Webapp cli.gs transforms your long URLs into short URLs with detailed click-through statistics. Unlike previously mentioned dwarfURL, cli.gs gives analytics junkies a rush with interactive AJAX graphs and detailed referrer data in addition to search engine references to the particular URL (or "clig"). cli.gs doesn't stop there: any time someone mentions your clig in social media, be it a blogger, on Twitter, or via delicious, the source is also calculated and treated as coming from "social media." Call it TinyURL on steroids. Clig are also supported by LongURL so you can get the details of the destination URL before you actually click.

Web site (and Firefox extension) LongURL expands URLs that have been shortened by services like TinyURL, Ping.fm, is.gd, and tons more, so you know where the link is pointing before you follow it. The site itself is a decent tool to begin with, but the Firefox extension is what makes LongURL really useful. Once installed, the LongURL extension will automatically expand a shortened URL in the tooltip when you hover over the link with your mouse (it doesn't waste bandwidth until you hover over a compacted link). Since it uses a web service, the supported services are automatically updated when new services come and go. LongURL also comes in Greasemonkey script and Ubiquity form, so be sure to check the tools page for the add-on you prefer. While you're at it, check out previously mentioned Embiggen and Tin Foil Hat.

Venerable URL shortening service TinyURL has caught up with its rivals by adding a feature allowing you to define your own short names (or as it calls them, custom aliases), rather than just accepting the supplied random stream of characters. Most of the obvious choices have already been grabbed, but it's worth a try if you have a particular abbreviation in mind and a long site address to deal with. Some points to bear in mind: you can't associate a given URL with more than one abbreviation, and for short site names the abbreviated version might not end up much shorter.

If you're regularly sent TinyURLs but have been burned one too many times by clicking through to an embarrassing link at the wrong time, head to TinyURL's preview page and enable previews. This old but useful feature will set a cookie in your browser, and henceforth all TinyURLs you click on with direct you to a landing page that will display the full link so you can make a more educated decision as to whether or not you should wait to visit the link. For similar solutions that change or preview TinyURL links on-the-fly, check out previously mentioned Embiggen bookmarklet or Tin Foil Hat.

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Web site NSFW.in is a URL-shrinking web application à la TinyURL with a twist, allowing users to share Not Safe For Work (NSFW) links without fear of compromising your poor, unsuspecting friend. When you follow a NSFW.in link (like this one, which actually is safe), you've got to confirm that you are indeed ready to view a web page that's potentially not safe for a work environment. Confirm, and you're through, reveling in the work-unfriendly filth of the dirty, dirty link. Now disperse, and share NSFW links across the internet with impunity!

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Link-shrinking services like TinyURL are great for sending long links, but sometimes you might want to share a list of sites with a contact over Twitter, IM, or even mobile phone text. LinkBunch, a free link consolidation service, enables... Read More »

Link-shortening services like TinyURL are great for sharing complex URLs (hello, Amazon) over email or IM, but most of us would have a hard time pulling a link like tinyurl.com/3yw6ew from the tops of our heads. MeaningfulURL provides a link-shortening service that lets you customise the name your short URL gets. Paste a long link, choose a prefix like "invite.to." or "enter.to," then add your own text after that to make the link, like "http://enter.to/mycoolsite." The bad news is that the freely-provided links expire in 3 days (you can shell out $2 or $3 for certain prefixes), but for a long URL you need to get at from anywhere, MeaningfulURL might do the trick.

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