What’s the incentive to keep a website up to date? The same as it is for a guidebook publisher, to keep the information relevant and useful to readers. Some people write for money, some because there’s a message they want to get across, and others for the sheer enjoyment of it (it’s a pretty good hobby; inexpensive, portable, potentially rewarding personally, socially and financially, little chance ofbroken bones). What they all have in common is that it’s pointless without readers. And a reader who finds what he/she is looking for is someone who will read your writing again. That’s the incentive.

The financial question you’ve answered yourself. Online advertising, book sales, image sales, affiliate income (Amazon & co). That’s assuming the writer hopes to achieve a financial gain at all from their website. Perhaps they’re just content that their hobby is less expensive than windsurfing, coin-collecting, or gambling?

“stupid enough to go half blind just to save $25? Much of the information available for free on websites is anecdotal, incomplete, misleading, and out of date, or just paid advertising in disguise.” Excuse me Sir but I think your prejudices are showing. Why does information online necessarily have to be inferior to that printed by guidebook companies-reputable or otherwise? Take a look at http://www.balkanology.com or even http://www.outsideprague.com and you might see that your assumption does not always hold true.

And have you noticed that guidebooks can also be out-of-date, incomplete and misleading? Especially out-of-date.

I do agree with you in part, though. It’s hard to foresee guidebooks ever being replaced by the web and you’re right - it is good to have a book in hand when you need it. Independent guide authors don’t seem to be trying to replace guidebooks though, do they? They’re invariably well-travelled people and no doubt aware that computers are heavy and that internet cafes sometimes close. Augment perhaps, but replace, no.

Then again, as a traveller, if you did have to make the choice between someone who’s writing selflessly and enthusiastically or someone who’s hacking away for the sake of a few bucks, who would you rather trust?