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"Recently, the popular social media website Digg released a useful but controversial product: the DiggBar, an iframe toolbar that lets users browse other websites without actually leaving Digg.com.  In the last week, we've already discussed how the DiggBar could impact the Twitter link-sharing experience and Digg's response to the recent criticism.\nThis has done little to quell the controversy surrounding the DiggBar, however.  Engadget has now blocked the DiggBar.  In addition, one popular article, on how to block the DiggBar, received over 1900 diggs but at the same time was buried, showing how divided the Digg community is over the feature.  Some of the controversy has been over the impact of the DiggBar on SEO (search engine optimization) and traffic to people's website.\nThis is all a bit of a complicated mess.  So we've put together this article discussing the pro and con arguments for the DiggBar, especially as it relates to the user and to the website owner.  After considering the pros and cons, we want to know whether you will block the DiggBar or keep it active.\nPros and cons: user experience\n\n\n\n\nThe DiggBar changes the user experience when a user clicks a Digg link.  Here are some of the biggest pro and con arguments:\nPro: better user experience -  For any regular Digg user, the DiggBar has some tremendous benefits.  It displays the number of diggs, the view count, social media sharing tools, and  several easy ways to return back to Digg.com. For users who want to easily browse the top Digg articles, the DiggBar makes it a far easier task.\nPro: easy URL shortening -  DiggBar is one of the easiest URL shorteners to use.  On any web page, all the user has to do is type in \"digg.com/\" before the website URL in the browser navigation bar.  After he or she hits enter, the URL is immediately shortened.  If the URL has already been submitted to Digg, all of the useful DiggBar information is displayed.  If not, it makes it easy to share the shortened URL on Digg and other social media websites.  \nIn fact, the ease of use may make the DiggBar a very popular URL shortener.\nCon: inconvenient iframe -  Many users simply don't like iframes (the DiggBar is an iframe).  They create an additional step before reaching an actual web page and they push down content, among other inconveniences.  Additionally, if a user starts browsing the site they found via Digg and then closes the DiggBar, they will be redirected back to the first page.  For the average user who doesn't use Digg but clicks a shortened Digg URL, these factors may be confusing or not welcome.\nPros and cons: website traffic and SEO\nDiggBar also has an impact on the traffic website owners receive, as well as an impact on their search engine rankings.  Here are some of the biggest pro and con arguments:\nPro: additional website traffic - According to the Digg team, not only has it seen a rise in unique visitors, but that many content providers have seen a similar jump in traffic.  This isn't far-fetched: increased traffic and usage of Digg will only lead to more users, more diggs, and more visitors from the front page.\nCon: negative impact on SEO -  Most of the controversy has centered on whether or not shortened DiggBar URLs provide \"link juice\" back to the website of webmasters.  \nMany websites depend on their Google rankings - the higher up the page they are in search results, the more traffic they receive.  One of the major factors Google considers in its search ranking algorithm is how many links point towards a website (inbound links).  Website owners are concerned that the DiggBar doesn't tell Google that it is linking to their website, thus providing them the \"link juice\" that helps them rise in the rankings.\nThis is the cloudiest area of the debate. Digg has stated that the Diggbar has no negative SEO impact and has contacted Google and SEO experts to assure it adheres to fair practices.       \nThis has not convinced critics, however.  Several refute Digg's claim that it uses \"noindex\" tags to keep DiggBar URLs out of search engine results - in fact the Digg short URLs are definitely appearing in search results, although it's possible that Digg made the change after launch and the search engines have yet to catch up on their indexing.  In addition, they do not like that Digg seems to use a 200 redirect code instead of a 301 permanent redirect.\n\n\n\n\n\nDiggBar controversy: does Digg use noindex tags?\n\nThese are more nuanced aspects of SEO that do not affect the average user, but enough legitimate points have been raised to warrant continued concern for website owners.  \nThe DiggBar debate\nSome bloggers seem to believe the DiggBar can be fixed, while others think its acceptance will pave the way for many more toolbars, with all the cons mentioned above.\nHas Digg done enough to compromise with the SEO community?  I honestly don't know the answer because there's still more to clarify and more research to be done.  However, I look forward to the healthy debate the DiggBar will generate.\nDo you think the DiggBar is a good development or a bad one?  We want your opinion:\n\n\n Have you or will you turn off or block the DiggBar?    (  polls)\n\n\n\nMore Digg Resources From Mashable\n\n- Digg Toolblox: 50 New Tools and Resources\n- HOW TO: Get the Most Out of Digg\n- 5 Essential Tools for Digg Analysts\n"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://mashable.com/2009/04/11/diggbar-pros-cons/>