How to Write Hyperlinks in Web Articles
I am not sure how I should write hyperlinks within a post. So I searched the web and found these very useful:
- Link - A section of Web Style Guide, 2nd Edition.
- Write links that don’t have to be followed - an online article on how to write easy-to-follow hyperlinks.
- Alterbox series - web usability expert Jakob Nielsen’s series on writing for the web.
These are the guidelines I found.
Do not use “click here”
People tend to scan rather than read a web article. Scanning a lot of “click here” gives them no clue on the content. So they will leave. For those who print out articles to read, “click here” is meaningless.
- Poor: Click here for more information. [No information]
- Worse: Click here to search in Google. [Both links point to the same site, annoying]
Write first, link after
Web Style Guide suggests writing as usual, and do the links afterwards, like this:
- Avoid problems with Web links by managing their placement within the context of your document.
Tell reader what the link is about
GoodDocuments.com suggests information about links be provided. Its examples:
- Good: Our conclusion is that the stock is up because of an unusually high beta, not because of earnings growth. [Information provided]
- Better: The Acme Company (www.acmeco.com) announced its improved results. [Which link to which is clear]
Provide addresses if easy to type
This is my opinion. I like printing out articles to read. In that case hyperlinks cannot be followed. Therefore we should provided link addresses for print-out. The on-line edition of Web Style Guide does a very good job on this. Both its on line and print versions are equally readable.
Of course the address provided should be easy to type, like www.yahoo.com, or the reader will not border to follow it. There is no need to provide addresses like this: http://www2.discuss.com.hk/viewthread.php?tid=5797820.
Fewer Links in Web Articles, Better
I search for online writing guides and find this:
Links are a distraction. It is pointless to write a paragraph and then fill it with invitations to your reader to go elsewhere.
- Web Style Guide (webstyleguide.com/style/links.html)
Links are so inviting to click. The Beethoven page from Wikipedia (www.wikipedia.org) goes like this:
Born in Bonn, Germany, he moved to Vienna, Austria, in his early twenties and settled there, studying with Joseph Haydn and quickly gaining a reputation as a virtuoso pianist. Beethoven’s hearing gradually deteriorated beginning in his twenties, yet he continued to compose masterpieces, and to conduct and perform, even after he was completely deaf.
So tempting to click away! It is not a problem for Wikipedia because it is an encyclopaedia. But if I write an article about Beethoven, I surely do not want my reader ends up in reading anatomy of human brains.
Hyperlinks are what make web articles differ from prints. But obviously less is more. I can recall that most web articles I could finish reading are those with very few links. No wonder popular on-line magazines, newspapers, and article-based sites offer web articles with very few links. Those sites keep me going back again and again. Here are two of them:
- A List Apart (www.alistapart.com)
- ChessCafe (www.chesscafe.com)
VCD on Ubuntu
Finally, I know what Ubuntu cannot do. It cannot play VCD. Searching the internet shows that it is a bug of Ubuntu. Linux is not popular for a reason. Sometimes its bug is surprisingly elementary. It should not exit.
The solution is surprisingly easy: simply install mplayer and use it to play VCD. Every time an error message box pops up but the VCD plays well.
Treadmill vs Runway
OK. I note this down to push myself for regular sport.
For last two weeks I ran on a treadmill in a gymnasium. I set the speed to 5 miles/hour and ran for 40 minutes. So I ran for 3 miles. I ran 2 days each week.
Today I ran in the track of a stadium. I ran for 30 minutes and covered 3 miles. My speed must be 6 miles/hour.
I did not run for speed. I just ran at a comfortable pace. It seemed that outdoor running would naturally push me. Probably it was the natural pressure from other runners.
Leisure Reading: Taming the Paper Tiger at Home
Taming the Paper Tiger at Home by Barbara Hemphill.
I came across the book at a bookstore. I did not buy it but stood there to leaf it through. Like too many similar books, the principles are the same: get rid of the “some day I may need this” thought, throw the unnecessary paper, decide upon touching a piece of paper, and develop a filing system.
What makes this book interesting is the filing system it proposes. Instead of labelling each file by its functional content (bills, tax, etc), the book suggests simply numbering the files from 1 to whatever you need. A computer program is used to list out the files, file #1 is for bills, file #2 is for letters, and so on. For each item you also need to key in some keywords. The keywords for bills are gas, electricity, etc. When you need to look for a piece of paper, just look at the list. If you forget where the item is categorized, use the computer search ability to search through the list.
The shortcoming of the traditional filing by category method is that there will be so many items do not square into a category. Over time, you forget where a particular item is categorized. The Paper Tiger system overcome such shortcoming by making use of the modern technology - computer search power.
The system also makes adding a new category very easy. Just have some empty files at hand, whenever a new category is needed. Put the item in an empty file, numbered it, and key in the computer.
The book recommends the “Paper Tiger Software” developed by the writer’s company. The software does not come with the book. A trial version can be downloaded from the writer’s website (www.thepapertiger.com). However, I think that any spread sheet will do the trick.
The filing method worth a try.