How not to make a link

Here’s a perfect example of how not to include a link in your text:

It’s from Yahoo! Food. (And that’s how you do a link.)

Steve Carell would be so much better

You know what would be better than this from Yahoo! Screen‘s “Daily Shot”? If the writer had taken the time to learn how to spell Steve Carell’s name. And if the writer had taken the time to figure out how to write a link:

You’d think that someone working for one of the biggest Internet companies in the world would know how to do both.

Yeah, I’m gonna read that

Woo-hoo! I can hardly wait to read the full article after reading this recap on Yahoo! Shine:

Who doesn’t love a little HTML to entice you into reading more?

The mystery of the yacht

I was intrigued by the thought of a $2.5 million yacht sinking on its maiden voyage. What could be worse than that? A $25 million yacht sinking on its maiden voyage. One of those things actually happened, but I’d have to read the whole article on Yahoo! News to see which it was:

OK, so it was a $2.5 mil vessel. One mystery solved, and another lifts its enigmatic head: What the heck was the “vessel’s inglorious” that found its way to Gizmodo? I’d have to click that blue link to hop over to Gizmodo to find out. Unfortunately, that only looks like a link; it doesn’t go anywhere:

Another puzzlement: What the heck does this mean?

To me, it means the writer didn’t proofread. The proofreader didn’t proofread. The editor didn’t proofread. Mystery solved.

How not to create a link

Illustrating how not to create a link, the Yahoo! News blog “The Lookout” gives you the HTML behind the magic of a link:

How not to create a link

A website can several many purposes. In the case of Yahoo! Shine, the site often serves as an example to others of what not to do. The latest lesson? How not to create a link on your website:

DIY links

What do you think? Do you think you should have to supply the link? It looks like the writer for Yahoo! Shine‘s “The Thread” is pondering the question:

How’d that proofreading go?

So, how did that proofreading job for Yahoo! omg! go? Huh? You were fired? Just because you didn’t spot the repeated word?

Do you think maybe it had something to do with that goofy HTML-laden link?

Time to turn in your keyboard

When do you know it’s time to turn in your keyboard and give up on your dream of being a professional writer? When you write crap like this. Even though you may be paid to write, you’re an embarrassment to yourself and your high school English teacher. And sooner or later, the powers at Yahoo! Shine will decide that you’re an embarrassment to your employer, too.

If you can’t hold down the Shift key long enough to type East Coast, you may be ready for a new career:

If you don’t know that a comma belongs between a city and state, and that 31,000 square feet is preferable to any other number of square foot, you should consider consulting a career counselor:

If you think lets is an actual contraction and that you can join two independent clauses with nothing but a comma, start clearing out your desk:

If you think you’re free to handle numbers with numerals, words, or some combination of the two without regard to correct style, and if you think you can be creative with capitalization, pack up your coffee mug and your copy of “Blogging for Dummies.”

But the final error, which should be the last straw in your employment, is the link to myhamptonshomes.com. Why? Because in an article about a mansion in New York, you probably don’t want to lead your readers to homes in the Hamptons in Calgary, Alberta.

You can leave your badge with guard at the security desk.

Make over your headline

For some reason, the editors at Yahoo! Shine have trouble distinguishing a verb (like make over) and a noun (like, oh, say makeover):

This link in the article could use a bit of a makeover:

And the incorrect verb mean should be made over to match the subject (which is flourish):