It's really handy to embed URLs (internet addresses) into your
e-mail messages, especially to list-server posts where the information
found at that address is useful to so many other readers. The other
neat property of a properly posted URL is that most browsers and
e-mail readers recognize the string of characters that make up a
valid URL and alow you to simply "click" it to launch a browser
trip to that site.
I've observed a variety of errors in URL posting that tend to negate
the automated features in our e-mail software. Here's an excerpt
---From some guidlines I read somewhere else on the net:
(1) put a URL into your message so that it stays on one line.
(2) enclose the URL in the right and left carrot < > symbols.
(3) make sure it's complete . . . "www" is often left out of the
URL address . . . everything's got to be there. Take advantage
of your browser's "copy" and "paste" features if it has them.
When visiting a site you'd like to quote, use copy to capture
the string into Windows clipboard, toggle back to your
e-mail and use paste to put it into your message . . . this
all but guarantees that all the dots, slashes, dashes and
upper case letters are exactly where they need to be.
(4) make sure there are no extraneous spaces injected into the
URL . . . many of us carry the typing class induced habit
of automatically inserting one or more spaces after a period.
This will contaminate a URL and make it ineffective.
Here's how I quote URLs:
<http://www.aeroelectric.com/articles.html>
I toggled over to my broswer, logged onto the address I wanted
to quote . . . didn't get any Error 404 messages and the page
to quote came right up. Highlighted the address with the mouse,
and clicked edit-copy. Toggled back to my e-mail program and
put the cursor where I wanted the address to appear and clicked
edit-paste. All I had to add was the <carrot> symbols.
If your software is set up right, you should be able to click
the line above with your mouse and jump right to the quoted
site address.
Bob . . .
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(o o)
< If you continue to do >
< What you've always done >
< You will continue to be >
< What you've always been. >
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