Plugin for shortening posted URL's

[virginiafishing]

At one time there was a plugin that would shorten long posted URL's.

Is that plugin still available, and can someone point me in the right direction to finding it?

Thanks.....

[Chris]

I vaguely recall a former coding mod (Wrighty) having a script (and paid server) to provide shortened URLs, but that was way before plugins were even a thing (circa 2007-2008?). If there was a plugin then I do not recall it.

I know Google discontinued its goo.gl URL shortener service back in 2018-2019, so if there was a plugin depending on that free API, it probably had to migrate to a paid one or be discontinued.

There are still a lot of URL shorteners out there (search for "URL shortener"), and most will allow you to use their website to paste in an URL and get back a shortened URL. However, they will want to charge for using their service as an API (send an URL from your site to their site, then get back a shortened URL without ever visiting their site) probably because viewing their ads while you are on their site is how they pay their bills if not getting revenue through the API

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T.LY Blog said:

Some popular URL shortener APIs that you can use today

If you’re looking for a URL shortener API to use in your next project, there are plenty of options to choose from. Here are just a few of the most popular ones:

T.LY URL Shortener

T.LY offers the simplest and most affordable URL shorteners API. You can easily add your own custom domain and create your own branded short links. The API documentation has great examples of how to implement the API in Javascript, Python, PHP, and Bash. Detailed statistics on all short URLs are available. To demo the API, T.LY offers a Postman collection that allows you to easily test the API. They also offer an OpenAPI spec.

Google URL Shortener

Google URL Shortener API allows you to generate shortened URLs using Google’s URL shortening service. It’s quick and easy to use, making it an excellent option for developers who want to add URL-shortening functionality to their projects with minimal effort. Unfortunately, Google’s URL shortener shut down in 2018 and is no longer available.

Bitly

Bitly is another popular URL-shortening service, and its API allows you to create shortened URLs for your own projects. The Bitly API is complex and can be challenging to implement. Bitly is also more expensive than some of the alternatives.

TinyURL

TinyURL is one of the oldest and most well-known URL shorteners. Unfortunately, its API is not documented and could be removed at any time. At this time, we do not recommend using TinyURL.

Now that you understand what an API is and how URL shorteners work, it’s time to learn about some of the benefits of using a URL shortener API for your business or website. First, shortened URLs are more user-friendly and easier to remember than long, convoluted web addresses. They also take up less space on a page, which can be helpful when trying to keep your content concise. Additionally, by using a URL shortener API, you’ll have access to detailed analytics tracking data that will help you measure the success of your marketing campaigns and optimize your content accordingly. Finally, shortened URLs are great for branding purposes; they can help make your company or website more recognizable online.

Google Developer said:

For consumers

Starting April 13, 2018, anonymous users and users who have never created short links before today will not be able to create new short links via the goo.gl console. If you are looking to create new short links, we recommend you check out popular services like Bitly and Ow.ly as an alternative.

If you have existing goo.gl short links, you can continue to use all features of goo.gl console for a period of one year, until March 30, 2019, when we will discontinue the console. You can manage all your short links and their analytics through the goo.gl console during this period.

After March 30, 2019, all links will continue to redirect to the intended destination. Your existing short links will not be migrated to the Firebase console, however, you will be able to export your link information from the goo.gl console.

For developers

Starting May 30, 2018, only projects that have accessed URL Shortener APIs before today can create short links. To create new short links, we recommend FDL APIs. FDL short links will automatically detect the user's platform and send the user to either the web or your app, as appropriate.

If you are already calling URL Shortener APIs to manage goo.gl short links, you can continue to use them for a period of one year, until March 30, 2019, when we will discontinue the APIs. For developers looking to migrate to FDL see our migration guide.

As it is for consumers, all links will continue to redirect to the intended destination after March 30, 2019. However, existing short links will not be migrated to the Firebase console/API.

URL Shortener has been a great tool that we're proud to have built. As we look towards the future, we're excited about the possibilities of Firebase Dynamic Links, particularly when it comes to dynamic platform detection and links that survive the app installation process. We hope you are too!