Notes   /   26 February 2020

Some notes about linking

The signature technology of the world-wide web is the hyperlink. Whenever you write something on the web, you should look for opportunities to take advantage of this technology:

  • whenever you refer to some other website
  • whenever you want your reader to understand something but you don't have time or space to explain it
  • whenever you want to acknowledge your soures
  • whenever you wan to write something that contributes to a conversation started elsewhere

How to add links

There's a technological "how" that's specific to whichever platform you're writing in. In WordPress, you click on the "chain" icon, for example. Whatever method you do will create some HTML code that looks something like the following example:

In my <a href="https://www.dgst101.net">digital studies class</a>, I learned how to make links.

Here's what that looks like:

In my digital studies class, I learned how to make links.

How to write links

The other, more important "how" is rhetorical: how do you use links in your writing?

Consider the following examples, and think about which one works better and seems the most natural.

Option 1

In my research for this module, I learned that Steve Wilhite intended the acronym "GIF" to be pronounced like the peanut butter, "JIF." Seems to me that if he wanted it pronounced that way, he should have spelled it that way.

https://www.cnn.com/2013/05/22/tech/web/pronounce-gif/

Option 2

In my research for this module, I learned that Steve Wilhite intended the acronym "GIF" to be pronounced like the peanut butter, "JIF." Seems to me that if he wanted it pronounced that way, he should have spelled it that way.

https://www.cnn.com/2013/05/22/tech/web/pronounce-gif/

Option 3

In my research for this module, I learned that Steve Wilhite intended the acronym "GIF" to be pronounced like the peanut butter, "JIF." Seems to me that if he wanted it pronounced that way, he should have spelled it that way.

Click Here

Option 4

In my research for this module, I learned that Steve Wilhite intended the acronym "GIF" to be pronounced like the peanut butter, "JIF." Seems to me that if he wanted it pronounced that way, he should have spelled it that way. Click here to read more about it.

Option 5

In my research for this module, I learned that Steve Wilhite intended the acronym "GIF" to be pronounced like the peanut butter, "JIF." Seems to me that if he wanted it pronounced that way, he should have spelled it that way.

Conclusion

There are other options to consider, like whether you want the link to open in a new browser tab, whether to add a "description" attribute, and whether to signal that a link is internal or external, but these are less important than the fundamental practice of linking within the natural flow of your text. Try and practice this habit with your next blog entry.