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An archive capture time is not when the page was written

The timestamp on an archived copy is when that archive fetched the URL. Words on the page such as “updated in 2019” are text. Write both, and do not treat the capture time as the day the sentences were authored.

9 min read · practice only with authorization

The capture clock is the archive’s fetch

An archived copy of your own site, or of a site an organization authorized you to review, carries the time the archive stored that URL. That time is when the copy was taken. It is not the day a person wrote a paragraph, and it is not the day you opened the archive.

If the capture time is missing from the viewer, write “capture time not shown.” Do not substitute a year you see in the body.

Page text is a different claim

A sentence on the archived HTML that says “updated in 2019” is content. It can be a template, a true edit note, or a leftover. It does not move the capture clock, and the capture clock does not prove the sentence.

The live site, if you also fetched it, is a third record. Do not paste the archive time onto the live page.

What to write down

File the original URL, the capture time, and any date words you quote from the body, labeled as page text. File your own viewing time only if you need it, labeled as when you looked.

Lab: a 2024 capture of a page that says 2019

The archive of https://example.org/about shows a capture at 2024-06-01. The HTML says “About text updated in 2019.” A draft says the about text was written on 1 June 2024 because that is the capture.

The note quotes 2024-06-01 as the archive fetch and “updated in 2019” as page text. The authorship of the paragraph is not the capture time. The draft date is removed.

Snippet
url: https://example.org/about
capture: 2024-06-01
page text: About text updated in 2019
write: fetch time and page text
not: the paragraph was written on the capture date

Diagram

Clocks on an archived page

The capture time is when the copy was stored.

  • Capture time

    When the archive fetched that URL.

  • Date words in the HTML

    Text on the page. A claim, not the capture clock.

  • When you opened the archive

    Your viewing time. Not when the copy was made.

  • The live fetch

    A different copy, if you made one. Label it separately.

Check yourself

1. An archive shows a capture on 2024-06-01 and the HTML says updated in 2019. What is 2024-06-01?

2. What is the phrase “updated in 2019”?

3. The viewer does not show a capture time. What do you write?