Which is more appropriate

[smartdude]

Which is more appropriate

"-" or "_" while naming a page name

To be more precise,

1) abc.com/123_xyz.com
2) abc.com/123-xyz.com
3) abc.com/123xyz.com

This is not only to target one search engine that's google because if now it is better to use hyphen , what about other search engines, does that really effect in naming conventions.

[StephenBauer]

I have asked the same thing before and everyone said use the dashes and not the underscore.

[WealthStream]

Most people seem to prefer the hyphen, but I don't think it really makes much of a difference.

[nos]

I would tend to agree with WealthStream. The difference that a hyphen or underscore is going to make (if any) it negligible compared to so many other factors. Concentrate more on getting backlinks, using valid html, making sure your keywords are there but not overdone. Do this, and it won't matter if your filenames key words or not, and what special characters they have.

[Wythrol]

From a user's point of view a hypen will be more memorable than an underscore.

consider this:

http://www.mysite.com/this-page
http://www.mysite.com/this_page

Which is easier to read and remember?

Unless you have very specific reasons to use underscores I would consider how a user would remember your URL.

[dc dalton]

I read someplace about a year ago that the spiders didnt recognize an _ as a word seperator. Cant remember where exactly but Ive also seen it on several SEO forums so I always go with -. Worked out pretty good so far too!

[photoshopfreak]

In the order i would use them:

1) abc.com/123-xyz.com
2) abc.com/123_xyz.com
3) abc.com/123xyz.com

Stick to number one...

[Jasber]

On the Google Blog , Google Guy says:

So there you have it. Lately, I've been pretty quiet, but at some point I'll hit the Google blog again to hold forth on, say, which is better in a url: hyphen or underscore.

Later he says...

P.S. Usually, it's a hyphen.

Straight from the horses mouth

As far as other search engines...I'm not quite sure.