FalloutWiki:External Link Archiving

External links are valuable references that strengthen the content maintained by the Independent Fallout Wiki. These links must be archived to ensure they are accessible when websites become defunct. The process for archiving them is outlined below.

Process
External sites contain information about the Fallout series we want to preserve. If the site containing the information becomes defunct in the future, called "dead links," the information can still be accessed and verified via these archive links. We do so by archiving, or saving, via the Internet Archive Wayback Machine at web.archive.org.

Functional link
If you find an external link not archived, recognizable by the link not beginning with web.archive.org, follow the steps below to save it to the Wayback Machine, and then add the new archived link to the Fallout Wiki. Follow this step if the external link is still functional.


 * Start at the Wayback Machine save page.
 * Copy paste the link into the "save page now" bar. The checkboxes are optional, such as saving outlinks. Click save page.
 * Depending on the options chosen, this takes a short time and is displayed during the process.
 * When complete, a link will be provided after "a snapshot was captured." Click the link after "visit page."
 * The archived link will be in the browser, copy this link and paste it to the wiki after the unarchived link.
 * Format it as followed:

Dead link
If you find a link that is not functional, it is called a dead link. The Wayback Machine can search back in time to find a point in which the link was functional. This is the link that should be added to the Fallout Wiki.


 * Start at the Wayback Machine main page.
 * Copy paste the link into the url search bar. Click "browse history."
 * A timeline and calendar will appear if the link has been saved in the past.
 * Search through the calendar dates to find a functional archived link.
 * If one exists, copy this link from the browser and paste it to the Fallout Wiki after the unarchived link.
 * Whether or not a functional archived link can be found, add after the unarchived link to signify that it is a dead link.

Developer statements
In addition to the archival process above, editors are encouraged to add developer statements to the established game and project-specific repositories, accessible here. This process involves uploading a screen capture of the developer statement to an ongoing list to further safeguard these sources for future use. The process for archiving them is outlined within the developer statement archiving policy.