Url what is

If a URL is in printed material, e. If the URL is in an e-mail, it can also be copied and pasted into the address bar. Some printed material may also have a QR code that can be scanned with your smartphone to open a web page. Most people realize that a space is not allowed in a URL. However, it is also important to realize, as documented in RFC , the URL string can only contain alphanumeric characters and the! Any other characters that are needed in the URL must be encoded.

When a URL points to a script that performs additional functions, additional information parameters is added to the end of the URL. For example, a search engine URL pointing to a search results page includes a parameter with the search query words. Below is an example URL that points to the Computer Hope search page, with the search query parameter of "example search". In this URL, the script file being pointed to is search. Because this file ends with.

After the script file name is a? In our example, because there is a variable the script would use it as it is executed. Scripts are also not limited to only one variable. In the above example, there are two different variables. The "q" variable equals "example search" and the "example" variable equals "test".

If the script was looking for an example variable, it could be processed and perform an additional feature. An IP address is a unique number that's assigned to each device on a network.

When typed e. A domain name is used instead of an IP address because it's easier for humans to remember. For example, it's easier to remember "computerhope. See our IP address for further information about an IP. But this is only the tip of the iceberg! Using FTP, for example, is not secure and is no longer supported by modern browsers. Let's examine what that distinction means in more detail. In your browser's address bar, a URL doesn't have any context, so you must provide a full or absolute URL, like the ones we saw above.

You don't need to include the protocol the browser uses HTTP by default or the port which is only required when the targeted Web server is using some unusual port , but all the other parts of the URL are necessary. Because the browser already has the document's own URL, it can use this information to fill in the missing parts of any URL available inside that document. In this case, the browser will call that URL with the same protocol as the one used to load the document hosting that URL.

The browser will use the same protocol and the same domain name as the one used to load the document hosting that URL. Note: it isn't possible to omit the domain name without omitting the protocol as well. In this case, we use the.. Despite their very technical flavor, URLs represent a human-readable entry point for a Web site. They can be memorized, and anyone can enter them into a browser's address bar.

People are at the core of the Web, and so it is considered best practice to build what is called semantic URLs. Semantic URLs use words with inherent meaning that can be understood by anyone, regardless of their technical know-how.

Linguistic semantics are of course irrelevant to computers. You've probably often seen URLs that look like mashups of random characters. But there are many advantages to creating human-readable URLs:. Change language. Good Subscriber Account active since Shortcuts. Account icon An icon in the shape of a person's head and shoulders. It often indicates a user profile. Log out. Smart Home. Social Media. More Button Icon Circle with three vertical dots. It indicates a way to see more nav menu items inside the site menu by triggering the side menu to open and close.

Dave Johnson. A URL is composed of a protocol, a domain name, a path to the webpage, and a webpage name. Here's a brief introduction to URLs and how they work. Visit Business Insider's Tech Reference library for more stories.