[Alpine-info] copying lengthy embedded url's possible?

[Bret Busby via Alpine-info]

On 21/7/24 04:15, James Miller via Alpine-info wrote:

> Here's my scenario. I'm almost always doing my Alpine e-mail tasks while 

> logged in via an ssh session. That is by design since e-mail, for me, is 

> preferably a textual rather than graphical affair. So, think text-mode, 

> keyboard driven. Let's call the computer where Alpine is running the ssh 

> host and the one I've initiated the ssh login from the ssh client.

> 

> A problem I've encountered but have so far been unable to resolve is 

> that I am sometimes, in order to pass a security check, sent by e-mail 

> some extremely lengthy embedded URL that is supposed to allow me to sign 

> in to some account or other of mine. When this happens, what I'd like to 

> do is open the link in a graphical environment and browser running on 

> the ssh client computer. Were I able to get the whole URL to somehow 

> display in Alpine, I'd just use my mouse to copy it, then paste the URL 

> into a graphical browser: this is what I used to do before such URL's 

> began to exceed all reasonable URL length conventions (I assume for 

> security reasons).

> 

> I've tried using Alpine's edit URL option but so far that has failed 

> because I can only view/copy, at one time, maybe 50 characters of the 

> hundreds of characters that comprise the URL. Given the complexity of 

> the URL and the fact that numerous segments need to be separately 

> displayed, then copied/pasted, the chance are high that some mistake(s) 

> will be made, thus resulting in an invalid URL. And in addition, the 

> time it can take to copy/paste in this fashion can exceed the validity 

> interval of the URL.

> 

> So, am I missing some way to display, for copy/pasting purposes, these 

> mile-long URL's in Alpine? If not, can anyone suggest a workaround?

> 

> Thanks

> 

> PS I do have on the ssh host a text-mode browser and Alpine is 

> configured to open URL's using that browser, but the lengthy embedded 

> URL's usually fail to open using that means since the page being 

> requested requires a java-enabled browser.

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Since you have not specified your operating system platform, the 
response below, assumes that you are running alpine on Linux.

In alpine, I suggest that you use the 'h' to display the full headers, 
which also displays HTML code, such as hypertext links, then, use 'e' to 
export the message to (for example) your home directory, as
"email<hh-mm>.txt"
then open the text file with a text editor, such as gedit, then mark and 
copy the URL.

That would put the URL in your clipboard, from whence, you should be 
able to paste the URL into another application.

Works for me.

Just be careful of characters (hidden or visible), at the end of text 
lines, where the URL wraps over multiple lines.

Sometimes, that requires a bit of playing around with it, for example, 
copying and appending parts of the URL, one line at a time.

Also, an aspect to remember, is that many excessively long URL's include 
tracking components and other malicious components, so, you might want 
to edit the URL's, depending on the nature of the URL's, by truncating 
at the point where the remainder of the URL, is superfluous to reaching 
the target.

..
Bret Busby
Armadale
West Australia
(UTC+0800)
..............