Web Link Files

What it's for

Open a saved link file and see the address inside, or make one. Dragging an address out of a browser saves a small link file: .webloc on a Mac, .url on Windows and .desktop on Linux. They don’t open on each other’s systems, and a .webloc sent to a Windows user is just a puzzle.

For example, when someone sends you a .webloc and you’re not on a Mac, open it here to read the address, then save it again as a .url that Windows will open.

How to use it

Choose a link file, or drop it on the page. The page shows its kind, the full address and the site it goes to, with a link to open it when it’s a web address. Addresses that open something else, such as a file, a network share or an app, are pointed out, as are site names in Punycode, which can imitate another site’s.

Opening a file also fills in Make a link file. To make one, type the address and a name for the file, and choose the kind (remembered in this browser). The file’s contents are shown, and Save the link file downloads it.

Example

Press Try an example to fill in https://toolbox.thoughtasylum.com/ with the name ThoughtAsylum Toolbox, as a Mac .webloc. The contents are:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<!DOCTYPE plist PUBLIC "-//Apple//DTD PLIST 1.0//EN" "http://www.apple.com/DTDs/PropertyList-1.0.dtd">
<plist version="1.0">
<dict>
	<key>URL</key>
	<string>https://toolbox.thoughtasylum.com/</string>
</dict>
</plist>

Change Kind to Windows and they become [InternetShortcut] and URL=https://toolbox.thoughtasylum.com/. Save the link file downloads ThoughtAsylum Toolbox.url.

Good to know

Link files from Macs before OS X 10.6 or so kept the address in a resource fork, a hidden part of the file that doesn’t survive email or most downloads, so they arrive empty and can’t be read. A Windows .url can also carry an icon and hot key, which are left out. A link file’s name and icon prove nothing about where it goes, so check the address before opening one you were sent.