What type of websites should be added to the directory?

Websites added to DataSpear Directory should be quality sites that add original content and value to the directory. We are building the best directory on the net. Quality content is key. 

Sites which have one or more of the following qualities should not be listed:

Any site that offers for sale, or sell

• Any firearms, explosives, or weapons.
• Any food that is not packaged or does not comply with all laws governing the sale of food to consumers by commercial merchants.
• Any items that are indecent or obscene, that are hateful or racially, sexually, ethnically or otherwise objectionable, that contain child pornography or are harmful to minors.
• Any items that are counterfeit or stolen.
• Any dangerous items.
• Any goods or services that do not, in fact, exist.
• Any registered or unregistered securities.
• Any items that violate or infringe the rights of other parties.
• Any items that you do not have the legal right to sell.
• Any items where paying DataSpear.com any of the required transactional or listing fees would cause DataSpear.com to violate any law. DataSpear.com reserves the right to delete any objectionable sites.
• Any site which is a subURL or page that can be reached from the main page should not be listed. There may be some exceptions which will be decided on by the community. - See "What is a Proper URL" for more information.
• The site is an affiliate site. Sites that contain affiliate links, with content provided by the associated partner, should not be listed. DataSpear sites should have original content.
• Spam/Spamming is prohibited. Websites may be refused listing if they are being spammed in our directory.
• Hate, Illegal and Violent sites which advocate violence or illegal acts against a person or group of people will not be listed. Sites containing visual representation of extreme violence should not be listed, unless such material in its context has been deemed appropriate by this community.

DataSpear.com reserves the right to delete any objectionable sites.

• The site is a subURL

  SubURLs or pages that can be reached from their main page should not be listed. There may be some exceptions which will be decided on by staff.

  - See What is a Proper URL for more information.

• The site is an affiliate site.

  Sites that contain only affiliate links, with content provided by the associated partner, should not be listed. You can often recognize these sites by their links and by their URLs, which contain referral IDs. DataSpear sites should have original content.

• Spam

  Spamming is prohibited. Websites may be refused a listing if they are being spammed in our directory.

• Hate, Illegal and Violent Sites

  Sites which advocate violence or illegal acts against a person or group of people will not be listed. Sites containing visual representation of extreme violence should not be listed, unless such material in its context has been deemed appropriate by staff.

How many listings can a site have?

Considering the wide variety of topics that are covered and the topics that are continuously being added, most sites will easily fit into our directory. However, each site will be limited to one listing. Most sites will never need to be listed more than once. Usually, there is one main topic that can be found. Sites should never be found within the same directory structure.

For example, a site should not be listed in Recreation/Autos/Makes_and_Models/Dodge and also in Recreation/Autos/Makes_and_Models/Dodge/Durango. There is the possibility, however, that a site would have qualifying content to be listed in two or more subtopics.

An example of this is a site listed in Recreation/Autos/Makes_and_Models/Dodge/Durango and Recreation/Autos/Makes_and_Models/Dodge/Neon.

What is the proper URL?

The URL must be in the form of a complete description that includes the use of "http://"

For example:

http://www.dataspear.com/

The overall principle is to submit the 'short' version of the URL

For example:
rather than http://www.dataspear.com/index.html
just use http://www.dataspear.com/

Do not use URLs that are deeper into the Site, if they can be reached from the Site's front page.

http://www.dataspear.com/help.html would not be approved as a site submission as this page is accessible from the short URL.

What is the proper topic for a site?

Deciding on the correct topic for a site may be on the challenging tasks in site reviews.

• Dig deep into the directory sub topics.
• If you feel that a proper topic does not exist you should contact staff@dataspear.com

How is the site evaluated?

Evaluation of your site submission will be completed by DataSpear staff that are overseeing the topic that you have chosen. You do not have to worry about adding a rating.

