All blogs are subject to what is known as link rot, i.e., a linked page goes away and the reader hits “404 Not Found” when the link is clicked. Site owners HATE THIS, and I’m no exception. I try to stay on top of it by various methods. There are apps that can be run to check, and this helps. But I haven’t found one that is 100% accurate, so I still have to check manually. I usually do this as a result of people accessing old pages. That was the case this evening when I happen to notice a very old post was being read. Of course I went over to read it too and discovered to my dismay that the site I had linked no longer exists. But thankfully, this site was cached (copies of the webpages saved) by the Internet Archive, also commonly known as The WayBack Machine. I actually send these people money because they’re preserving a precious part of the web. They preserve some trash too, but hey, as long as I can find most of the precious stuff among the trash, then I’m cool with however they keep house!
And this evening, I’m so grateful for them as I would not have been able to so easily keep this post current and pleasurable.
Enjoy! and maybe say a word or two of encouragement to the folks at the Internet Archive. A couple of dollars doesn’t hurt either.
One last thing. If you notice any of my links have rotted, would you send me a note! Thanks. :D
Now back to what I was doing, which is trying to finish an interview piece.
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Thanks for the reminder about the Wayback Machine. I haven’t had to use it for a missing link…yet. But it’s nice to know that’s an option.
I am interested in the software you mentioned for finding dead links. So far I have only found them the same way as you mentioned.
I too, would appreciate it if people would let me know when something doesn’t work on my blog. With me, it is mostly videos that go AWOL. It breaks my heart! – ’cause there’s no Wayback machine for videos! :(
Thanks! I do love your public service posts!! :)
Oh @phylly3 I second your thoughts on videos, I’ve got the same problem … I’ve thought of updating and providing alternative links ..
Yeah, videos are a blessing and a bane.
I sent you both an email. As to checking links, there are several ways to do that, but if you don’t own the domain, a decent, free one is http://www.google.com/webmasters/tools
I’ve used the Internet Archive to look at some of my old sites, waaaaaaay back. It’s such a trip down memory lane! :)