// Wire FAQ
What exactly is WIRE?
WIRE is a free, hand-kept dispatch index of the open web. We file 797 sites across 22 desks (or "categories"), datelined and ordered chronologically the way a wire-service feed is ordered — newest on top. Every entry was filed by a person.
How much does it cost to file?
Nothing. Filing a dispatch (adding your site) is free, has always been free, and will stay free. There is no premium tier, no paid placement, and no upsell.
How fast does my dispatch go on the wire?
The same minute. WIRE inserts the row first, returns the success page immediately, and only then fetches your site's wireline (description) in the background. You will not be left waiting.
Why do you call categories "desks"?
Because the WIRE is laid out the way a newsroom is laid out. Each desk covers one beat — the Software Desk, the Newsroom Desk, the Property Wires — with its own long-read essay on what belongs there.
What goes into a good filing?
A canonical URL (no tracking variants), the right desk for the page a visitor will land on, and a short wireline written in the third person, under thirty words. If you leave the wireline blank, WIRE fetches your site's own meta description.
Do I get a do-follow link?
Outbound links on WIRE carry rel="noopener nofollow". A listing here is a pointer to your site, not an SEO transaction. Treat WIRE as a place where humans find your site, not a way to inherit ranking.
Can I file more than one site?
Yes — one dispatch per domain. The database has a UNIQUE index on the domain column, so a second filing of the same site is refused rather than duplicated. Different domains are fine.
Will a dispatch ever be pulled from the wire?
Only if the URL stops resolving for an extended period, the site's beat changes so much it no longer fits any desk, or the page becomes hostile to readers (malware, deceptive redirects). Otherwise filings stay on the wire indefinitely.
How is the order on a desk decided?
Chronologically. Newest dispatch on top, oldest at the bottom. No algorithm, no ranking signal, no editorial reorder. It is the order the filings were received.
Where is the rest of the directory — the homepage just shows a feed?
The feed is the directory. Hit [ Index ] in the top bar for the full desk list, or use the chips above the feed to filter by desk. Every desk has its own page with the complete file and a long-read essay.
// About the WIRE
WIRE keeps a wire-service style index of the working web. Every entry is filed by hand, datelined to the minute, and stamped against a desk before it appears on the feed. There are no scrapers and no ranking signals — the order is chronological, newest on top, the way a newsroom rundown reads.
The feed runs across twenty-two desks, from the Newsroom Desk to the Software Desk to the Capital Markets Wires. Each desk has its own long-read essay on what belongs there and how to file well. If your site fits a desk, the filing form at /add.php takes about a minute and costs nothing — drop the URL, pick the desk, and the wireline (the one-sentence description) gets fetched automatically from your own page.
What the WIRE is for: a slower, human way to find the sites real people made. What it is not: a ranking, a leaderboard, or an SEO trade. Listings are not endorsements — they are pointers. Read along the dateline column, follow the links out, file your own dispatch when one is ready.
