ZCrew Online Help :: Shortening URL Links

Forum Index » Online Help Menu » Shortening URL Links

Shortening URL Links

It is very important not to add very long URLs links or other long strings of text without spaces to your messages in the forum. The forum software cannot wrap lines that do not contain spaces; therefore, they "stretch" the column on the page where your message is displayed, requiring other members to scroll horizontally to read the messages there.

If your message does contain a long URL or other text string that causes this problem, a moderator may correct it. If short on time, he or she might delete your post, instead. It is your responsibility to preview your messages before submitting them and shorten URL links when necessary.

One way is to format the URL using BBCode.

To shorten URL links:

• Use BBCode.

1)	Open the message creation form. How?
2)	In the message authoring text box of the message creation form, place your cursor in the spot where you want the URL link to appear; then type the shortened text that you want people to click on to visit the web site.
3)	Select the text and click the URL button in the formatting toolbar above the authoring text box.
3)	Open and closing URL tags surround the selected text.
4)	In the open URL tag, [url], place your cursor directly after the "l" in url; then type the equals sign (=) as shown below.
4)	[url=]Link text you that typed in step 2[/url]
5)	Open a separate browser window and navigate to the web site to which you want to link the shortened text.
6)	In the address text box of that browser, copy the URL.
7)	Go back to the message creation form, place your cursor directly after the equals sign in the open URL tag, and paste the URL there.
8)	Click the Preview button in the message creation form.
9)	In the preview of your message, click on your text link to make sure that you linked to the web site page that you had in mind.
	Example: The BBCode that follows...
	[url=http://www.nytimes.com/2005/05/25/international/middleeast/25cnd-raid.html?hp&ex=1117080000&en=ada2b57e6666f5b5&ei=5094&partner=homepage]NY Times article[/url]
	...is displayed in the message preview and on the actual topic page as the following: