Accessing Your Account
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The first thing you need to do is learn how to access
your account. You will use FTP (file transfer protocol) to
transfer files from your computer to the server, and vice versa. You
will also use FTP to setup email redirects, autoresponders, and infobots
for mail lists. There are other tasks that you will need to use Telnet
for, and and even a few things you can do with your browser.
If you use FrontPage much of this will not apply to
you. However, at the very least, you will want to review the sections on
Email Management to learn about setting up and managing your
email.
FTP Access
FTP (File Transfer Protocol) is the preferred method of
uploading files to your website, and vice versa.. You have
unlimited access to your account via FTP 24 hours a day. This allows you
to create and maintain your web pages on your own computer, then upload
the files to your website at your leisure.
NOTE: If you use FrontPage you should NEVER use
regular FTP to upload your files as this will damage the extensions.
Please refer to the instructions in the FrontPage section for
uploading files.
FTP is not a program, it is a
"protocol", a specific method of transferring data from one
place to another. Some online services such as AOL,
CompuServe, and Prodigy may have a built-in FTP interface. If you
have a PPP (Point to Point Protocol) Internet account, you will need an
FTP program. We strongly recommend WS_FTP
for PC users, and Fetch for Macintosh users . Please see
instructions below for setting up and using these two programs.
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WS-FTP For PC
Users
In order to FTP into your website you will need the
following information which was included in your account activation
notice.
· USERID
· PASSWORD
· FTP HOSTNAME
When you have this information, and a copy of WS_FTP
installed on your computer you will be ready to setup a Session
Profile and FTP into your website.
1. Launch your WS_FTP
Pro or WS_FTP
LE program. A panel titled Session Profile will be
displayed with the WS_FTP program window behind it.
2. Click the New button and type
a Profile name into the Profile Name entry box at the top of the
panel. This can be any name you choose, "My Website"
for example.
3. Enter the appropriate information into the
following entry boxes:
- Host Name/Address: Enter yourdomain.com
- Host Type: Select UNIX (standard) from the
menu
- User ID: Enter your User ID
- Password: Enter your Password
- Check the Save Password box if you wish.
- Leave the other entry fields blank.
4. Click on the Save button at the top
of the panel to save this Profile. This will eliminate the need for
you to enter this information the next time you launch WS_FTP
5. Click on the OK button at the top
right of the panel. WS_FTP will now attempt to connect to your
website. When you are connected to your home directory on the
server, the Profile panel will close.
Left Window
WS_FTP will now display a split screen. The
window on the left contains the folders and files on your own
computer. Use the green arrow at the top of the window and the scroll
bars to browse your system.
Right Window
The window on the right will contain the folders and
files contained within your home directory. This is your space on the
server. This is where you will place your website will be. You
will see folders with names such as www, infobots and access-log.
Binary vs ASCII or
Auto
You will see two radio buttons below the display
windows, one labeled Binary and one labeled ASCII .
There will also be a check box labeled Auto. If you
select Auto WS_FTP will automatically apply the correct
setting, either Binary or ASCII to the document you are
transferring. If you elect not to use the Auto setting
please note that it is very important to transfer images in Binary
mode. Everything else, HTML documents, cgi scripts etc.
should be transferred using ASCII mode. If you fail to set this
correctly your files may not appear as they should.
Upload Files
1. Double click on the www directory
in the right window to open it. This is the directory you will
upload your web pages, files, images etc. into.
2. Highlight a file (or files) from
your computer in the left window.
3. Click the right arrow button
(->) in the center bar between the windows.
That’s it! Your file transfer is complete.
Download Files
1. Double click on the folder you
want to download files into on your computer to open it in the left
window.
2. Highlight the file (or files)
you wish to download from your website in the right window.
3. Click the left arrow button
(<-) in the center bar between the windows.
That’s it! Your file transfer is complete.
Create
A New Directory (Folder)
To create a new directory on your website, click on
the MkDir button when you are inside the www directory or a
subdirectory of the www directory. You will be prompted to enter a
name for the new directory. Once you do this, the new directory will
be created.
Multiple
File Transfer
To transfer more than one file at a time, highlight
the first file, then hold down the Shift key on your keyboard
to select more. All highlighted files will be transferred when you
click on the appropriate arrow button to begin the transfer.
Disconnect
When you are finished transferring your files, click
on the Close button at the bottom of the WS_FTP window. This
will close your FTP connection.
Some good sources of help are the WS_FTP
User's Guide, the Ipswitch
KnowledgeBase, or the WS_FTP on-line help included with the
software. Many ISP's and Universities provide tutorials and other
information on using WS_FTP. Good examples are XOOM's
and Vanderbilt
University's.
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Fetch For
Mac Users
In order to FTP into your website you will need the
following information which was included in your account activation
notice.
USERID
PASSWORD
FTP HOSTNAME
When you have this information, and a copy of
Fetch installed on your computer, you will be ready to setup a New
Connection and FTP into your website.
1. Launch your Fetch program.
2. Select New Connection from the File
menu to create a new Connection.
3. Enter the appropriate information into the
entry boxes as indicated below.
- HOST: Enter yourdomain.com
- USER ID: Enter your User ID
- PASSWORD: Enter your Password
- DIRECTORY: Leave this entry field blank
for now.
4. Click on the OK button to
connect to your website on the server. When you are connected
the New Connection panel will close, and the main Fetch window
will pop up.
Bookmark
Connection
Once you have established a connection you
should bookmark it. This will save you the time and trouble of
entering your log in information each time you want to FTP into your
account.
1. From the Customize
menu select New Shortcut.
2. A window titled Bookmark
Editor will pop up. The Name, Host, and User ID entry boxes will
contain the information you used for your current connection.
3. In the Type field, select File
from the pop-up menu..
4. If you would like Fetch to remember
your password
type it into Password field.
5. Under the same Customize
menu, choose Preferences, and make sure the connection you
just entered is selected as the default shortcut under the General
tab.
Your Bookmark has been created. The next time
you run Fetch your shortcut will be opened automatically.
All you'll have to do is click the OK button to establish your
FTP connection.
Binary
vs. ASCII or Auto
There are three radio buttons at the bottom of the
Fetch Window. One labeled Binary, one labeled ASCII and
one labeled Auto.
If you want Fetch to automatically select the
correct setting, either Binary or ASCII, when
transferring your files, do the following:
1. Select Auto in the Fetch window.
2. Select Preferences, then the Upload
tab.
3. Be sure that the following settings apply:
Default text format---set to TEXT
Default non-text format—set to RAW DATA
Check
"Add .bqx suffix to BinHex files"
Check
"Add .bin suffix to MacBinary II files"
Uncheck
"Add .txt suffix to text files"
Check
"Encode and decode files and folder names"
Word Wrap Margin…72
If you elect not to use the Auto setting please
note that it is very important to transfer images in Binary
mode. Everything else, HTML documents, cgi scripts etc should be
transferred using ASCII mode. If you fail to set this correctly
your files may not appear as they should.
Fetch Window
Your main window will be divided into two parts. On
the left will be a large window which will display the files and
folders on your domain. The narrow section on the right will
contain your current Status, a File command link and a Transfer
command link.
Upload Files
1. Double click on the www directory
in the Fetch window to open it. This is the directory you will
upload your web pages, files, images etc into.
2. Highlight the file (s) on your
computer that you wish to transfer to your website, and click on the Transfer
command link. Or, you may also drag the file(s) you wish to
upload from your hard drive onto the Fetch window and drop them into
the appropriate directory.
Download Files
1. Double click on the folder you wish to
download files to on your computer to open it.
2. Highlight the file (s) on your website in
the Fetch window that you wish to transfer to your computer, and click
on the Transfer command link. Or, you may also drag the
file(s) you wish to download from the Fetch window onto your hard
drive and drop them into the appropriate directory.
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Telnet/Putty
Access
Your Telnet account is setup automatically for you when
you open your account. Each User ID has it’s own Telnet/Putty account.
See the Fee Schedule to add additional User IDs to your account. Each Telnet/Putty
account has it’s own Home Directory, but will share the same www
Directories and FTP Directories.
Telnet and Putty much like a DOS program in both use and
appearance, requiring specific typewritten commands. There are
"power" uses for Telnet, but only Advanced Users will be able
to understand or implement them. The novice user will probably not need
to use Telnet very much or very often, but some basic knowledge of it
will be useful.
Download Putty.
Connect With
Telnet
You will need a Telnet program to access your Telnet
account. If you use Windows, you should have a Telnet program already
on your system. To find out, do the following:
Go to Start, select Run and type telnet
into the entry box.
Once you have a Telnet program, launch it, and be sure
that you have a live connection to the Internet.
- Enter yourdomain.com into the entry box
for HOST, and click on the Connect button, (exact
label will vary depending on the Telnet program you are using)
- When you are connected, you will be prompted for
your User ID (or userid or login) Type in your User ID.
- You will then be prompted for your password.
Type in your Password.
Once you are logged in you will see several lines of
text scroll down the screen. When it is finished you will see a
blinking cursor after a word that may look something like this:
helius:~$
This is called the prompt, and indicates the
name of the server machine you are logged into. That is where
you will begin entering your commands.
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General
Info For Advanced Users
Some of the programs available at the shell
prompt are:
mail - a primitive
email program
pine - a more powerful
email program
ftp - to FTP onto other
sites
telnet - to telnet to
other sites
pico - an easy to use
text editor
vi - a not so easy to
use (but standard) text editor
Joe - another easy to
use text editor
lynx - a text-based
world wide web browser.
In general, it's a pretty complete POSIX
environment. You access these programs by typing in their names, and
then following commands relevant to each program. If you need help
with any of the programs, at the shell prompt, type man and the
name of the program to get instructions for that program online.
If your problem is not knowing the name of the program, try apropos
subject (i.e. apropos mail). It is important to remember that Unix is
case sensitive. "Index.htm" is not the same as "index.htm."
Note:
If you experience problems with your Telnet
program when accessing the above programs you will need to make an
entry in your login directories bash_profile file. Just add the
following to the last line export TERM=vt100. This will allow you to
access all shell programs properly.
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