tinyurl

TinyURL

Create a custom shorter URL

Enter a URL

http://tinyurl.com/
May contain letters, numbers, and dashes.

Here is a solution for those URLs (website addresses) that go on forever.  Often the links get broken in an email if they are too long, and can also be difficult to type or read over the telephone.  At TinyURL.com, you can create a much shorter URL for free.  Just go to their site and paste the log URL and wha-la… a short version.  You can even create custom URLs instead of the automatically generated ones.

URL Shorteners

Do you use a URL shortener?  This is an easy-to-use tool that can help you share websites with others.  URL stands for uniform resource locator, which is the technical name for a website link, such as http://www.missionaryhelp.com Some, like this are simple, while others are more complex, or much longer.  For instance, I shortened the link to a book at Amazon from http://www.amazon.com/Hamster-Revolution-Manage-Manages-Business/dp/1576755738/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1301868103&sr=1-1 to http://tinyurl.com/hamsterrevolution Click here to use TinyURL.

Reasons to use a URL shortener

  • To keep a long address from wrapping to a second line and breaking in an email
  • To make a long address fit in a text message or Twitter post
  • To make it easy to memorize a website address
  • To hide an advertising affiliate link
  • To make it easier to share a link over the phone
  • To make a link better looking
  • To track how many people follow that unique link to your website
  • To hide a free online website or file sharing site with a strange name

Common URL shorteners