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Below are a list of the links from http://data.stackexchange.com that currently have spaces in them:

https://data.stackexchange.com/drupal%20answers/queries
https://data.stackexchange.com/unix%20and%20linuxmeta/queries
https://data.stackexchange.com/database%20administrators/queries
https://data.stackexchange.com/android%20enthusiasts/queries
https://data.stackexchange.com/science%20fiction%20and%20fantasy/queries
https://data.stackexchange.com/it%20security/queries
https://data.stackexchange.com/user%20experience/queries
https://data.stackexchange.com/home%20improvement/queries
https://data.stackexchange.com/role-playing%20games/queries
https://data.stackexchange.com/travel%20answers/queries
https://data.stackexchange.com/christianity%20stack%20exchange/queries

https://data.stackexchange.com/science%20fiction%20and%20fantasymeta/queries
https://data.stackexchange.com/christianity%20meta%20stack%20exchange/queries
https://data.stackexchange.com/electronics%20meta/queries
https://data.stackexchange.com/role-playing%20gamesmeta/queries
https://data.stackexchange.com/android%20enthusiastsmeta/queries
https://data.stackexchange.com/drupal%20answersmeta/queries
https://data.stackexchange.com/user%20experiencemeta/queries
https://data.stackexchange.com/unix%20and%20linuxmeta/queries
https://data.stackexchange.com/wordpress%20meta/queries
https://data.stackexchange.com/travel%20answers%20meta/queries
https://data.stackexchange.com/it%20securitymeta/queries
https://data.stackexchange.com/mathematica%20meta/queries
https://data.stackexchange.com/database%20administratorsmeta/queries
https://data.stackexchange.com/home%20improvementmeta/queries

In order to get these to display unescaped, without an unsightly (i.m.o.) %20 (or similar) in them, it seems the only option is to use the [1] and [1]: structure (Like in Search comments, from other commentors; on question/answers you authored, or have commented on), which I feel creates unnecessary overhead for more people than a change to the URLs that SE control, that could be made:

  1. Swapping the spaces out for _'s
  2. Using the SE sub-site's sub-domain name instead (i.e., https://data.stackexchange.com/diy/queries) instead
  3. Removing the spaces, like https://data.stackexchange.com/theoreticalcomputerscience/queries and all but one :s of the meta http://data.stackexchange.com sections

What does the community think?

Also, some sub thoughts:

  1. Perhaps having the metas indented under their respective sites. They might be easier to find, if nothing else.
  2. Not sure why https://data.stackexchange.com/mathematica%20meta/queries has a space, while other metas don't
  3. Not sure why https://data.stackexchange.com/christianity%20stack%20exchange/queries or https://data.stackexchange.com/christianity%20meta%20stack%20exchange/queries has Stack Exchange suffixed to it
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3 Answers 3

Reset to default
6

I would have to agree that the current URLs are an eyesore, but only if you actually look at them. As far as I am concerned, this would certainly be an improvement - but a very, very, microscopically small one. It would be much better to have developers focus on more pressing issues. As long as it works, and it's not really, really ugly (really ugly), it would be a waste of time, IMO.

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4
  • 1
    Maybe they could use underscores or hyphens?
    – Cole Tobin
    Commented Sep 17, 2013 at 4:20
  • @ColeJohnson - See suggestion 1 (First one, necessary to note after michaeln958's edit). All - For the record: Wasn't trying to suggest the priority of such a task, but would have hoped the code would be so modularized, that this would be a very very (really very) simple & fast change :)
    – user66001
    Commented Sep 17, 2013 at 5:42
  • 1
    @user66001, no, not so fast and simple. Changing public urls to resources is not something one can just do willy-nilly. Besides the requirement of changing the html references and updating the server config, this would also require implementing redirect logic from the old urls to the new ones (which you'll have to maintain forever, or at least for a several years). It could also impact SEO in unpredictable and potentially negative ways.
    – Ben Lee
    Commented Sep 17, 2013 at 9:36
  • @BenLee - Hadn't thought about any of these points, regarding outside-to-SE-domain's complications +1
    – user66001
    Commented Sep 17, 2013 at 16:23
5

I would strongly prefer if the site name was the same name that is used in the API, which is the domain name minus the .stackexchange.com or .com suffix (i.e. what you proposed as (2)). This would make it easier to write scripts or to type URLs manually (yes, I do that sometimes).

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3
+100

Yeah, those URLs were all sorts of ugly, not to mention occasionally problematic. Provided this pull request goes through, the URLs will use the API name from here on out, which works as Gilles mentioned.

The existing URLs will all be redirected appropriately, of course.

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