Could I use this to create a shareable custom url?
I tried modifying the URL but when it’s shared, bubble can’t find the related data.
I could use an extra parameter to search for the data but that would make the url long again.
If I could check the current URL when the page is loaded then I could assign the data to the page, but that’s not possible, is it?
Any ideas how to make the replaced or modified url shareable on a dynamic page?
We created Browser to address a few feature holes that many were faced with, such as beautifying URLs. Though it’s nice to finally bring a solution forward to drive towards custom shareable URLs, this plugin alone won’t exactly do the trick. However, you’re on the right track when it comes to parsing URL data. Here’s a quick guideline for when you’re feeling the URL blues and want to build a more involved user page structure:
For generating links,
Create a Page is loaded workflow that initiates Browser’s Replace the URL action
Make use of the This url dynamic data bit and tack on a path, such as ‘/profile’ or ‘/member’
Decide on your user link structure such as ID, user name, handle, etc. and append it to the URL
For loading up pages,
Initiate queries to search for users matching the identifier after the path you set using Regex
Take advantage of states to store the matched user and generate the rest of your page
Tip: you can totally use URL parameters and the Get data from URL module instead of using Regex
Our latest project to help empower Bubblers (especially those just getting started) has a series dedicated to understanding how URLs work, URL manipulation, and building interfaces using the Browser plugin.
Browser only manipulates the thing it’s named after - the browser. The intended use cases span from anything like replacing URLs in history to gaining information about a user’s device through the user agent, but definitely not improving your search ranking as you still can’t render static pages entirely from dynamic data in Bubble yet. Search engine optimization is something you’ll have to invest some time into learning about and ultimately work with Bubble and their platform to tackle just right. It’s do-able, but you’ll need more than a plugin.
I didn’t think your plugin was going to solve that use case, but just wanted to check. It still looks like a great addition for Bubble apps.
Most websites nowadays are dynamic, but are still able to provide “pretty URLs”, although the rewrites happen on the server before serving the content.
@copilot I am using your plug-in extensively to replace URL’s. Quick question… For some reason i seem to be inadvertently changing the browser history because Im using the replace the URL and the browsers back button no longer goes to the previous page just remains on the current page as the replaced URL. I am very possibly using the plug-in incorrectly…as it stands im applying the replace URL on page load.
If you could provide any pointers it would be much appreciated… Or could you elaborate the place URL works and how changing the Browsers history is affected?
Before using Browser APIs, you should be familiar with Browser States and how they can be manipulated via Push or Replace methods. There are other methods that will be added to the plugin soon.
There a number of wonderful resources like W3schools from above to help you out.
A much needed solution; this plugin. Has anyone successfully used the get user agent feature? I’ve tried to make use of it (I think according to the plugin documentation), by 1). drawing the plugin on my page, 2). creating the workflow “when page is loaded > get the user agent of browser,” 3). creating a new thing w/ the plugin’s “user agent” value. When I check the app’s database the new thing appears with an empty user agent.
Correct me if I’m wrong, but sounds like this is good to make a URL look cleaner, but not going to do the trick for a shareable URL (i.e. type “xyz.com/companya” into the address and go directly to that company’s page).
Is that right?
Curious - does anyone see an issue with using the built-in 301 redirect functionality to build out custom URL redirects? It would require that an admin manually setup each redirect…which is a downside. But, for a small operation it seems like it could work. So, for above, I’d build a redirect for each company where “xyz.com/companya” would redirect to their actual path. After that, it seems we could use the Browser plugin to then also replace the unique ID in the path with the username parameter.
In my situation, the shareable link would be part of a paid package, so it would be manageable to setup for each new profile.
Any downfalls to the 301 redirect I should be aware of?
@copilot, what’s the difference between “Replace the URL” and “Modify the URL” actions? Also, is there any documentation available on the web for the plugin?