
Google Code Blog: Google URL Shortener gets an API - motvbi
http://googlecode.blogspot.com/2011/01/google-url-shortener-gets-api.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+blogspot%2FDcni+%28Google+Code+Blog%29
======
NathanKP
That's nice. I've been using the following piece of sneaky ghetto code to take
advantage of Google Toolbar's URL shortening API:

<http://codepaste.net/48qfb7>

But now I'll be able to shorten URL's with an official API rather than using a
hack. I don't know why Google didn't make a public API from the start.

------
burgerbrain
Now if only _they_ would start using this. Google Maps' permalinks are
absolutely _terrible_ for example...

~~~
jedc
1\. Go to Google Maps.

2\. Click "Labs"

3\. Enable "Short URL" lab.

Problem sorted!

------
schumihan
If I tries to shorten the url of <http://google.com> several times, goo.gl
always give back different result. I just wonder will goo.gl merge theses url
together sometime later?

This interesting found implies how goo.gl is designed. They prefer writing
directly to avoid duplication check and random seek caused by the check. And
they though most of the urls are cold so it is not essential to merge them
together to keep the hot cache small.

Or they assume nobody wants to play the system in this way. :-)

~~~
slig
They have to do different URLs each time because you get stats for each
shortened URL.

------
antimatter15
A few apps have been using the exact same API (though it wasn't officially
documented until now) for some time now.

------
frankacter
Any insight to whether this would be rolled into a Google Apps for your domain
offering?

We're using yourls.org currently for our short domain name and would welcome
($) the opportunity of offloading the traffic to Google's servers.

~~~
rdela
seen Google Short Links by Google Labs?
[http://www.google.com/enterprise/marketplace/viewListing?pro...](http://www.google.com/enterprise/marketplace/viewListing?productListingId=5143210+6352879591152674960)

<http://bit.ly/pro/> is also worth a look

~~~
frankacter
Thanks for that.

------
togasystems
Does it include the QR generator?

~~~
RossM
The QR code generator's always been available from the Chart API[1]

[1] <http://code.google.com/apis/chart/docs/gallery/qr_codes.html>

------
joshfraser
Thanks Google, but we're already happy with bit.ly. URL shorteners were hot a
year ago. Now, not so much.

~~~
chrisbroadfoot
I guess the mass of people requesting we offer an API for goo.gl says
otherwise.

