:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/youtube-2005-79c607318a1440c0bb94a1468e1415e9.png?resize=1280,853&ssl=1 "What is the Wayback Machine? We will thoroughly explain how to use it and its meaning!")
Wayback Machine
is a tool that allows you to view past web pages. The website is updated daily, and old articles are replaced or deleted. However, since “Wayback Machine” automatically saves website information, you can view past websites for free. In this article, we will explain the overview and usage of “Wayback Machine”.
What is the Wayback Machine?
Wayback Machine is a tool operated by the Internet Archive that allows you to view archived past web pages. The operating funds are covered by donations, and users have the advantage of being able to use it completely free of charge. You can also see the past status of competing sites and operating sites, making it a useful tool for
SEO
measures. WaybackMachine isn’t the only site archiving tool out there, but there are many other internet archiving tools out there, so we recommend checking them out.
・What is Internet Archive? Explaining how to check and how to use tools!
The operating company, Internet Archive, is a non-profit organization founded in San Francisco, USA in 1996. With the cooperation of Alexa Internet, which independently collects website traffic information, we crawl a huge amount of data on the Internet, and as of October 2016, we have stored over 279 billion pages in our database.
The saved contents include books, movies, software, music, etc., including websites. Wayback Machine is a valuable service that allows anyone to view saved data from 1996 onwards for free on the Internet.
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How to use the Wayback Machine
Here we will explain how to use the Wayback Machine. In conclusion, use it like this:
- Search from URL
- Search by keyword
- Search for image and video content
I will explain each in turn.
Search from URL
First, visit
the Internet Archive
.
Next, enter the URL of the site whose past pages you want to view in the Wayback Machine search window on the Internet Archive top page or the Wayback Machine top page.
By clicking on the chronology, you can view the calendar for that year, and from the calendar you can select what month, day, and time the data was stored. Also, although the color of the round circle differs depending on the date, the meaning also differs depending on the color of the circle. Therefore, each color differs depending on the request result of the web
server
when
archiving
.
There are the following four color patterns.
- Blue: 200s
- Green: 300s
- Orange: 400s
- Red: 500 series
If the request is successful, it will turn blue. Basically, blue is ideal. It turns green when the request is redirected. It will be orange if there is a client error. If there is a server error, it will turn red.
Basically, the dates in blue are viewed, but in rare cases you may be able to view archive information even in the dates in red. Therefore, if there are multiple archived days regardless of color, check some archive information.
Also, by selecting the date you want to check, a list of archive times will be displayed, so select the desired archive time.
Search by keyword
Wayback Machine analyzes the keywords used in the links on the top page, so it has the ability to use keyword searches in addition to URL searches. If you enter a keyword, a list of related websites will be displayed, so clicking on a URL or thumbnail in the list will take you to the calendar view. In addition, since Wayback Machine often searches by URL, it is best to use keyword search as an auxiliary function.
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Search for image and video content
At the top of the page, there are various icons. Normally, past data can be viewed by performing a URL search or keyword search, but it is also possible to check data on other than general sites such as books, images, music, etc.
How much is stored in the Wayback Machine?
Wayback Machine has a way to check the saved target URLs and keywords. When the search results are displayed, the screen will say “Saved 〇〇times between 〇〇 and 〇〇, which is the number of saved data.
For example, “Saved 284,956 times between June 17, 1999 and July 26, 2017.” means that 284,956 pieces of archive data were saved between June 17, 1999 and July 26, 2017. It means that it is.
Even for large-scale websites, Wayback Machine is highly convenient because it can store a huge amount of archived data and can be viewed for free.
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How to save to Wayback Machine
There are two ways to save to the Wayback Machine: “Manual save” and “Auto save”. Let’s look at each in turn.
Manual save
The first method is to save the data manually. Wayback Machine has a function that allows you to save data manually if you want to save it at your own timing. You can save data manually by following the steps below.
First, enter the URL of the page you want to register in “Save Page Now” at the bottom right of the Wayback Machine top page, and click the “SAVE PAGE” button. After loading, if “Page save as [URL]” is displayed, registration is complete.
The saving process takes less than a minute, so it won’t take up much of your time.
auto save
The second is how the Wayback Machine automatically retrieves and stores your data. Autosave has the advantage that there is no need to configure it in advance, so the Wayback Machine automatically retrieves the data.
However, since it is unknown when the data will be saved, there is no guarantee that the data will always be saved. Therefore, if you want to ensure that your data remains, please save it manually.
How to delete pages on Wayback Machine
To remove site information from the Wayback Machine, send an email to info@archive.org to request deletion. However, since the operator, Internet Archive, is an American organization, all email exchanges must be in English. Therefore, it is a somewhat difficult method, as you have to prove that you are the owner of the site.
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SEO measures using Wayback Machine
Here, we will explain SEO measures using Wayback Machine. In conclusion, the SEO measures are as follows.
- Search ranking analysis
- Useful for competitive research
I will explain each in turn.
Search ranking analysis
Utilizing Wayback Machine has the advantage of making it easier to carry out SEO measures effectively. This is because you can see changes in rankings by looking at changes in competitor sites and your own site and comparing them with the search rankings. Therefore, it has the advantage of being able to implement SEO measures by repeatedly testing hypotheses.
In addition, Google’s search engine has an algorithm that ranks sites that are highly user-friendly, so rewriting other than text, such as adding images and videos, is also a very important element.
Useful for competitive research
Similar to the SEO measures mentioned above, there is also the advantage of being able to understand countermeasures when comparing the past and current content of competing sites. It is possible to investigate competing sites not only from an SEO perspective, but also by going back and checking the LP (landing pages) of competing sites.
For example, if the size and design of the purchase button on a competing site changes depending on the archived data, it is possible that the site is trying to improve its CVR (Conversion Rate). Therefore, Wayback Machine can be said to be a useful tool for implementing SEO measures.
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Points to note about Wayback Machine
Although Wayback Machine is a tool that allows you to check past site information, it does not allow you to check all page information. This is because there are pages that require an ID and password. In addition, there is also the disadvantage that it takes some time to display the page. Please note that if you click repeatedly because the display speed is slow, an error screen will appear and you will be unable to use it for a while, so be careful when using it.
summary
In this article, we explained the overview and usage of Wayback Machine. Wayback Machine allows you to view your own site, but it also allows you to view past information on competing sites, making it a very convenient tool when looking at changes in a site.
Additionally, it is free to use and has the advantage of being useful for SEO measures and competitor site analysis when comparing old and current information. Use this article as a reference and stand out from other SEO marketers.