How do I get a nice short source URL on Ancestry.com?

Richard Otter

How do I get a nice short source URL on Ancestry.com?

When adding a new source to people on FS family tree, I will often need to copy a URL pointing to a source found on Ancestry.

 

There are times when I'm lucky and I get a nice, short URL, other times, it's a monster.

Does anyone know a trick on how to get the compact URL to an Ancestry source?

 

Here is an example of three URLs that all point to the same source-

 

http://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?gss=angs-c&new=1&rank=1&gsfn=Max&gsfn_x=0&gsln=Stamm&gsln_x=0&msbdy=1880&msbpn__ftp=Hausen%2c+Unterfranken%2c+Bayern%2c+Germany&msrpn__ftp=88-35+82nd+Ave.%2c+Glendale%2c+New+York%2c+USA&msady=1910&_83004003-n_xcl=f&cp=0&MSAV=1&uidh=3f7&ssrc=pt_t89068540_p46588417989&pcat=40&h=4004148292&recoff=9+10&db=nypl&indiv=1&ml_rpos=2

 

https://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?indiv=1&dbid=7488&h=4004148292&ssrc=pt&tid=14741034&pid=155164367&usePUB=true

 

I know how to shorten the last one to this-

 

https://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?indiv=1&dbid=7488&h=4004148292

 

 

 

Carol Lou Hill

Richard, have you used RecordSeek? It creates a source for you and attaches it to a person on FamilySearch. Here's a video I created that shows how to do this. https://youtu.be/GVs_9B1423k

Or, you can use bitly.com to create a short URL as well.

Hope that helps.

Brett .

@Richard Otter​ 

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Richard

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As an aside ...

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Where you aware of some of these ...

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'Google' "Chrome" Extension

The tiny URL shortener

https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/the-tiny-url-shortener/hohdkaanpmcooenkhecbakblkepcnfop?hl=en

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Tiny URL

Making over a billion long URLs usable! Serving billions of redirects per month.

https://tinyurl.com/

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WikiPedia

TinyURL

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TinyURL

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TINY UAL

Shorter URLs | Tinycc Free

https://tiny.cc/

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DROPLR

How to Create a Tiny URL | Updated Oct 2020

https://droplr.com/how-to/productivity-tools/how-to-create-a-tiny-url/

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Polr

Polr is a quick, modern, and open-source link shortener. 

https://polrproject.org/

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Zapier

URL Shortener

https://zapier.com/apps/url-shortener/integrations

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YOURLS

Your Own URL Shortener

https://yourls.org/

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I hope this helps.

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Brett

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RVTwitch

IrfanView it. ​

Paolo Venturini

I am with Carol Lou Hill - RecordSeek is the best!

Not only shortens your URL, it also manages the creation of all links by simply entering the FS IDs you want to connect the source to.

American Twyman

Add the source to your Ancestry.com "shoebox," then go to your shoebox and open it again.

Richard Otter

Thanks to all who helped.

My main concern was that the long URL seemed to be doing a search. I wanted a direct pointer to the specific record in the database.

I'm looking for a "long lived URL". I have no idea if Ancestry is committed to keeping their URL's active especially after the recent buy out.

 

I had noticed the shoebox method in the results of a google search, but I was hoping for something quicker. Sounds like that's what people need to do.

 

I tried RecordSeek a year back. I didn't remember that it fixed these kind of URLs. I'll give it another try.

Janell Vasquez

This doesn't work for the example you gave, but another quick way is that if there are multiple people on a record, you can click to one of the other people and then click back to the person you want the URL for. That gives you a short URL.