title: remove controllers and actions from URL with MVC routes
body: <p>I know this has been asked before but I'm really struggling with the concept of route configs in MVC - specifically removing controller names and/or action names from a URL.</p>
  
  <p>On my webpage, I have a partial view called "Sidebar", which uses its own controller (SidebarController).</p>
  
  <p>Within the sidebar's partial view, I have the following ActionLink:</p>
  
  <pre><code>@Html.ActionLink("December-2012", "Archive", new { id = "December-2012" })
  </code></pre>
  
  <p>When the link is built, the URL reads as</p>
  
  <pre><code>http://localhost/Sidebar/Archive/December-2012
  </code></pre>
  
  <p>My problem is having the "Sidebar" part appearing in the URL - this controller isn't technically <i>used</i> for any navigation; it's just used to build the partial view. Instead, I want the URL to read:</p>
  
  <pre><code>http://localhost/Archive/December-2012
  </code></pre>
  
  <p>I tried specifying the controller on the ActionLink, but this just results in</p>
  
  <pre><code>http://localhost/Archive/Archive/December-2012
  </code></pre>
  
  <p>Could somebody please explain (in simpleton terms) how I configure a route so that when /Archive is put on the end of the URL, it knows to call the ArchiveController with (let's say) the Index(id) action?</p>
  
  <p>Thanks in advance, and apologies for asking a question that's been covered before - as I said I'm just really struggling with the whole concept of route maps.</p>