How to Write a Title:

• Use the correct title. You will usually find the correct title on the site itself.
  If not, IE users should check View -> Source to find the correct title and
  Netscape users should check View -> Page Source.
• Keep the title brief. Some titles will need abbreviations in order to fit in the allotted space.
  Use proper abbreviations.
  Example: The University of North Carolina could be abbreviated UNC in a long title.
  Do not use apostrophes in the title.
  Example: Farmer's Almanac should be listed as Farmers Almanac.
• Use initial caps in titles. Do not use all CAPITAL LETTERS.
  Example: Joy of Cajun Cooking, not JOY OF CAJUN COOKING
  Using all caps is considered rude netiquette, and is difficult to read.
• Capitalize the first letter of the first word and all main words, but not conjunctions (and, but, or, for, nor, so, and yet), short prepositions (such as to, on, at and in), or articles (a, an, and the) unless they are the first word of the title.
  The is capitalized if it is part of a proper name such as The Hague or The New York Times.
• Do not use The, A, An, or similar words to start a title.
  If the title is a proper name, such as a book, newspaper, etc.,
  - the title would be entered American Heritage Dictionary, The
  or New York Times, The
  Otherwise, a site with the title The Joy of Cajun Cooking would be entered as Joy of Cajun Cooking.

How to Write a Description:

• Write a brief, objective phrase or sentence about the site, and what it offers or features about the product or service.
• Describe a unique feature of the site.
  Remember that site design and navigation are part of the rating, not the description.
  Chat, multimedia, and e-commerce may be part of the features described.
• Use correct grammar, spelling and punctuation.  Proofread your descriptions.
• Write out the meaning of acronyms, which may have been used in the title.
• Do not start your description with "This site" or anything similar, as it is obviously a site.
  You may start with "Features..." or "Offers...." or similar wording.
• Do not use the site title or in the description.
• Do not use all CAPITAL LETTERS.
• Do not capitalize the first letter of every word in the description.
• Do not use marketing slogans or offer subjective opinions, positive or negative.
• Do not copy descriptions from the site itself.
  If you use short phrases copied from the site, enclose the phrase in quotation marks.
• Do not cut and paste the same description for all the sites you submit.
• Do not use quantities in your descriptions, as they will probably change and your description will no longer be accurate. As an example, use "Features downloadable casino games..." rather than "Features 25 downloadable casino games..."
• Write descriptions in English, and notate in the description if the site is multilingual or only available in a language other than English.

What is Spam?

Most affiliate sites, multiple links to the same site or websites that link hate sites, any sites which promote violence, and sites which violate international laws may be classified as spam. Below is a comprehensive list of what is considered spam by DataSpear standards.

• Multiple links to the same site.
• Multiple submissions using different URL's; either unique or variations of one URL.
• Redirected sites including sites that redirect the main page and sites that redirect by clicking on any of the links on the main page.
• All affiliate, associate and authorized vendor or distributor websites.
• Hidden service website, the main page will display something totally different from what you get from the links. "Cloaked Page"
• Websites uniquely different with unique URL's but offering the same links or service. "Getting very popular and hard to detect"
• Excessive banners or popup advertising "over 1/3 of page displayed has banners or over 2 popup's on a single page". This includes the now frequently-used load-behind pages.
• Java bomb pages. Sites that load a page or pages every time you close a page. "Mostly used in adult sites"
• Sites that offer no original content. An example is a chat website that has no chatrooms of its own and redirects to other chat services. "The purpose of a site like this is normally to collect banner hits."
• Sites that promote violence or hate and sites that violate international laws.
• Websites that automatically change or try to change the users computer settings. "Auto download, make this your home page, and dial a phone number are the most popular."

Other Criteria

• The site must clearly define its purpose, products, and/or services.
• The site, or its contents, must not already appear in DataSpear.com.
• The site must contain substantively unique content, as determined by DataSpear.com's staff (submitting multiple URLs with slightly different content is not submitting unique content).
• The site should not contain any parts or pages under construction.
• All links on the site must work with links to relevant content.
• The site must support multiple browsers and capabilities {e.g., no Netscape-only or Jave-only sites}
• The site must be up, running and accessible 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
• The site must not contain any content, products, services or other information that, in DataSpear.com's reasonable determination, may be illegal to sell under any applicable law, statute, ordinance or regulation, that may infringe or violate anyone's rights, or that, DataSpear.com believes, in its sole discretion, is inflammatory, dangerous, offensive, or otherwise inconsistent with the spirit of DataSpear.com and its affiliates.

DataSpear.com reserves the right to delete, without notice, any website it deems objectionable.

Useful References:

• Merriam-Webster Dictionary
• Language Translation
• Guide to Grammar and Style