NavList:

Alan S:
"I had noticed this problem myself. Seems like things have gone down hill since Google got into it, or am I doing Google an injustice, the problem being with my Apple computer and or it's operator? You tell me."

OK. I will tell you :). First: It's no problem on your end, nothing to do with your Apple device or your "operator" skills. And also nothing to do with NavList. This is connected with Gary LaPook's own website on the topic of air navigation and, specifically, issues related to Amelia Earhart's navigation and controversies.

Gary LaPook's website was hosted by "Google Sites" which has evolved. The so-called "classic" Google Sites format was "archived" and closed over two years ago. Any links to Gary's website posted since that time do not work. In addition, all previous links to Gary's website, posted five or ten or more years ago in NavList messages also no longer work. Note that this has nothing to do with NavList or the NavList website. These are external links to a (former) Google-hosted website. Whose fault is this...

Can we blame Google? Sure, we can, but within limits. Google has a long history of creating popular, useful tools which its teams then randomly throw away or cripple in some fashion. The overpaid project managers at Google just can't be bothered with modest success. They need their "moonshot" rush. They're only interested in being on the cutting edge, and when their projects are merely successful and practical, then it's time to toss them out the window or at least subject them to an un-necessary cosmetic re-design ("busy work" for the project teams to support annual bonuses). On the other hand, in this case Google provided an "upgrade" path for their (now defunct) "classic" websites. They priovided plenty of warning that this change was coming.

So what to do about Gary LaPook's website? The old links do not work. Gary, are you reading this? It's very important that you should recognize that the old links end with a "404 site not found" error for everyone. That said, the content is still largely available (elsewhere!), and with some digging and collecting, we could reconstruct perhaps 90% of it. I asked before, but I got no responses: is anyone interested in working on this? The stored copies of the site data at archive.org are the best starting place. Also, much of the pdf content is available via NavList. All of this could be put back together and set up properly under navlist.net. I just need some volunteers to do the work, and approval (or, sufficient from my perspective, no explicit disapproval) from Gary L. And once that's done --if that's done-- old links in old NavList messages can be automatically redirected, and the final result will be just as if nothing ever went wrong.

Frank Reed