Note that switching //search to /search eliminates the phenomenon.
Note too that all the results on page 1 and page 10 are related to hostgator and coupon codes. I expect that there is some site which contains some text or links that cause these results.
Note also that the `site:` search operator isn't supposed to include anything but a domain or subdomain: no http:// nor /search should be included.
Finally, note that the results are actually google search pages, though! So I do think this is some kind of bug.
But NOT an instance of Google indexing its result pages. Please change the title to 'This one weird google bug will make you scratch your head!' :)
Edit: andybalholm suggests (on this page) that the double slash is in fact causing the googlebot to visit those search results page and indeed index them. Hm, sounds true.
Has anybody visited the spamfodder pages and found instances of malformed yet operative links to google search? (I don't feel like visiting those sites on this machine on this network.)
I changed my tune at some point via seeing comments here. I posted a comment to that effect.
In hindsight, your comment alone would have changed my tune: nope, I can't explain the difference between a page appearing in search results and a page being indexed. Thanks for the illumination. :)
Note that switching //search to /search eliminates the phenomenon.
Note too that all the results on page 1 and page 10 are related to hostgator and coupon codes. I expect that there is some site which contains some text or links that cause these results.
Note also that the `site:` search operator isn't supposed to include anything but a domain or subdomain: no http:// nor /search should be included.
Finally, note that the results are actually google search pages, though! So I do think this is some kind of bug.
But NOT an instance of Google indexing its result pages. Please change the title to 'This one weird google bug will make you scratch your head!' :)
Edit: andybalholm suggests (on this page) that the double slash is in fact causing the googlebot to visit those search results page and indeed index them. Hm, sounds true.
Has anybody visited the spamfodder pages and found instances of malformed yet operative links to google search? (I don't feel like visiting those sites on this machine on this network.)