28 Jul Send Web Links That Jump to the Exact Text You Mean

Have you ever tried to show someone the exact sentence in a long article, and they couldn’t find it? Super annoying, right? You tell them, “Scroll down, it’s like halfway through,” and they reply, “I swear I don’t see it.” 😩

Well, you’re going to love this trick. You can actually send a web link that jumps right to the exact text you want them to read. Like a little text-powered teleportation.

Wait, How Does That Work?

This magic works with something called a Text Fragment. It’s a URL with a little extra code added at the end. When someone clicks it, it highlights the exact words you picked on the page. It even scrolls straight to them!

It looks a bit funky, but it works like a charm. Here’s the idea:

https://example.com#highlighted-text

Only, instead of “highlighted-text”, it uses a special format:

#:~:text=the%20exact%20words

So your link might look like:

https://example.com#:~:text=send%20web%20links

Okay Cool, But How Do I Make One?

You don’t have to be a coder or anything. If you’re using Google Chrome (or another browser that supports it), it’s super easy:

1. Go to the website or article where the text lives.
2. Highlight the exact sentence you want to share.
3. Right-click on it.
4. Click on “Copy link to highlight”.
5. Paste the link in a message, email, chat — wherever!

And boom! When your friend clicks it, they’ll go straight to the highlighted words. No more scrolling. No more searching.

What’s Going on Behind the Scenes?

This uses a browser feature called Text Fragments. It’s part of the web’s cool new tricks list. Not every browser supports it, but most of the big ones do, like:

• Chrome
• Edge
• Opera

Not working in Firefox or Safari yet, but hey — fingers crossed! 🤞

Why It’s Awesome

This little trick can save time and frustration. Here’s why it’s worth using:

• Saves people from scrolling forever.
• Perfect for research and study groups.
• Great for quoting articles and blogs.
• Looks super techy and impressive 😎

A Few Quick Tips

Here are a couple things to remember:

• If the page changes and that text is moved or deleted, your link might not work anymore.
• Make sure it’s not hidden behind a paywall or login. It won’t jump to anything if the page isn’t visible.
• The feature may not be perfect on mobile browsers just yet.

Other Ways to Share Exact Text

If you’re not using Chrome, there’s a handy extension called Link to Text Fragment. It makes the same kind of link for you — just with a few clicks.

You can also use some note-taking apps or tools like Hypothesis to highlight and share parts of web pages, but that’s a whole other rabbit hole 🐇.

Final Thoughts

Next time someone says, “Which part are you talking about?”, you’ll have a fancy little link ready to go. It’s simple, slick, and super useful!

So go ahead — start highlight-hopping around the web like a pro.