On Sun, Feb 24, 2013 at 3:33 PM, Ernie Kurtz <kurtz...@umich.edu> wrote: > Thanks, Jeff, you answered my question thoroughly: is.gd URLs are > trustworthy so long as the site to which they point is legitimate. I assume > the same is true for tinyurls, but with so many being warned about them, it > would seem wiser not to use tinyurl (even though I prefer all lower case to > is.gd's melange). And from what the link you sent says, it seems wise to > avoid .ly domains. What is gd, by the way, Greenland? > > Thanks again. > > ernie
Hello Ernie, The British ISP Memset founded and hosts is.gd (and v.gd) as a service to the Internet, based on the British possession of Grenada. They fully expect to be able to continue for a long time, and they make clear that once a link is shortened that assignment is permanent. Dennis, good points about security concerns. I posted previously about how any viewer can preview an is.gd link. Also, you're right about how shortened links can really help in print. People have two reasons to give shortened links even online: (1) Some people's email readers and browsers break very long URLs. Technically, one can still copy and paste the full URL. In practice, some just won't bother. (2) Link shorteners -- including is.gd -- offer tracking mechanisms so one can monitor, for example, just how many views the link has had, when they took place, from what countries, using what browsers, what sites referred them and the like. Cheers, Jeff Deutsch Speaker & Life Coach A SPLINT - ASPies LInking with NTs http://www.asplint.com Your mood can affect how you read this e-mail. Please read it with a smile. (http://tonecheck.com) > > On Feb 24, 2013, at 3:06 PM, Jeffrey Deutsch wrote: > >> On Sun, Feb 24, 2013 at 2:31 PM, Ernie Kurtz <kurtz...@umich.edu> wrote: >>> James and Jeffrey and Andrea, thank you! I do appreciate the warnings. >>> >>> Now a related question: is it possible to corrupt an already tied URL? I >>> am working toward primarily print publication: if I put a tinyurl or is.gd >>> link in print, for the reader to key in, can it somehow be corrupted? Even >>> if there is an electronic version of what I write, can a link given in that >>> format be corrupted? I have been under the impression that malware lurked >>> in URLs posted online. Is that incorrect? >>> >>> ernie kurtz >>> >>> >> >> Hello Ernie, >> >> I'm not sure exactly what you mean by a URL being corrupted. I can say >> that at least with is.gd, once the URL is set it can't be changed >> (including being redirected to a malware or other bad site). So once >> you shorten a link to a good site, it stays that way (as long as the >> site itself does). >> >> Incidentally, if you're shortening a link yourself, reconsider the >> wisdom of doing so in bit.ly: >> >> http://benmetcalfe.com/blog/2010/10/the-ly-domain-space-to-be-considered-unsafe/ >> >> (That URL comes from is.gd.) >> >> PS: Feel free to call me Jeff - Thanks! >> >> Jeff Deutsch >> Speaker & Life Coach >> A SPLINT - ASPies LInking with NTs >> http://www.asplint.com >> >> Your mood can affect how you read this e-mail. Please read it with a smile. >> (http://tonecheck.com) > --------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe, e-mail: users-unsubscr...@openoffice.apache.org For additional commands, e-mail: users-h...@openoffice.apache.org
