Tuxman – Thanks for the compliment! I wrote it on a lark and also to learn the WP dev environment and had no idea it would actually be used. Since it’s actually getting downloads, I spiffed up the readme (nothing you don’t already know) which should get updated soon on pluging page:
https://www.ads-software.com/extend/plugins/the-404er/
When I get around to it, I’d like to extend it so that you can mark certain pages as 404, as well as possibly pick and choose which response you send. You know, your “about me” page could 404 while your “contact me” page could 503.
I’m open to suggestions!