For links within Mudcat, Try:
<a href=/thread.cfm?threadid=XXX>(click here)</a>

<a href="http://www.mudcat.org">Click here</a>

<a href="mailto:joe@mudcat.org">Click to e-mail</a>

If you're posting links at Mudcat, the quotation marks are optional. I prefer not to use them, because they complicate the task of making links. Simple is better, I think. Fewer misteaks.

To explain the colors:

• The black part is the standard, required part of every link.
• The red part is the Target URL (address) where you want the link to take people to. Unless the URL leads to another page on the current Website, it must include the full address that's in the address bar of your browser, including the http://. This may be enclosed in quotation marks, but the quotation marks are optional.
• The blue part is the reference word (that's what the "ref" refers to). This word can be anything, or it can be the target URL repeated, if that adds to clarity.

I find it's best to open a new browser window [CTRL-N] and navigate your way to the site you want to link to. Highlight and copy [CTRL-C] the URL (address) of the site, and then go back to your Mudcat message and paste [CTRL-V] the URL into your link. Be sure to include the http:// in that URL. The quotation marks are standard procedure, but most links work just fine without quotation marks.
-Joe Offer-