A modest proposal.


Perhaps web sites should be more like books in one basic category. Perhaps they should display basic publishing information in prominent or easily accesible parts of the site. In that way, someone who comes upon an interesting site can readily check and see whether the information on that site is recent or outdated. I've read many books that were written before I was born. I see nothing wrong with that and have often had, of course, wonderful adventures reading them. But before starting reading I inevitably knew when the book was from. Out of print books still adorn our shelves, and our libraries, as well they should. I see no reason why defunct web sites shouldn't continue to fill the shelves of cyberspace, but perhaps there should be a mandatory caveat at the top of the opening page:

The web page you are presently reading is, as of (put your date here), no longer being maintained or updated. Please hold this in mind as you read the page. Despite the fact that the information here is outdated, we hope that you enjoy your visit to the site.

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