff. Smokstak,a forum I am on regular, used to come up in searches on google for most anything vintage, but not now. Something in corporate has changed, i guess it is about folks they make money from and folks they don't?

I tried downloading and using the search engine Duckduckgo because I had heard that it was better. I didn't see much of a difference, so I removed it from my computer.

(Deleted post)

Commented on someone's post, who then removed their content and asked me to delete my post.

Was happy to do that, however the system won't allow me to...

Google still not working for me using MTFCA in search. Always worked in past.

google has went way down hill.

Google operatives may not want non-expert pyrsyns messing around with dangerous, high polluting old IC vehicles.

TXGOAT2 wrote: ↑

Wed Jan 31, 2024 7:59 am

Google operatives may not want non-expert pyrsyns messing around with dangerous, high polluting old IC vehicles.

I have noticed at the bottom of the search page, "carbon neutral since --" now it is third decade .
Sad as this being invisible is going to negatively affect the hobby in several ways.

Just a quick check, things have not improved.
I did a google search for what type oil to use in my model T. A question a newbie would ask, the answers are depressing and MTFCA forums and answers do not show up ANYWHERE

ford barn,model T ford fix, acca, and others, but nothing from here.

"In areas with average temperature between 40 and 110 degrees F you will want to use 5W-30. Operating a Model T in winter weather, with temperatures between 0 and 4 degrees F you will want to use 0W-20.

Ford Model T: Oil and Lubrication
FordModelT.net
https://www.fordmodelt.net › model-t-oils
About featured snippets
•
Feedback"

TRDxB2 wrote: ↑

Wed Jan 24, 2024 1:10 pm

I just reported the issue to Google. We'll see how if they read their support issues

Any word back?

It’s very irritating !

It could be that anything older, vintage or not relevant to “current green energy and so called polluting views” isn’t worth cluttering up The World Order that’s being promoted by the WEF. In other words it’s not worth mentioning in an historical search.

I thought I would bump this to see if there is any headway being made as to why the forums are not searchable or even acknowledged on the search engine.
I have found alot of simple searches I have done for many years for many topics, are not bringing in results that I used to get.Good thing I save alot of pictures and such when I have done searches in the past of some info I need would not be around.

I gave up on Google and have been using DuckDuckGo.com which works pretty good, like google did.

The robots.txt for the site was changed at some point last fall to disallow all automated searches, based on what I could find on archive.org The site administrator will need to update the file for Google searches to work again. It is not a Google issue.

The robots.txt could have been changed unintentionally (to a default version blocking all searches) during a software update or hosting company change. Or, the site admin may have placed it intentionally to enhance privacy or to save on data usage.

Derek, thank you for your insight into the cause of this. If you haven't already, please bring it to the attention of the moderator using the "contact us" link at the bottom of the page.

CudaMan wrote: ↑

Tue Feb 06, 2024 10:43 pm

Derek, thank you for your insight into the cause of this. If you haven't already, please bring it to the attention of the moderator using the "contact us" link at the bottom of the page.

I sent a quick message to see if it might help

Ok, I did a little more research and reported what I could.

I appreciate that the people running the site are most likely volunteers doing this in their spare time, so I am understanding if this might not get resolved right away, even if they were already aware of it.

I also asked if this was done intentionally to protect site content, that they reconsider and use other means to protect proprietary content.

I did some trial and error searches on Bing and DuckDuckGo, and was unable to get any results from after September 1, 2023 so they have stopped crawling the site as well. Eventually those search engines will also stop indexing and reporting results if they get denied the ability to crawl the site on repeated attempts.

The other downside to the current situation, is in addition to the forum posts, the entire site is blocked to search engines, which means that only pages which are linked to from other pages will show up in Google. I don't think that's what they want long term, as the club will basically become dependent on chapter pages, other clubs, blog posts, social media, etc. posting links to drive traffic to the site.

It can't be good for the hobby in general when folks can't find the info.MTFCI doesn't show up at all in my searches either

Yes we are aware of the problem. It has taken me a few days to look into this.

I went to Google today and made a few changes and they said to check back tomorrow.

Google reports that we have no Robots.txt file but the filemanager reports we have 2, in the same directory no less.

Will report back tomorrow.

Chris

OK further inspection revealed that the 2 files found in Siteworx were not in the root directory so they should have had no effect.

Or put another way act like there was NO robots.txt file.

Chris

PS I deleted the 2 files just to be sure.

Don't know if this is related to the Google thing or if it is on my end, but I can't bookmark the forum either, but have saved other site bookmarks lately. Related?

ChrisB wrote: ↑

Wed Feb 07, 2024 4:10 pm

OK further inspection revealed that the 2 files found in Siteworx were not in the root directory so they should have had no effect.

Or put another way act like there was NO robots.txt file.

Chris

PS I deleted the 2 files just to be sure.

I just looked and robots.txt is back to the previous version (generated by Yoast), so hopefully that will do it. We won't know until enough time has elapsed for Google to crawl the site a few times. Maybe one of those two files was being served by a script or an alias?

Thank you for looking into this.

FWIW, Google searches still turn up results on Royce's site, Fordbarn, and a few others.

It just worked for me.

Andy

I just tried googling “MTFCA recommended oil type” and it did not work. I did see a note that the MTFCA site is preventing Google from reading it. Here is a screenshot.

Jim11787 wrote: ↑

Thu Feb 08, 2024 11:10 pm

I just tried googling “MTFCA recommended oil type” and it did not work. I did see a note that the MTFCA site is preventing Google from reading it. Here is a screenshot.

If you read above I reported the same & possible reason why on Jan 20 & the reason.

Looks like we are on the way back to normal for Google searches.

It will continue to index our site going forward.

Interesting that other search engines were NOT affected- they work on the same principle using robots.txt

Can those of you that had trouble try your searches & report back here on this thread.

Chris

Just tried using Google to search for what oil to use and got some MTFCA forum hits, so things are looking better already!

I've just tried a bunch of searches and it definitely is coming back. Starting to get more results that include image thumbnails, and forum posts with actual text descriptions (not just viewtopic URLs).

The non-Google search engines I think would eventually have quit just the same. Search companies don't want to index and return old results they haven't verified in a long time, nothing good can come of it.

How are your search results on Google now?

I'm from Switzerland and struggle with various search engines. Unfortunately, it is almost impossible to find older articles with all of our usual search engines.

I think that's a shame. The forum was a great help beforehand.

Greetings from Switzerland

I just did a quick google search for "what oil do I use in my model T" and only 1 mtfca entry came up, a post from 2017.
BUT that is more than came up last week so it is a improve ment. Last week you would never know this site was here.

I am a constant researcher. This has been a problem for me for well over a month. Even just now.