A quick test showed that it's not a simple user agent setting. I changed my user agent to google's crawler, disabled cookies, java, and javascript, and it still didn't give me the pdf. Perhaps wget would work better, if they're also looking at connection type and such. -Adam On 4/23/07, M. Adam Davis wrote: > Very interesting. > > The google crawler doesn't use cookies, so the only way they could > give Google access that they deny to ordinary users is by either 1) > checking the user agent string or 2) using the IP address (or reverse > DNS) of the crawler. > > If it's just the user agent string, then it's fairly easy to spoof > using, say, firefox or a proxy server: > > http://johnbokma.com/mexit/2004/04/24/changinguseragent.html > > That page also talks a bit about the cloaking that seems to be taking > place here. > > If it's the IP address, then it'll be much more difficult. > > -Adam > > On 4/23/07, Peter P. wrote: > > Hi all, > > > > I have noticed that a lot of my searches turn up links to PDF files which are > > really not there. These are hosted at reputable insitutions, like ieee.org, > > elsevier etc. I find that I waste quite some time bothering to look at the links > > (wrongly believing that they contain what Google says they contain). Example: > > > > http://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S0041624X05000582 > > > > Yet, when accessing the link one gets an intro and an invitation to purchase. At > > the same time, the Google link has no HTML backup for such pages. I am under the > > impression that Google does not allow such tricks, and that one must pay to > > allow such use. Am I wrong ? If I am wrong, how does one go about achieving such > > excellent free advertising for one's pay products ? > > > > thanks, > > Peter P. > > > > Note: The link above was the 1st on page 51 (!!) of the search with key: > > > > http://www.google.com/search?q=piezo+driver+schematic&hl=en&start=50&sa=N > > > > The text found by Google was: > > > > "A simplified. schematic of the driver stage is shown in Fig. 4. The dri-. ver > > discharges and charges the piezoelectric disc via. transistors MN1 and MP1, ..." > > > > which is not at all on the page at the link above. > > > > > > -- > > http://www.piclist.com PIC/SX FAQ & list archive > > View/change your membership options at > > http://mailman.mit.edu/mailman/listinfo/piclist > > > > > -- > - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - > - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - > Moving in southeast Michigan? Buy my house: http://ubasics.com/house/ > > Interested in electronics? Check out the projects at http://ubasics.com > > Building your own house? Check out http://ubasics.com/home/ > -- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Moving in southeast Michigan? Buy my house: http://ubasics.com/house/ Interested in electronics? Check out the projects at http://ubasics.com Building your own house? Check out http://ubasics.com/home/ -- http://www.piclist.com PIC/SX FAQ & list archive View/change your membership options at http://mailman.mit.edu/mailman/listinfo/piclist