What is the robots.txt?
Robots.txt is a simple text file you can write with any text editor, that tells search engines and other bots where not to go on your website. This can be i.e pages with program files that have no value for search engines indexing your site, pages that are still under construction or your log files.

A recently implemented use of robots.txt file is also to tell search engines where you store your sitemap file by adding a line like this:
Sitemap: http://www.mydomain.com/sitemap.xml

Unfortunately it is also a good source for hackers to gain information about files and folders on your web server. Robots.txt is in not to keep files hidden. For this you would need to use a .htaccess file on your server or other techniques.

What does a robots.txt look like?
These three lines would keep out all robots that obey the rules out of the temp folder:
# Exclude all robots from temp folder
User-agent: *
Disallow: /temp/
Line 1 is a comment line, # starts a comment. This line is optional.
Line 2 lists the robots for which the next line’s command is valid: A wildcard (*) here means all robots.
Line 3 specifies the file or folder you want to exclude. If you just write Disallow: , you allow everything. Be careful here. Don't forget to add a file or folder name.

There is a command 'Allow' exists but it is not supported by all robots, so better play it safe and use 'Disallow' even if it is more work.

For a folder you write
Disallow: /foldername/

for a file use
Disallow: /filename.html

Only one folder or file per line is allowed. If you want to exclude several folders, use one line per folder/file.

If you only want to exclude a certain robot, use it’s name instead of the wild card (*):
User-agent: Robotname
Disallow: /temp/

Where to place the robots.txt?
The robots.txt has to be in the same folder as the entry page of your domain. I.e. http://www.mydomain.com/robots.txt

After you created the robots.txt on your computer with notepad or a similar tool (do not use a HTML editor), name it robots.txt (lower case!) and transfer it with your favourite FTP program using the ASCII transfer option.

More information about robots.txt

Problem: Not all directories or link partners notify you when they put up your link. And if someone just likes your site, links to it, you might only find out when you look closely at your web statistics and there are links coming in. But maybe you want to check who is linking in and from what context.

I find some really anoying sites linking to Thai-Experience, a site for volunteering in Thailand, from time to time. This organization does not want to be linked from any sites that advertise Thai girls or adult content. Google alerts notify me each time when new links pop up and I can have a look.

What is Google Alerts?

Googles Definition: "Alerts are email updates of the latest relevant Google results (web, news, etc.) based on your choice of query or topic."

How to set up Google Alerts?

1. Go to Google Alerts

2. Enter the topic, URL, keyword etc. you want to know about

3. Choose between comprehensive or selective monitoring. This will determine where Google is looking for changes.

4. Choose how often you want the Google Alerts to be sent to you. To monitor backlinks "as-it-happens" is the best option.

5. Insert a valid email address. This is the address all you Google alerts will be send to, so make sure you check it regularly, otherwise the whole procedure is useless.

If you get too many unrelated google alerts, you might need to fine tune your keyword. Don't use something general like "travel" unless you want to spent hours sorting and deleting. I can tell you.

It's also a good way to find related blogs where you might leave a comment with a link back to your site.

Just found this:

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Althought it is a lot of work, submission to directories pays in the long run. Especially if you get the backlinks to your site for free.

A great ressource is the list maintained by Dan at http://info.vilesilencer.com/
The list also has a section for niche directories. This comes in very handy for your travel site. Many of the directories in the list are still very new and have a low pagerank, but I can tell you from my experience with the directory at guiding-stars.com, this will soon change. This list drives a lot of traffic to directory sites and the consequence is a higher pagerank soon.

Another place to look is directorycritic. You will find free directories, a listing of niche directories and more.

More ressources:

webdirectory-index

Directory Tracker - here you can also keep track your submissions