4 ms·

I'll never use a URL shortener again.

by AlienRobot 1y ago

purplecats 1y ago
could host your own
- VWWHFSfQ 1y ago
  I use pinboard.in. Also pay the $20/yr for archiving if the links rot https://pinboard.in/ https://pinboard.in/
  - duskwuff 1y ago
    Pinboard isn't a URL shortener.
- Imustaskforhelp 1y ago
  dub.sh comes to my mind
- Symbiote 1y ago
  I set one up at work using https://shlink.io/ https://shlink.io/ As we already have a PostgreSQL database server, thecost of running this is extremely low, and we aren't concerned about GDPR (etc) issues with using a third-party site.
- rs186 1y ago
  If you make it read-only, maybe. If anyone can generate a link, wait for your hosting provider to shout at you and ask why there is so much spam/illegal content with your domain. The you realize you can't actually manage a service like this.
  - cestith 1y ago
    I used to work for a company that ran our own. It required authentication to add a new URL, and only employees had that.
Jabrov 1y ago
Has there ever been one that survived for a really long time?
- reddalo 1y ago
  Three random examples that come to my mind: - Tinyurl.com, launched in 2002, currently 23 years old - Urly.it, launched in 2009, currently 16 years old - Bitly.com, also launched in 2009 So yes, some services survived a long time.
  - notpushkin 1y ago
    - is.gd and v.gd
- magicalhippo 1y ago
  https://www.doi.org/ https://www.doi.org/ has been going for 27 years[1]. [1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_object_identifier https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_object_identifier
- Imustaskforhelp 1y ago
  Honestly, that's a great question I think I might be doing a self plug here, so pardon me but I am pretty sure that I can create something like a link shortener which can last essentially permanent, it has to do with crypto (I don't adore it as an investment, I must make it absolutely clear) But basically I have created nanotimestamps which can embed some data in nano blockchain and that data could theoretically be a link.. Now the problem is that the link would atleast either be a transaction id which is big or some sort of seed passphrase... So no, its not as easy as some passphrase but I am pretty sure that nano isn't going to dissolve, last time I checked it has 60 nodes and anyone can host a node and did I mention all of this for completely free.. (I mean, there is no gas fees in nano, which is why I picked it) I am not associated with the nano team and it would actually be sort of put their system on strain if we do actually use it in this way but I mean their system allows for it .. so why not cheat the system Tldr: I am pretty sure that I can build one which can really survive a really long time, decentralized based link shortener but the trade off is that the shortened link might actually become larger than original link. I can still think of a way to actually shorten it though Like I just thought that nano has a way to catalogue transactions in time so its theoretically possible that we can catalogue some transactions from time, and so basically its just the nth number of transaction and that n could be something like 1000232 and so it could be test.org/1000232 could lead to something like youtube rickroll. Could theoretically be possible, If literally anybody is interested, I can create a basic prototype since I am just so proud really that I created some decent "innovation" in some space that I am not even familiar with (I ain't no crypto wizard)
HPsquared 1y ago
Finally a use for blockchain?
- Imustaskforhelp 1y ago
  Oh boy... I think I found the man that I can yap about the idea that I got scrolling thorugh HN: link shortener in blockchain with 0 gas fees Here is the comment since I don't want to spam the same comment twice, Have a nice day https://news.ycombinator.com/reply?id=44760545 https://news.ycombinator.com/reply?id=44760545
  - notpushkin 1y ago
    JFYI: single line breaks don’t work on HN. You can use double line breaks between paragraphs, or full stops between sentences
SoftTalker 1y ago
Any form of URL is at best a point in time reference. Shortened or not, they change, disappear, get redirected, all the time. There was once an idea that a URL was (or should be) a permanent reference, but to the extent that was ever true it's long in the past. The closest thing we might have to that is an Internet Archive link. Otherwise, don't cite URLs. Cite authors, titles, keywords, and dates, and maybe a search engine will turn up the document, if it exists at all.
- toomuchtodo 1y ago
  Cite Wayback Machine links, as you mention.
  - notpushkin 1y ago
    And don’t forget to https://archive.org/donate https://archive.org/donate
saurik 1y ago
The same reason you did in the first place -- despite a ton people who saw the future saying you shouldn't -- is the reason why the next generation of people will do it despite you trying to warn them.
OutOfHere 1y ago
The more correct generalization would be to never trust a Google product again with your data. Fwiw, I wrote and hosted my own URL shortener, also embeddable in applications.
rsync 1y ago
"I'll never use a URL shortener again." I don't know if anyone should use a URL shortener or not ... but if you do ... "Oh By"[1] will be around in thirty years. Links will not be "purged". Users won't be tracked. Ads won't be served. [1] https://0x.co https://0x.co
- echoangle 1y ago
  > "Oh By"[1] will be around in thirty years. How can you (or I) know that?
- PKop 1y ago
  Says who? These assertions mean nothing and guarantee nothing.
- hoten 1y ago
  I'm not sure how to ask this without being rude, so I'll just shoot. Is this example satire? https://0x.co/examples.html https://0x.co/examples.html What normal person would find this glove and result in it being returned to its owner? Even if "0x.co" was written too, I think most people wouldn't understand it to be a URL.
ProllyInfamous 1y ago
Years ago Google deactivated a similar product, which ended my access to a tech blog I had written for years. I'll never use a Google product again.

