Multi-tap redefines "short" 8 Mar 2007

Usability experts have long known that it pays to use short domain names and URLs. They're easier to remember and simpler to type without making mistakes. However, as accessing the internet via mobile devices becomes the norm, the definition of "short" is changing.

While typing a short URL like "etre.com" takes just eight key-presses (one per character) on a standard computer keyboard, it takes a whopping 17 on most mobile devices. Why? Because of "Multi-tap" - the method that many mobile devices employ to allow text input, where each letter is entered by tapping its corresponding key a specific number of times (For example, the letter "S" is entered by pressing the "7" key four times).

Multi-tap adds a lot of variability to URL "length". What seems like a short URL on paper, can often become a long URL when tapped out. Flickr beats Del.icio.us by only one tap, for example, even though it's half the length.

This presents yet another important consideration for those choosing domain names. But fear not, help is at hand. Cameron Marlow, a research scientist at Yahoo, has created a handy little application to help you select the most tappable URLs: The "tap calculator". Go take a look (and read Cameron's accompanying blog post here).