Blogging at Length Matters

The archives for A Writer's Edge threaten to overflow. What I mean is that the directory in the left column is taking up too much space. I'm thinking of shrinking the listing. Shall I simply delete, say, the first year or two? Weed out the less useful postings? Figure out how to wrestle Blogger into displaying an annual listing?

Eliminating some of the entries would be a lot of work because they are referenced in search indexes, directories, blogs and other websites. I don't want visitors to arrive to a standard "404" (page can't be found). Aside: I read that "404" is entering the American lexicon as slang for stupid or clueless as in, "Don't ask John, he's 404." Back to the topic: I would create a custom-designed error message explaining why the hoped-for article has gone missing and where and how to find similar material in the website.

I wish it were possible to ask everyone to vote on whether a particular post goes or stays. Well, I guess it is possible if I wanted to create a lot more work for myself. But the idea is that dealing with the blog is interfering with other activities I want to spend more time with: reading, editing, and building websites. What are your thoughts on eliminating old posts? Would that do readers a disservice? Would it be detrimental to the blog itself or my reputation (whatever that is)?