Create public URL for recording to enter songwriting contest

[cbcollins]

I'm entering a songwriting contest online and I need to create a public URL for each song to paste into the entry form. I've copied Dropbox links to the songs and pasted them, but when I hover the cursor over the link on the entry form, it does nothing. It only works if I manually highlight the link and right-click it, then it says "go to dropbox.com/ and the file name. 

How can I create a public link that acts like a link when you hover over it?

Also, what is the difference between sharing a file and copying/pasting a link to the file?

I am using the free version of Dropbox on a desktop computer. This is my last day to enter the contest, so I would really appreciate some help from someone who is more savvy about these things.

[Здравко]

@cbcollins, Is raw link works for your? 🧐 Replace link's ending "?dl=0" to "?raw=1".

Good luck.

[cbcollins]

how do I replace the links to "?raw=1"?

[Здравко]

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@cbcollins wrote:

how do I replace the links to "?raw=1"?

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😁 No to replace the links! Only the ending of the links! Take a look on any link you get from Create/Copy link. It looks like:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/abcdl2345ef678h/filename.ext?dl=0

 Here you can replace "?dl=0" to "?raw=1". 😉

Hope it's a bit more clear now.

[cbcollins]

Don't mean to be annoying, but . . .

How do I change the end of the link to "raw=1"?  When I click on "copy link" it won't let me change the end. When I paste the link and then change the end--it does nothing.  Where can I change the end of the link and have it act like a link?

[Megan]

Hi @cbcollins, how are you today?

You'd need to manually change the link, by adding raw=1 at the end.

When you say that it does nothing, have you also tried accessing the link, using an incognito tab on your browser, and signed out of all accounts? What happens when you paste the link there?

Keep me posted!

[cbcollins]

Hi Megan,

Thanks for responding to my question. I only have a few hours left and I need to post 4 public URLS of songs I'm entering. It shouldn't be this complicated. Why do I have to go incognito to accomplish this? When I copy the link below a song on Dropbox and paste it into the online entry form, it ends with "dl=0". When I hover the cursor over it, it doesn't respond like a link. If I highlight it then right-click it, it takes me to the song on Dropbox and plays it. 

Isn't there a simple solution to this without going incognito? The judges need to be able to click on the link and hear the song. I have no way to give them further instructions. 

Help!!!

[Hannah · Accepted solution]

Hey @cbcollins, is this what you're seeing before or after submitting the links?

Sometimes a link will behave like a link after it's been submitted or sent, like when you paste a link to an email, for example.

It pastes like text, but then shows up as a link after the email's been sent.

You can test this on your end through an email, if you want and it should work.

Best of luck with the contest!

[cbcollins]

Thanks, Hannah. I think that's exactly what happened. It didn't become a working link until I submitted the form. Now why in the world does Dropbox never mention that? I searched everywhere! The deadline to enter the contest was midnight last night. I got it done by 11:43 pm! But it's done. Now . . . we'll see.
cbcollins