Webnomena

Here are some questions about the URL shortening services and methods that I like to share with you. I hope that these are beyond the “how it work?” typical question. If you still want to understand how it works, I found this blog post useful.

You can also find information and to play with URL shortening on the web site of one of the current leading services: TinyURL.com

1. Is there a Google web service for URL compression?

Follow-up question: if not, then how come there is no Google service for URL compression?

2. Do any of the existing URL shrinking services make money?

I would charge Twhirl for it.

3. Is there a way to use Tiny URL for advertising?

Follow-up question:  maybe not so tiny but can a service come up with an Ad URL?

For example: http://gotmilk.com/5%off I know that implementing such service is way, way, way more complicated than the current use of hash function, yet it is more meaningful than

http://tinyurl.com/5j3t8k. 

4. How does search engines deal with tiny URL?

Finding links within Twitter stream for computing page rank and counting blog post’s reactions (“Tiny Link Love”)

5. Do they consider adding to Twhirl a tooltip showing the actual URL? Or something like the SnapShot tool.

6. How much risk do we take putting all our links in one database/hash table?

We can loose lots of links when using services like Twitter and Plurk (services supporting SMS)

7. How soon will we see a built-in function (button) on our wireless phone/blackberry/laptop/browser for url shortening?

Follow-up question: what would be the image on this button?

8. What are the factors that make one URL shortening service better than the rest? Speed, size, robustness, company financial stability, cost, legal terms and  etc..

9. How and will this profoundly going to change things?

Follow-up question:  will we start buying nice Tiny URL name like http://tinyurl.com/R2-D2 (R2-D2). Go, run to find interesting 5 letter words.

10.  Finally, does size matter? Building a huge URL

Follow-up question: Is it funny?

Now, what do you think? Please comment below.