Xenu's Link Sleuth
Encyclopedia
Xenu, or Xenu's Link Sleuth, is a computer program
Computer program
A computer program is a sequence of instructions written to perform a specified task with a computer. A computer requires programs to function, typically executing the program's instructions in a central processor. The program has an executable form that the computer can use directly to execute...

 that checks website
Website
A website, also written as Web site, web site, or simply site, is a collection of related web pages containing images, videos or other digital assets. A website is hosted on at least one web server, accessible via a network such as the Internet or a private local area network through an Internet...

s for broken hyperlink
Hyperlink
In computing, a hyperlink is a reference to data that the reader can directly follow, or that is followed automatically. A hyperlink points to a whole document or to a specific element within a document. Hypertext is text with hyperlinks...

s. It is written by Tilman Hausherr
Tilman Hausherr
Tilman Hausherr is a German citizen living in Berlin, Germany. Hausherr is well-known among critics of Scientology for his frequent Usenet posts and for maintaining a website critical of Scientology...

 and is proprietary software
Proprietary software
Proprietary software is computer software licensed under exclusive legal right of the copyright holder. The licensee is given the right to use the software under certain conditions, while restricted from other uses, such as modification, further distribution, or reverse engineering.Complementary...

 available at no charge
Gratis
Gratis is the process of providing goods or services without compensation. It is often referred to in English as "free of charge" or "complimentary"...

. The program is named after Xenu
Xenu
Xenu ,also spelled Xemu, was, according to the founder of Scientology L. Ron Hubbard, the dictator of the "Galactic Confederacy" who, 75 million years ago, brought billions of his people to Earth in a DC-8-like spacecraft, stacked them around volcanoes and killed them using hydrogen bombs...

, the Galactic Ruler from Scientology
Scientology
Scientology is a body of beliefs and related practices created by science fiction and fantasy author L. Ron Hubbard , starting in 1952, as a successor to his earlier self-help system, Dianetics...

 scripture.

Format

Link Sleuth runs on Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...

. Link verification is performed on links which appear in <a> tags, as well as images, frames, plug-ins, backgrounds, local image maps, style sheets, scripts and Java applets. The program follows links to other pages, and checks the links on those pages also, so it is possible to check an entire site for broken links in one session. Xenu displays a continuously updated list of URL
Uniform Resource Locator
In computing, a uniform resource locator or universal resource locator is a specific character string that constitutes a reference to an Internet resource....

s which can be sorted according to different criteria. The program utilizes a "simple, no-frills user-interface", and can help users understand how certain Web sites are structured. The program has support for SSL Web sites.

When Link Sleuth attempts to follow links to Wikipedia it displays Wikipedia's "403 Forbidden" response to Xenu's ID of itself "User-Agent: Xenu Link Sleuth" followed by the version number. It's possible Wikipedia blocks Xenu because of loading issues.

Reception

Xenu's Link Sleuth software was called the "fastest link-checking software" by PC Magazine
PC Magazine
PC Magazine is a computer magazine published by Ziff Davis Publishing Holdings Inc. A print edition was published from 1982 to January 2009...

, and "amazingly fast, very accurate" by a University of Wyoming
University of Wyoming
The University of Wyoming is a land-grant university located in Laramie, Wyoming, situated on Wyoming's high Laramie Plains, at an elevation of 7,200 feet , between the Laramie and Snowy Range mountains. It is known as UW to people close to the university...

 newsletter. The software was used as a testing tool in a usability study at Grand Valley State University
Grand Valley State University
Grand Valley State University is a public liberal arts university located in Allendale, Michigan, United States. The university was established in 1960, and its main campus is situated on approximately west of Grand Rapids...

.

Xenu's Link Sleuth has also been cited by Rossett's The ASTD E-Learning Handbook, Zhong's Intelligent Technologies for Information Analysis, Gerrard's Risk-Based E-Business Testing, Reynolds' The Complete E-Commerce Book, Slocombe's Max Hits: Websites that Work, George's The ABC of SEO, as well as the German books Homepage- Erfolg, and Einführung in XHTML CSS und Webdesign, and Italian books, Plasmare il web, and Il check-up dei siti Web.

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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