Link Errors (Robozilla)
Robozilla is a webcrawler that periodically scans the directory for broken and outdated links. Robozilla notes when a page has moved or is not found. Editors can then correct the errors found. Robozilla error codes are positive numbers greater than 100 or negative numbers. The positive numbers represent errors in HTTP protocol: Robozilla was able to talk to the server, but couldn't get to the document. The negative numbers mean that Robozilla was unable to talk to the server.
Fixing Errors
To fix an error, the best first step is to click on the link to make sure it is really dead.
- Often a link may have been down for a short period and is now active again
- Sometimes a user will be redirected to a new website and the appropriate course is to change the URL on the record to reflect the new address
- Sometimes the URL may be typed incorrectly
- If the base server URL itself is responding, it's probably a temporary problem
- If the user root doesn't respond, the site may be permanently gone and deleting the link may be appropriate.
While determining whether the site is still active, move the link either back to the list of unreviewed sites or to your bookmarks. Alternatively, you can move the site to the Test: Robozilla: Reds category, where the resident editors will attempt to locate the correct URL for the site. If they are successful, they will move the site back to its original category. For further details, you may wish to refer to the document entitled What should I do about Robozilla Errors?