Regional or Top Level

I have noticed that whilst some websites are listed under Regional specific categories other sites of the same type are listed at the top level.

Example:
Companies listed alongside some governing trade bodies:
http://dmoz.org/Business/Construction_and_Maintenance/Materials_and_Supplies/Concrete/
Some of these are within the UK yet the companies do not appear within http://dmoz.org/Regional/Europe/Uni..._Maintenance/Materials_and_Supplies/Concrete/

What is the criteria, if any, for getting into a top level?

Is it likely that some companies have not requested a submission under the United Kingdom category so have therefore been placed within the top level or is it down to the Editor to make the choice?

frozenpeas said:

What is the criteria, if any, for getting into a top level?
Is it likely that some companies have not requested a submission under the United Kingdom category so have therefore been placed within the top level or is it down to the Editor to make the choice?

Click to expand...

It is always up to the reviewing editor based on the content that the site provides its visitors. In order to be listed at the top of any category, the content of the site must show a broad enough range of information relevant to the entire category as opposed to a majority of the content pointing to a specific sub-category.

It is much more likely that sites are submitted carelessly to top-level by people who (understandably) DON'T understand the ODP organization. And the breakdown between regional and topical varies by time: sites migrate to regional as categories get so large that they have to be broken down by region. It is very likely that there are still sites in topical that SHOULD be moved to regional; it is absolutely certain that many suggestions in topical should also be moved.

Regional is the place to start. If a site really fits there, that's the place to suggest it.

Top, Regional or A to Z

hutcheson said:

And the breakdown between regional and topical varies by time: sites migrate to regional as categories get so large that they have to be broken down by region.

Click to expand...

Is it safe to assume then that the Regional categories are only created when things get too crowded?
What is the threshold for large?

I have also noticed that some categories are structured as: 0 1 2....A B C etc
Is this a replacement for a very, very large Regional category?

Thank you for taking the time to reply.

Yours Nosely...

No, regional categories are theoretically independent of topical categories, and for some kinds of entity, the website may be listed in both places.

The rules are complex enough (and flexible enough) that editors have trouble dealing with some cases.

Don't worry too much about it. The editors won't be angry if you suggest a site once to the topical and once to the regional category. We'll sort it out -- list it in one or both places as appropriate.

My only concern with getting listed under a Regional category is the effect it may have on other websites that read and use the ODP. I know that the ODP have no control over how a search engine would take this information and list it, but there is no denying of the effect that the ODP has on the internet and search results elsewhere.

That's not a concern for us. And my experience is that people who obsess over that concern generally have pretty adversarial relationships with reality.

Remember these facts: the regional listing does not preclude a topical listing; the regional listing is more likely to include topically-interesting words (since words obvious from the category are avoided in website descriptions); the regional listing is quite likely to happen more quickly; and the topical suggestion may merely end up being re-routed to regional category after a long delay.

And don't worry, be happy: while you're waiting for the editor, your time is still as much your own as it was before you suggested the site the first time. You haven't lost anything you had, you haven't been deprived of anything you were owed. If the ODP is your worst problem, then the universe is really being good to you!

Thank you for your reply.
I must admit, I read it as condescending, but take no offence.
From your tone, I would imagine that you answer these types of questions everyday.

I simply came here to establish whether the ODP would be right for my website submission and try to establish the correct and most relevant category for the listing.
By asking, I think you have answered my questions and even though it was not the answer, I was expecting I accept it as complete to the best of your knowledge and the amount of information you can publicly provide.