I'll never use a URL shortener again.

purplecats 1y ago

could host your own

VWWHFSfQ 1y ago
I use pinboard.in. Also pay the $20/yr for archiving if the links rot https://pinboard.in/ https://pinboard.in/
- duskwuff 1y ago
  Pinboard isn't a URL shortener.
Imustaskforhelp 1y ago
dub.sh comes to my mind
Symbiote 1y ago
I set one up at work using https://shlink.io/ https://shlink.io/ As we already have a PostgreSQL database server, thecost of running this is extremely low, and we aren't concerned about GDPR (etc) issues with using a third-party site.
rs186 1y ago
If you make it read-only, maybe. If anyone can generate a link, wait for your hosting provider to shout at you and ask why there is so much spam/illegal content with your domain. The you realize you can't actually manage a service like this.
- cestith 1y ago
  I used to work for a company that ran our own. It required authentication to add a new URL, and only employees had that.

Jabrov 1y ago

Has there ever been one that survived for a really long time?

reddalo 1y ago
Three random examples that come to my mind: - Tinyurl.com, launched in 2002, currently 23 years old - Urly.it, launched in 2009, currently 16 years old - Bitly.com, also launched in 2009 So yes, some services survived a long time.
- notpushkin 1y ago
  - is.gd and v.gd
magicalhippo 1y ago
https://www.doi.org/ https://www.doi.org/ has been going for 27 years[1]. [1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_object_identifier https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_object_identifier
Imustaskforhelp 1y ago
Honestly, that's a great question I think I might be doing a self plug here, so pardon me but I am pretty sure that I can create something like a link shortener which can last essentially permanent, it has to do with crypto (I don't adore it as an investment, I must make it absolutely clear) But basically I have created nanotimestamps which can embed some data in nano blockchain and that data could theoretically be a link.. Now the problem is that the link would atleast either be a transaction id which is big or some sort of seed passphrase... So no, its not as easy as some passphrase but I am pretty sure that nano isn't going to dissolve, last time I checked it has 60 nodes and anyone can host a node and did I mention all of this for completely free.. (I mean, there is no gas fees in nano, which is why I picked it) I am not associated with the nano team and it would actually be sort of put their system on strain if we do actually use it in this way but I mean their system allows for it .. so why not cheat the system Tldr: I am pretty sure that I can build one which can really survive a really long time, decentralized based link shortener but the trade off is that the shortened link might actually become larger than original link. I can still think of a way to actually shorten it though Like I just thought that nano has a way to catalogue transactions in time so its theoretically possible that we can catalogue some transactions from time, and so basically its just the nth number of transaction and that n could be something like 1000232 and so it could be test.org/1000232 could lead to something like youtube rickroll. Could theoretically be possible, If literally anybody is interested, I can create a basic prototype since I am just so proud really that I created some decent "innovation" in some space that I am not even familiar with (I ain't no crypto wizard)

HPsquared 1y ago

Finally a use for blockchain?

Imustaskforhelp 1y ago
Oh boy... I think I found the man that I can yap about the idea that I got scrolling thorugh HN: link shortener in blockchain with 0 gas fees Here is the comment since I don't want to spam the same comment twice, Have a nice day https://news.ycombinator.com/reply?id=44760545 https://news.ycombinator.com/reply?id=44760545
- notpushkin 1y ago
  JFYI: single line breaks don’t work on HN. You can use double line breaks between paragraphs, or full stops between sentences

SoftTalker 1y ago

Any form of URL is at best a point in time reference. Shortened or not, they change, disappear, get redirected, all the time. There was once an idea that a URL was (or should be) a permanent reference, but to the extent that was ever true it's long in the past. The closest thing we might have to that is an Internet Archive link. Otherwise, don't cite URLs. Cite authors, titles, keywords, and dates, and maybe a search engine will turn up the document, if it exists at all.

toomuchtodo 1y ago
Cite Wayback Machine links, as you mention.
- notpushkin 1y ago
  And don’t forget to https://archive.org/donate https://archive.org/donate

saurik 1y ago

The same reason you did in the first place -- despite a ton people who saw the future saying you shouldn't -- is the reason why the next generation of people will do it despite you trying to warn them.

OutOfHere 1y ago

The more correct generalization would be to never trust a Google product again with your data. Fwiw, I wrote and hosted my own URL shortener, also embeddable in applications.

rsync 1y ago

"I'll never use a URL shortener again." I don't know if anyone should use a URL shortener or not ... but if you do ... "Oh By"[1] will be around in thirty years. Links will not be "purged". Users won't be tracked. Ads won't be served. [1] https://0x.co https://0x.co

echoangle 1y ago
> "Oh By"[1] will be around in thirty years. How can you (or I) know that?
PKop 1y ago
Says who? These assertions mean nothing and guarantee nothing.
hoten 1y ago
I'm not sure how to ask this without being rude, so I'll just shoot. Is this example satire? https://0x.co/examples.html https://0x.co/examples.html What normal person would find this glove and result in it being returned to its owner? Even if "0x.co" was written too, I think most people wouldn't understand it to be a URL.

ProllyInfamous 1y ago

Years ago Google deactivated a similar product, which ended my access to a tech blog I had written for years. I'll never use a Google product again.