Bitly is a handy URL shortener that Ive utilized for lots of years. As a registered user I can create customized, shortened URLs that individuals can really spell. I utilize these whenever I need to share a link to a Canva or Google Slides presentation since the default URLs supplied by those services are incoherent and always long..

Applications for Education.
Building good digital citizenship and cyber safety abilities is something that everyone need to be assisting our students do. Showing them little suggestions like this one to prevent clicking on suspicious links is among the ways that we can help our trainees build their digital citizenship and cyber security skills.

Bitly is a convenient URL shortener that Ive utilized for numerous years. There is an easy way to quickly identify whats behind a Bitly URL without actually clicking on the link. When you include the “+” the URL will reroute to Bitly instead of to whatever the original URL was.

This post originally appeared on FreeTech4Teachers.com. If you see it elsewhere, it has been used without approval. Websites that routinely steal my (Richard Byrnes) work consist of CloudComputin, TodayHeadline, and 711Web.

Not all Bitly users are utilizing them for great factors. Some people use them to conceal wicked links. Fortunately, there is a simple way to quickly determine whats behind a Bitly URL without actually clicking the link. The technique is to simply include a “+” to the end of any Bitly URL. When you include the “+” the URL will redirect to Bitly instead of to whatever the initial URL was. That will then show you the Bitly page on which the shortened URL is hosted and will show you what the original link was..
You can try this trick with a URL that I just recently shortened. Bit.ly/ THWTAPRIL will lead you straight to a copy of the slides that I used in my current Intro to Teaching History With Technology webinar. Bit.ly/ THWTAPRIL+ will lead you to the Bitly page where you can see my original discussion URL and see when I created the shortened URL..
View this brief video to see how you can use the “+” technique to learn whats hidden behind a Bitly link..