13.5 Using Web Links Effectively

Links are placed within digital texts to reroute readers to other locations. They have a wide range of purposes based on where and why they are used. You can use links to organize a page, to save space on a page, to add interest to your text, to incorporate someone else’s ideas into your work, to provide conveniences for your reader, and to complement text in other creative ways. Most often, links are in blue font that is underlined once or twice. You can, however, choose to present links in other ways, such as by using buttons, images, or nonunderlined text. Your main consideration when making a style choice for a link is that it be immediately recognizable as a link. Here are some common types of links:

Where Link Is Used	Why Link Is Used	Examples
In a Microsoft Word file	To quickly move to other parts of the file, such as from a table of contents	Chapter 1 “Writing to Think and Writing to Learn”
In a Microsoft Word file	To open a website	http://www.gone.2012books.lardbucket.org
In a Microsoft Word file	To open an e-mail window with the linked e-mail in the “To” line	pwilson@swbell.net OR Send Paul a message
In a blog	To alert readers to related information that is on other websites	http://www.gone.2012books.lardbucket.org OR (an image or photo alone or with words)
In an e-mail	To open a website, video, data file, or PowerPoint	http://www.gone.2012books.lardbucket.org OR OR JanesData.docx OR wildday.pptx
On a website	To lead readers to other parts of the website	About Us
On a website	To alert readers to related information at other addresses	http://www.gone.2012books.lardbucket.org OR http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9WXpUjKexwk

You can typically copy and paste a web address or an e-mail address into your main text to make it a hyperlink automatically, or you can link to a website using the Insert menu of your word processing program. You can choose to insert a bookmark (e.g., internal links from one section to another section of the same file) instead of a hyperlink. Whether linking to a website, an e-mail address, another part of the same document, or another file entirely, you will be given the option of naming the link so that it appears the way you want it in your main text. Remember that a link to another file will not work for outside readers unless the file to which you are linking is actually on the web.

When you choose to create a link to a website, use your best judgment to determine if the link will remain intact for the duration of your need. In other words, if you are putting a link in a paper to turn in for a class assignment, you need to feel relatively certain that the link will remain active until your paper is graded. On the other hand, if you are inserting a link into a website or a blog you are producing or managing, you will need to be reasonably certain that the link will be live for a longer period. In such situations, you should periodically make sure the link is still active. Dead links frustrate readers, and they reflect badly on your website’s credibility and currency.