Are you using the rewrite option for URLs?

[dojo]

I've actually 'caught' the times when the 'permalink' feature wasn't as used as it is today and you'd have to install plugins to make it work and pray the host does support this. Now it's almost like a 'requirement' for many sites to have their URLs re-written. The good thing is that the links look 'better' (instead of 'showthread1.php it's nicer to have are-you-using-permalinks.php) and people claim even Google likes it better, even if this has been a debate for years among SEO specialists.

 

Do you use the re-writing option for URLs or just use the script as it is?

[Talk Tech News]

I certainly think that it is a good thing to use permalinks, I always do on my blog. It is debatable as to whether google does favour one over the other but what harm can it do.

[Nathan]

Absolutely, one of the first things I change after install.

[bryce12]

Yeah that's the first thing I do after installation. The best advantage of using permalinks is that they make a webpage SEO friendly which helps in search engine rankings.

[DarkGizmo]

Absolutely, one of the first things I change after install.

^ This. I always re-write my URLs on ANY software that easily supports it. Xenforo, IPB, vBulletin, you name it. They look much better, more professional and help you get your site indexed better by search engines due to relevant content in the URL themselves.

[stefan.gogoase]

it is much easier to get indexed by Google or any other search engines. Not sure is the firs thing i do after install but one of the top 3

[Brandon]

Yes you should use permalinks or mod rewrite to get those nice looking URLs. It's like helping Google on the way to index your sites under the keywords that you would like to rank on.

[Amdac]

A lot of CMS platforms use rewrites by default. The main reason is the SEO benefits as mentioned. I've read many sources stating that the SEO benefits are huge and for that reason I always use it when possible.