Changing url of a web site -- <meta> refresh

[Thomas Dowling]

> The syntax of the <meta> tag above looks odd, but that's the right
> format.  Note that the number before the semicolon (in this case 0)
> specify the number of seconds to pause before automatically loading the
> new URL.  When it's set to 0, the loading of the new page should be
> almost instantaneous; if your goal is to publicize the move and get
> people to correct their bookmarks rather than transparency, you may
> want to set it to some higher number.  Users whose browsers don't
> support <meta> refresh will see the explicit link and have to click
> on it.

BTW, my Netscape users started whining and moaning like crazy when I put a
page on our sight with a refresh of zero seconds.  Turns out it effectively
disables the browser's Back button; if you navigate from A.html to B.html,
and B.html immediately redirects you to C.html, pushing the Back button
takes you to B.html again, which immediately sends you on to C.html, and so
on ad infinitum.  Netscape also plays this trick if a CGI script sends a
Location header.

Thomas Dowling
Ohio Library and Information Network
tdowling at ohiolink.edu