Better SMF

Better Links for SMF 2.1

Better Links was built for one simple reason: when someone shares a link on your forum, it should look useful instead of just sitting there as a long URL.

Better Links automatically turns supported links into clean preview cards with a title, description, image, and destination information while keeping the original link available.

It gives SMF a more modern way to present shared content without forcing members to do anything special.

Paste a link and let Better Links handle the rest

Members do not need to learn custom BBC or special posting rules.

In most cases, they can simply paste a URL into a post.

Better Links can detect that URL, gather preview information, and display a card automatically.

That can include:

• Page title
• Description
• Preview image
• Domain or destination information

The result is easier to understand at a glance than a plain URL.

Works with normal forum posting

Better Links is designed to stay out of the member's way.

If someone pastes a normal supported link, the preview can appear automatically.

If the page does not provide usable preview information, the original link remains clickable instead of breaking the post.

That means Better Links enhances links when it can without making normal forum links dependent on the preview system.

Clean preview cards

Preview cards are designed to give members enough information to understand where a link is going before they click it.

A good preview can make it immediately obvious whether the destination is:

• An article
• A project page
• A forum resource
• A product page
• A documentation page
• Another useful website

This makes link-heavy discussions much easier to scan.

Preview images when available

When the linked page provides a suitable image, Better Links can display it as part of the preview card.

That gives visual context without requiring the member to manually upload or embed another image.

If no suitable image is available, the card can still display the useful text information.

Links stay clickable

Better Links does not replace the usefulness of the actual URL.

The preview card links back to the original destination so members can still reach the shared content directly.

The goal is to improve presentation, not get between the member and the link.

Handles simple URLs too

Members do not always paste complete URLs with every protocol and path detail.

Better Links can work with normal link-sharing behavior and make common URLs easier to present.

That helps keep posting simple for members who just want to share something quickly.

Designed not to interfere with intentional formatting

Better Links is built to recognize when a URL is being used for another purpose.

For example, an image placed inside SMF's [img] BBC should remain an inline image instead of being turned into a link-preview card.

This keeps Better Links compatible with screenshot-heavy tutorials, articles, and other posts where URLs are part of intentional BBC formatting.

No preview? No broken post.

Not every website provides useful preview metadata.

Some sites block automated requests.

Others simply do not provide a title, description, or image that can be used.

When Better Links cannot build a useful preview, the forum should still behave normally.

The original link remains available rather than leaving the member with a broken card.

Administrative control

Better Links includes admin settings so you can control how the preview system behaves.

Depending on your configuration, administrators can manage things such as:

• Whether link previews are enabled
• Preview behavior
• cURL availability checks
• Where preview cards are displayed
• Other Better Links options

Check server support

Better Links relies on the server being able to retrieve information from external pages.

The admin area can help check whether cURL support is available so you know whether the server is capable of fetching preview information.

That makes troubleshooting easier if previews are not appearing as expected.

Keep preview cards out of the message when you want to

Better Links can support displaying preview cards separately from the main message content.

For example, cards can be placed underneath the post content rather than interrupting the flow of the message itself.

That is especially useful when a post contains several links or a carefully formatted article.

Works well with tutorials and articles

Better Links is particularly useful on forums that publish guides, development posts, documentation, or news.

Writers can include normal links while Better Links adds visual context automatically.

At the same time, inline screenshots and other intentional BBC formatting remain under the author's control.

Useful across the entire community

Better Links can improve many kinds of discussions:

• Technical support threads
• News discussions
• Project announcements
• MOD and theme development
• Tutorials
• Resource sharing

Anywhere members share URLs, Better Links can make those posts easier to understand.

Built to feel like part of SMF

The goal is not to turn links into oversized advertisements.

Preview cards should complement the forum and remain secondary to the actual discussion.

Members can still write posts the way they always have.

Better Links simply improves the presentation of the links already inside them.

Built through real-world testing

Better Links has been refined around the kinds of links people actually share.

That includes testing things such as:

• Normal full URLs
• Shorter domain-style URLs
• Pages with preview images
• Pages without images
• Pages that cannot be previewed
• Links used inside BBC
• Inline images

The goal is simple: improve the link when possible and leave it alone when that is the better choice.

Make shared links easier to understand

A URL tells you where something goes.

A good preview tells you why you might want to click it.

Better Links gives SMF a cleaner, more informative way to share content without making posting more complicated.