I like linking to websites. You've probably noticed. But over the last couple of days I've twice had problems linking my blog to other websites, due to those websites having really rubbish URLs. Let me explain.
First up, Brent Council. Their "Brent Resource And Information Network" website has the (semi-) sensible web address www.brentbrain.org.uk. But dig much further down into the website and the addresses start getting silly. I wanted to link to the "Walks" page, which you might think would have a simple web address like www.brentbrain.org.uk/walks, or something. But no. The actual URL turned out to be the preposterous www.brentbrain.org.uk/brain/brainzones.nsf/0/140887692BB178DA80257042004F3B7C?opendocument&Z=3. And the page for the Willesden walk? Of course, www.brentbrain.org.uk/brain/brainzones.nsf/0/7C61F45F39DC1057802570520046A78F?opendocument&Z=3. Good grief. My first thought was that these were individually generated addresses that would only work once. No point in using them on the blog, because they wouldn't then work for you. But actually, on re-checking, they turned out to be unique and genuine. Totally irrational, wholly meaningless, excessively long, but utterly authentic.
Next up, St Paul's Cathedral. If I'd wanted to link to the homepage, www.stpauls.co.uk, no problem. But I wanted to link one layer down, to the list of daily services, and that had another ridiculous URL: www.stpauls.co.uk/page.aspx?theLang=001lngdef&pointerID=29070tfiyeMyhJt855pCR8lWMXdj0I6z. Nothing shorter worked, no abbreviated version or anything, just an absurd string of 32 letters and digits. I mean, come on, what sort of website designer generates this sort of meaningless gibberish? More to the point, what sort of website designer leaves this gibberish on view to the public? What's wrong with hiding the coding beneath a civilised veneer? Something like http://www.stpauls.co.uk/services/diary.html (which it once used to be)?
Some websites it seems are deliberately, or carelessly, designed to discourage deep linking. The owners want you to arrive on the homepage, and no lower. They don't want you memorising some convenient subpage address and diving in lower down, oh no, so they generate only alphanumeric gobbledygook. Take TfL, for example. You want the tube homepage? Sorry, but www.tfl.gov.uk/tube (should you still remember to use it) now redirects to the anonymous www.tfl.gov.uk/modalpages/2625.aspx. You want to buy this week's number 1 album from Amazon? They'd like you to link to www.amazon.co.uk/Abba-Gold/dp/B0001XLXYI/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=3416295712&sr=1-1, whereas surely www.amazon.co.uk/Abba-Gold really ought to be enough. Damn these over-lengthy URLs. Please, inefficient web designers of the world, trim it down.
Shorter URLs are available (and are especially useful in plain emails, where they don't snap in half over a line break). You've probably heard of TinyURL, which can shrink any web address down to a six letter/digit suffix. But there are several other similar services. Here, for example, are four different ways of shortening that ridiculously long Brent walks website: » TinyURL:tinyurl.com/6lnlzy » dwarfURL:dwarfurl.com/a2697 » bit.ly:bit.ly/3iOyNb » Shrinkify:s7y.us/bti
5pm update: A nice lady from Brent Council has emailed to say... a) Yes, sorry, the long addresses are created because their website uses a Lotus Notes platform... b) ...however, they do have short URLs for most of the important pages... (who'd have guessed?) c) ...and in fact www.brentbrain.org.uk/walks does actually work! (hurrah!)
