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AFAIK the forums are not visible to search engines so nofollow is of no use there.
Articles that are just spam are removed quickly, likely before any search engines get a chance to index them.
Articles that contain valid links however should be followed correctly because they could be related topics, support pages, demos, etc.
So I just don't see how it would be useful on CodeProject? 
Everybody is entitled to my opinion
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You almost got me. I was like, again, I forgot that search engines don't index forum. BUT comments on articles ARE indexed. Example[^].
And spammers misuse it. Coder4rent[^]
David Wulff wrote:
Articles that contain valid links however should be followed correctly because they could be related topics, support pages, demos, etc.
Yes. Same goes for valid links in blogs... Bt what is valid link and what isn't?
David
Never forget: "Stay kul and happy" (I.A.)
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dnh wrote:
Yes. Same goes for valid links in blogs... Bt what is valid link and what isn't?
If you start treating every link with mistrust by default then the whole idea of the Internet breaks down IMO. Spamming is nothing new.
Out of interest, that link you gave for Coder4rent, what is wrong with those matches?
Everybody is entitled to my opinion
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David Wulff wrote:
If you start treating every link with mistrust by default then the whole idea of the Internet breaks down IMO.
hmm. I must agree with this. Anyway I was talking about links in comments and blogs... In this (limited) playground I think links more confuse search engines than they bring someting good. IMO you are right that mistrust links by default is bad. I belive nofollow being default is temporaly solution, before search engines became more advanced and being able to figure out what is relevant information and what is garbage (they are already trying, bt there is long way to go).
In articles is highly probable that links are relevant, I am aginst nofollow tag there.
David Wulff wrote:
Out of interest, that link you gave for Coder4rent, what is wrong with those matches?
Have you seen his posts? Maybe I am paranoic (or desperately trying to prove my point), or he is simply dumb (or both), bt I consider most of his posts as a plain spam.
David
Never forget: "Stay kul and happy" (I.A.)
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dnh wrote:
Have you seen his posts?
The first couple I looked at seemed legit, but I admit I didn't read them all.
Everybody is entitled to my opinion
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I am not going to argue if he is or isn't spammer, bt how many members have profile like his?
I consider this as kind of spam[^]
Whole biography:
"I am a member of a large software development firm that is always seeking new, intelligent programmers to join our team."
Photo? Company logo/URI
May not comply with most of definitions[^] of spam, bt smels like spammer. 
Judge yourself...
David
Never forget: "Stay kul and happy" (I.A.)
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dnh wrote:
but how many members have profile like his?
I've seen plenty. There is nothing wrong with saying a bit about yourself and your job in your profile. For many people that is what the profiles are for (myself included). If I was advertising to have a position filled I would probably add a link to both my profile and my message signature.
Everybody is entitled to my opinion
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ok. I shouldn't have problem with somebody who don't want to say anything about himself, bt loves his company. I said I am not gonna argue about it, and I'll keep it.
Bt I still don't know why these links should be counted by search engine (see me going back to topic?) You can say few links make no difference or that there are much more relevant links. You may be even right. Still, I think there should be some mechanism for search engines to help them figure out what is relevant and what isn't. We are still waiting for AI, so we have nofollow. OK, I admit that nofollow in comments etc is problematic (despite I think it's positive thing). Would you agree with nofollow in sig? or in profile?
David
Never forget: "Stay kul and happy" (I.A.)
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dnh wrote:
Bt I still don't know why these links should be counted by search engine
IMO those links are valid to the topic (software development) and should be counted. Even in signatures, even in profiles. In open-topic forums like the lounge or the soapbox then any topic is valid.
Everybody is entitled to my opinion
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David Wulff wrote:
IMO those links are valid to the topic (software development) and should be counted.
yeah. So if I (having link to my company in sig) write "Cool article" in comments to thousand of articles in CP, my company should climb search results? (due to more links pointing to it from my sig?) :shaking head:
David Wulff wrote:
topic (software development)
 That's quite general topic, don't you think?
David
hey! that's  !
