SEO and Flex, best practices?

[jaryckon]

Hi all,

Longtime listener, first time caller.

I'm just getting started in Flex, and was wondering what the 'pros' out there were doing about SEO in their RIAs. I have a friend whose site I've agreed to give a bit of a facelift to while I cut my teeth in Flex. He's reluctant to have me build a full-blown flex app that I can drop his copy and images into, for the obvious search engine invisibility quandary. What is the best approach to this predicament?

I was thinking a basic HTML page that is embedded with .swfs. Some advice would be helpful to a neophyte such as myself.

-jack

[fx.barrett]

Don't think too much SEO can be applied to Flex RIA... maybe if you try implementing SwfAddress somehow but it won't be easy with Flex...

[jaryckon]

when you say SEO cannot be applied to Flex RIA, does that mean that spiders can navigate the RIA for content making it a non issue, or does that mean that if your page is one big flex app, that it will be wholly invisible to spiders? (and there is no way around it).

I know that MXML tags are descended from XML. Am I correct, though, in saying that the content of an <mx:Text> would not be visible to googlebots?

thanks for your reply, fx.barrett.
jack

[jaryckon]

I may have answered my own question here...
Upon inspecting the auto generated js and html code in the source of my flex project I found the conditionals which load the appropriate version of the page if js or flash is not available. So,


else { // flash is too old or we can't detect the plugin
var alternateContent = 'Alternate HTML content should be placed here. '
+ 'This content requires the Adobe Flash Player. '
+ '<a href=http://www.adobe.com/go/getflash/>Get Flash</a>';
document.write(alternateContent); // insert non-flash content


should get me the googlebot visibility I so desperately crave, no? (provided I source the var alternativeContent to an HTML only version of the page).
best,
jack

[arone]

I know this is an old post but Id rather revive this one that make a whole new one. Im curious how your solution worked out for you and also if there are any update methods to this madness?

[EndlessLine]

I'm interested too. I heard that you can basically serve one page to clients that have the flash player and another to those that don't. You can keep all the same services but if flash player == false then you send back HTML and not the client application...or something

[aktell]

Hi there,

I just noticed that this thread has 300 views So many more than any other! I assume that this must be than an interesting issue people would like to know about?

I have only day’s ago published my new v2-2009 Application and there included is a section which called (WFA –onFLEX), and here I’m trying to start to address Basic, Generic, Simple Tip’s & Trick’s with FLEX 3.

Now my first own input is about SEO, MetaData & Compiler arguments in FLEX 3. Maybe good to red it all over or just towards the back the SEO part as this has around 14 pages in a small booklet, but no fear with a lot of Images. I found this very important to include and address as I personally believe that the FLEX 3 SEO is one of the most important items you need to to include into your app. to be seen!

I'm still working on a few small problems I have with the app. But as soon as I’ able I will elaborate on the Html SEO as well, but if anybody requires info badly about this please send an E-mail and I will see what can be done.

Web address and E-mail can be found in my profile I guess: And if not - Search for WebFlashArtistry in New Zealand.

Regards aktell