Linkage ~ "URL Redirection"

I haven't made many Linkage posts, so I thought I'd fix that problem. Though, I wasn't sure what exactly I would link to. Then I figured I might try and pretend that I wasn't me. That I would try making suggestions to my virginized self about sites and web services he would absolutely need to know about.

Being the digital creature that I am, I'm pretty obsessed with micro-blogs like Twitter, Pownce and to a lesser extent, Jaiku. These services (save for Pownce) allow you to make short-form updates about things you're doing, etc. with the proviso that you limit your posts to 140 characters. Given that you've such a tight space to work within, linking to sites and videos can get a bit tricky since they often require pasting large URLs. The solution to this problem is to use proxies, or URL redirectors: simple web services that take lengthy URLs and create shorter URLs that forward to the original source. They're a lifesaver when trying to stay within your character quota. So I thought I'd offer up a few of these services whenever you find yourself in a micro-blog pinch. ;)

I'd say the most popular URL redirector has been and is TinyURL. It's tried & true and solid as hell.

My personal favorite is URLtea. I'm a sucker for puns and I think the site name is slick as all hell. URLtea, Earl Tea... c'mon... how can you not love that? :P The only problem here is that I've noticed the site's reliability to be a bit spotty in the last few weeks. That's a bit of a drag, but I'm listing it here in the hopes that they get back on track in the coming weeks, hopefully days.

Snurl is a service that one of my favorite tech bloggers, Xeni Jardin, uses quite frequently. If it's good enough for Xeni, it's good enough for me. ;) It's got some major geek cachet in my book.

Lastly, there's Metamark. I don't use it much, but it works as good as any of the rest. ;)

So go forth my fellow satellites. Spread your digital joy with greater efficiency. ;) :P


DS333, linking.