Expired posts are posts that are given a category of Expired, such that they do not appear on the main home/splash page. Expired posts are also not indexed by web search engines. WordPress uses a plugin to exclude the display of such expired posts.
We need to set posts to pre-expire when we create them. We generally expire posts that announce future events or that reference events in the future tense, once those events have happened. Similarly, we expire posts that are no longer accurate or relevant. (Sometimes posts can simply be deleted but always ask for the author’s permission first. Deleted posts are retained in the deleted posts folder.)
However, for posts that report on club events (e.g. regatta reports, club news, etc.), we generally do not expire those; they just slide off the bottom of the home page as newer posts are added. Such posts provide a timeline and a club history of sorts.
Expired posts can also be used for “draft” posts that you want to share with others, if you don’t want them to appear on the home page. This is done by publishing the post with the “expired” category checked off. Then, by viewing the post you can copy the URL to share. Note, however, that expired posts can still be fully visible to others if they search for them on the website.
2022-07-14, HM: Page created.
2023-09-28: SK: Updated that we need to pre-expire posts.
NOTE: Update the publish date and time when updating page.