Website Help : How to Setup Your Website

1. Explain the meaning of the terms used in the instructions.
2. What do FTP, upload, ASCII and binary mean?
3. How can I get a free FTP program?
4. If I type in my address to my pages I don't see them.
5. How do I upload my website pages and pictures?
6. How do I update my pages?
7. My pictures show as a red x on my pages.
8. My pictures look distorted.
9. Why don't my links work?
10. When I click a link the wrong page shows:
11. Why doesn't my sound work?
12. When I try to view my pages I get a 404 error.

Basic Terminology and FTP

1. What is a Server? This is the place where you put your website files so people can view them on the internet.
2. What does upload mean? This is the act of physically putting your website pages and pictures onto your web server. Also referred to as publish.
3. What is public_html, WWW, public? This where you put your pages and pictures so people on the web can view them. If you are not sure where this is you will have to ask your web host as each host may be different.
4. What is a directory? Another word for folder, like the folders you have on your computer, except on your web server.

1. FTP means File Transfer Protocol which using a special program is a way to put your pages and pictures onto your web server.
2. You will need to download and install an FTP program of your choosing be have provided links to several free ones below. To use an FTP program you will need your FTP host name, user name and password.
3. What does ASCII mean? It is a mode of FTP transfer to upload text type files like webpages, .doc files or .txt files. There is a setting for this in your FTP program. It is usually the default setting.
4. What does Binary mean? The other FTP upload method for uploading music files, pictures, .zip files and .exe files.
5. How do I use an FTP program? Because there are many programs available it would be best to download and install one. Then read the directions about that program. They aren't very difficult to use so it shouldn't take very long to be up and running.

1. There are many free FTP programs available one of these will do the job. We are not affiliated with nor do we endorse any of these programs we merely listed them as a courtesy to our site users. For more information please view our Terms of Service for more details before downloading anything from our site.
   
   

   Ace FTP 3	Blaze FTP	Filezilla	ESFTP
   FTP Surfer	Smart FTP	WinSCP

1. Our website generator does not create permanent pages on our web server.
2. Our website generator creates temporary pages that exist while your are creating them. You will need to download them and upload them to your web server. This service is provided to people who don't know how to code in HTML but want to create their own website for free.
3. Do you own a domain name? A domain name must be purchased and registered with a domain registrar. You can't just pick one out of the air and enter it into our website generator and expect it to work. This form entry is provided so you can use the domain name you already registered for website.

1. Using your FTP program FTP all of your web pages in ASCII Mode to the publicly viewable folder on your webserver.
2. FTP your pictures that you used on your pages in Binary Mode.
3. Your pages and pictures go together in the same publicly viewable folder.
4. Download this image it is used in the construction of your pages:
   Right click on the image, select Save Image As.., save it to your computer.
   
   
   
   Upload it in binary mode with your other pictures.
5. The setup is complete, go look at your website!

1. When you created your web pages you asked to download your page configuration file by pressing the Save data button.
2. Double click on this file and press the Get My Page button. This will import your page data into the website creator system. From there you can begin editing your page.
3. If you didn't download this file you will have to manually re-enter all of your data. Your information is not stored on this server so we have no copies of your pages.

My Pictures

1. For some reason your browser is not loading the picture. Is it on the server? Did you upload your pictures?
2. Did you upload your pictures to the same place as your pages?
3. Did you upload them to the correct place on your server, the publicly viewable folder?
4. Are you sure you uploaded your pictures using binary mode on your FTP program?
5. Did you use the same case characters on your web pages as is used in the file names of your pictures? On most web servers upper case letters are not the same as lower case. So if you used upper case in the website creator and the pictures on your computer are in lower case they will not work!
6. Are your pictures in the same folder on your web server as your web pages?

1. Are you sure you uploaded your pictures using binary mode?
2. Use pictures that are size appropriate for the location on your web page. Using pictures that are too large would look inappropriate on most templates. See list below. Sizes are in pixels. Always use the smallest file size that you can.
   
   
   1. Background : not critical, just try to keep the file size low.
   2. Logo Picture : 400 wide X 100 high
   3. Content Section 1 Picture : 200-300 wide X 150-200 high
   4. Content Section 2 Picture : 200-300 wide X 150-200 high
   5. Content Section 3 Picture : 200-300 wide X 150-200 high
   
   
3. These sizes serve as a place to start when choosing pictures for your pages. How it will look also depends upon which template you choose and how much text you wrote in that section.
4. Another point to consider is if you are using a background picture or color you wouldn't want to use a picture that has a white background on an area of the page that has a colored background. Your picture will look like an after thought, like the pictures where just thrown on there. It would look best to use pictures that have a transparent background or one using the same color as the background of the section it is in.

My Links

1. Are they entered correctly? You must use http:// for links to external sites. You can use your desired file names for links to pages in your own website. For email links, use mailto: for example: mailto:you@youraddress.com
2. If you try to view links to your other pages during the Preview process you will be redirected to a Page Not Found page, It is because the pages you make are temporary and only exist while you make them. So when you click on the link it will not work since no other page exists. When you upload the pages to your server everything will work correctly. This does not apply to links to external sites. As long is it is a valid website the link will work, if it doesn't ensure you have the correct address entered.
3. Are you trying to type in a view a domain name in your browser that you didn't purchase and register? See the If I type in my address to my pages I don't see them. faq above for an explanation about this.

1. You didn't enter the correct page address to it's corresponding link text. Go to the links section and verify that each link address and it's associated link address are what you intended them to be.

My Background Sound

1. Are you using such a large music file it is taking forever to load? Like an MP3?
2. Are you sure you entered the correct file name of the midi file?
3. Did you FTP your music file using Binary mode?
4. It's obvious but, is the volume up on your computer?
5. Did you receive a "The plugin did not download correctly" message? It means your browser can't find the music file for some reason, whether you incorrectly entered the file name, it wasn't uploaded in binary mode or to the correct folder. Verify that the file is on the server, uploaded in binary mode and that the file name is correct using the proper case spelling.
6. Try to play the music file you used that is still on your computer. If it won't work there either then the file itself may be corrupt or something may be wrong with your computer setup. If the music file won't play on your computer, it isn't going to work on your website either.

My Error Messages

1. Did you upload the page?
2. Did you upload the webpage to the WWW, Public, HTTP DOCS or whatever your server calls it directory?
3. Are you trying to type in a view a domain name in your browser that you didn't purchase and register? See the If I type in my address to my pages I don't see them. faq above for an explanation about this.
4. If you linked several pages you made together using the links in the nav bar did you use the correct file name for that page? Problems with your links may also be resolved in the links section above.