Hey recently, I have made some scripts and found some to check ranks and stuff on google. One of them is a script where it opens google Query using a file open function, and then calculates the page rank or something... http://www.designplanet.biz/index.php?q=PR

However, since it uses an automated query type method, isn't that against google Tos?

I also have a script that does sort of the same thing, but this time it detects the keyword position of your website. I haven't tested it yet since it might not be allowed, but it is pretty much the same as the pagerank checker.

I am wondering if automated queries like that are not allowed, or if it is possible to somehow use Google API with PHP, but I have found no examples of that using PHP. (Something to do with SOAP in XML, but i dont know SOAP)

Then again, I think, they don't detect for automated queries, they just block you when your tool becomes popular etc. But still maybe i should email google and ask permission? O.o
The reason i ask this question is because there is this one website for example: http://www.twospots.com/keyword-position-checker/
and they use PHP to do this, although they do not give out the source code, they do a file opener most likely. How are they allowed to do this? Did they get permission?

The action Google takes does vary greatly. Initially simply blocking the IP the query comes from. But persistent offenders can and do get the hostname banned totally, and a reprieve is a long time coming and the site may never recover fully in the SERPs.

I think i remember someone recent getting banned for PR checks on there site

whoooooo...
basically there are hundreds of PR checker websites. I really dont think goo gle cares.

I got this error on the first link:
Warning: main(): Failed opening '' for inclusion (include_path='.:/usr/lib/php:/usr/local/lib/php') in /home/designs/public_html/index.php on line 149

yea sorry i changed it, because since its illeagal i didnt think i would need it. however i believe you can view it at PR2
instead of PR... so replace that in the URL
http://www.designplanet.biz/index.php?q=PR2