This report <https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2023/08/the-internet-is-not-forever-after-all-cnet-deletes-old-articles-to-game-google/> says that CNET, and possibly other large sites, are deleting online archives of decades-old articles in an effort to improve their rankings with search engines like Google. Google, on the other hand, is saying that such behaviour makes no difference to their rankings. I found the closing paragraph particularly interesting: From time immemorial, the protection of historical content has required making many copies without authorization, regardless of the cultural or business forces at play, and that has not changed with the Internet. Archivists operate in a parallel IP universe, borrowing scraps of reality and keeping them safe until shortsighted business decisions and copyright protectionism die down. Hopefully, despite the link rot, future historians can piece together an accurate history of our fragile digital era. In there is a link to this item from the same author <https://www.technologizer.com/2012/01/23/why-history-needs-software-piracy/>, from over a decade ago, on “Why History Needs Software Piracy”: When viewed in a historical context, the benefits of software piracy far outweigh its short-term costs. If you care about the history of technology, in fact, you should be thankful that people copy software without permission.