Have city building inspectors examined your property?

The City of New Orleans has an online searchable database for residents who want to see what determination, if any, has been made for their property by city building inspectors.  Now what’s interesting is how hard it was for me to get the URL for this database.  I read about it in the Times Picayune today, which had this graphic (note the hard to read and confusingly long URL). 

Okay, so let’s stop to consider something.  By giving us this URL, the Times Picayune is supposedly providing really important information.  But the URL is long and set in small type that is hard to read.  Why not convert the lengthy URL to to a TinyURL (e.g. https://tinyurl.com/a7z9t) and use larger type?  Answer: because the Times Picayune just wants to appear to be providing useful information. Making it simpler for people to actually use would require a minimal understanding of the Internet which of course they don’t have and don’t really see a need for.  Note that the online version of this story at the TP’s NOLA.com site doesn’t list the URL and doesn’t even have a hyperlink.   If I actually expected the local paper to give me important information in an easily digestible form I’d be upset.  Fortunately, I have low expectations.