So you only change one number in sig's link... clever 
Since now I'll pay attention to sincerity bar.
hope you don't mind I used your picture without your permission ![Rose | [Rose]](https://codeproject.global.ssl.fastly.net/script/Forums/Images/rose.gif)
Never forget: "Stay kul and happy" (I.A.)
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dnh wrote:
So if I (having link to my company in sig) write "Cool article" in comments to thousand of articles in CP, my company should climb search results? (due to more links pointing to it from my sig?) :shaking head:
Yes, it should. If people abuse the system by posting loads of spam then the moderators/editors should remove them. In my opinion the legality/ownership problem you inherit by editing 'free messages' like in the lounge or a language forum doesn't apply to edited articles. I think article authors should be able to flag messages in their articles for deletion anyway, and have a moderator accept or reject their request. That way the author retains responsibility.
dnh wrote:
That's quite general topic, don't you think?
How would you describe the theme of CodeProject then? 
dnh wrote:
Since now I'll pay attention to sincerity bar.
There are sincerety, humour and anger ratings from 0 to 5.
Everybody is entitled to my opinion
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Looks like InLinkErAte() has a math error. Type in a URL and click the link[^] button, and the selection will be 2 characters to the right of where it ought to be.
[edit]Fixed now, thanks [/edit]
--Mike--
LINKS~! Ericahist | 1ClickPicGrabber | CP SearchBar v2.0.2 | C++ Forum FAQ | You Are Dumb
Magnae clunes mihi placent, nec possum de hac re mentiri.
Strange things are afoot at the U+004B U+20DD
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It's always a tricky thing making a suggestion on a free site, but here goes Could the editors start doing a better job of cleaning up the text on articles? They obviously clean up any HTML formatting issues, but it appears as though there is no attempt to edit things such as grammar, spelling and so on. It would definitely make the articles more readable.
Cheers,
Tom Archer - Archer Consulting Group
Programmer Trainer and Mentor and Project Management Consultant
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There's always a balance between editing an article and destroying the author's style. I've passed this onto Nish and Smitha but we definitely welcome feedback on the editing process.
If you do read an article that needs work then you can tag it for re-editing by cliking on the 'broken article' link at the top left of the article (under the main title)
cheers,
Chris Maunder
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Hello Tom,
Thanks for your feedback. It would definitely be helpful if you can give me links to the articles you specifically found to be lacking in grammar/spelling. I appreciate any kind of feedback that would help me improve the quality of editing.
Thanks,
Smitha
Every problem has a gift for you in its hands.
-- Richard Bach
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Editors, please don't 'correct' 'an SQL statement' to 'a SQL statement'. SQL is an acronym that starts with a vowel sound - es-que-ell - not shorthand for Sequel even if some people choose to pronounce it as such. If an author chooses to use one or the other then that should remain their choice. Reading about 'a SQL statement' destroys the flow of a sentance for me just like reading about a elephant eating a apple.
Everybody is entitled to my opinion
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Not to be overly-pedantic, but the abbreviation SQL starts with a consonant.
However, as it's an abbreviation and not an acronym, each letter is pronounced with the first word being the word for the letter 's' - "es".
Therefore, the article "an" should be used as the word "es" begins with a vowel.
Cheers,
Tom Archer - Archer Consulting Group
Programmer Trainer and Mentor and Project Management Consultant
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Tom Archer wrote:
However, as it's an abbreviation and not an acronym
SQL is an acronym of Structured Query Language? Surely an acronym is an abbreviation, but not necessarily the other way round? 
Everybody is entitled to my opinion
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The suffix -nym means "word". Therefore, I'm old-school that an acronym is a mixture of letters where each letter stands for a word describing something and the word itself also has something to do with the topic.
As an example, the acronym SCUBA stands for Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus. Here the word scuba is an acknowledge word and the letters represent a series of words having to do with the same topic.
"12 steppers" are great at coming up with acronyms - primarily because all their acronyms were created decades ago when the word was still used correctly. For example, 12-steppers are told to HALT before doing their vice - which stands for asking yourself "Am I Hungry? Am I Angry? Am I Lonely? Am I Tired?" Alcoholics that are saying that they are not alcoholics are said to be in DENIAL (Don't Even Know I'm Lying). They also have a SPONSOR (a Sober Person Offering Newcomers Suggestions On Recovery).
SQL, XML, XAML, etc are *not* acronyms (by the original - and not current - definition of the word) because they're simply letters where each letter stands for something, but the combination of letters isn't a word. It's just an abbreviation like IBM or GE.
Yes, I realize that nowadays any one that puts together 3 or more letters calls it an acronym, but to me that destroys the original beauty and creativity that it used to take to create an acronym.
For example, if I designed a database library 15 years ago and wanted to create a catch acronym, I had to think of all the words that would describe my product and then how one of those words could be used such that each letter represented something about my product. Nowadays, someone would simply say "MCDBL is an acronym for 'My Cool DB library' and consider it done.
Like most things, people's inherent laziness has destroyed the original meaning and beauty of something that was once very cool.
Of course, this is JMO and ICBW.
Cheers,
Tom Archer - Archer Consulting Group
Programmer Trainer and Mentor and Project Management Consultant
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As SQL is taking the initial letters from 'Structured Query Language' then why is that not an acronym? Merriam-Webster gives FBI as an acronym - I can't see how SQL is any different. This bit throws me:
" SQL, XML, XAML, etc are *not* abbreviations because they're simply letters where each letter stands for something, but the combination of letters isn't a word. It's just an abbreviation like IBM or GE. "
They are not abbreviations yet they are abbreviations? At the very beginning you stated "as [SQL is] an abbreviation and not an acronym".
If an acronym is a word formed from the initial letters of a series of words then surely that is itself an abbreviation? (Using the definition that an abbreviation is a shortened form of a word or phrase.) StructQL could be an abbreviation for Structured Query Language but it isn't an acronym, whereas SQL falls under both definitions.
But more importantly, I am really confused now... how is what you first said any different to what I said at the start? I was saying that SQL needs an 'an' not an 'a' because it starts with a vowel sound.
Everybody is entitled to my opinion
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FBI and any other abbreviation are now called acronyms because the original definition of the word acronym has been bastardized to accomodate its current usage. Words are accepted as new words based on usage. For example, "McJob" is now formally a word because so many people use it. I understand that I'm using an out-dated definition, which is why I stated that I'm old-school about this particular subject. I simply prefer when it took some creativity and ingenuity to create acronyms.
We're saying the same thing with regards to using the "an" article with "SQL". We're just differing in our opinions on what is an acronym vs. an abbreviation. Either way, if you pronouse the 'S' letter, then that letter is represented by the word "es", which begins with a vowel and thus must be preceded with the "an" article.
Cheers,
Tom Archer - Archer Consulting Group
Programmer Trainer and Mentor and Project Management Consultant
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So an acronym has to be a valid word on its own that is also related? Gotcha... I think.
Everybody is entitled to my opinion
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Exactly. That's not the accepted definition any more, but that used to be the case. Nowadays, an acronym is any 3 or more letters that someone sticks together.
Cheers,
Tom Archer - Archer Consulting Group
Programmer Trainer and Mentor and Project Management Consultant
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So GNU = GNU is Not Unix is a valid acronym?
BTW, thanks for clearing this acronym/abbreviation thing up for me. I was brainwashed with the new definition, but you've corrected that for me now. Thanks
--
Komm tu mir langsam weh, leg mir die Ketten an
und zieh die Knoten fest, damit ich lachen kann
I blog too now[^]
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Tom Archer wrote:
SQL, XML, XAML, etc are *not* abbreviations because they're simply letters where each letter stands for something, but the combination of letters isn't a word. It's just an abbreviation like IBM or GE.
Surely you mean "SQL, XML, XAML, etc are *not* acronyms because they're simply letters where each letter stands for something"...?
Shog9
I'm not the Jack of Diamonds... I'm not the six of spades.
I don't know what you thought; I'm not your astronaut...
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