|
||
 |
||
|
| How To . . . Upload Files |
 Email This
 Print ThisView My Personal Library |
|
Step-By-Step January 2000 • Vol.6 Issue 1 |
How To . . . Upload Files | ||
 You're probably familiar with downloading files, which is retrieving files and information from remote computers. Every time you click a link, you request a file. Be it a Web page, picture, or video clip, the data is sent from the machine at the other end of the connection to your PC. What you may not realize is that the process works both ways. You can upload information from your computer to remote machines on the Internet, making it possible for other Web users to access the data you put up from their Many cool things are possible once you've mastered uploading. You can send pictures over the Web or even upload them along with other data to create your own personal Web site. Then anyone with an Internet connection can view and download the data you created.  Attachments. Nearly everyone with an Internet connection has sent e-mail, but those who send only text are missing out on most of the fun. It's possible to append computer files to e-mails, which are known as attachments. Attachments can be any file on your computer, regardless of type. Making attachments isn't the most powerful way to upload content, but it certainly is one of the most useful. Methods vary depending on your e-mail software or service, but there are a few things to look for that will have you uploading files in no time. Most e-mail software has an icon of a paper-clip or an Attachment menu entry (usually in the Insert menu). Select it to bring up a dialog box that lets you browse through the files on your PC. You can back up through directories by clicking the folder icon labeled Up. Otherwise, drill through the folders until you see the file you want to upload and double-click it. If the Browse dialog box doesn't close automatically, click the Attach or Open buttons in the dialog box to complete it manually. Repeat the process to add more files; you can send the e-mail normally when you are finished. The recipient can access the attached files directly from the e-mail when it arrives. If you are using a Web-based e-mail service, such as Yahoo! Mail (http://mail.yahoo.com) or Excite Mail (http://mail.excite.com), adding attachments differs a little. For example, from a Yahoo! Mail account, click Edit Attachments then Browse and find the file you want to attach. Double-click it or select it and click the Open button. Then click the Attach This File button and wait for the file to upload. You can add up to three attachments, and when you're finished, click Return To Message to continue editing the original e-mail. When it is sent, the uploaded files will go with it. File Transfer Protocol. Once attachments are second-nature, you can graduate to a much more powerful uploading technology, called FTP (File Transfer Protocol). FTP is the Internet's natural language for sending and receiving files and is more efficient that normal Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) transfers. Sending files using FTP requires special software, but fortunately many high-quality free programs are available to get you started. We recommend using a Windows-based program, like Ipswitch Inc.'s free WS_FTP LE 5.06, to make things easier from the outset. Some FTP programs only use a command line interface, which requires that users memorize and manually type a variety of commands to tell the software what they want it to do. WS_FTP LE and similar FTP programs use typical icons and drag-and-drop techniques for sending and retrieving files. If you want to experience the archaic command line FTP in the box, and click OK. Type ? for a list of commands. Type help command, such as help delete or help cd, whatever the command variable, to get specific information. As you can see, only masters should mess with this stuff. Go to http://www.ipswitch.com to get a copy of WS_FTP LE. Click Download Evaluations and follow the instructions. To install it, double-click the downloaded file. Launch it by clicking Start, Programs, WS_FTP LE and selecting the WS_FTP LE entry from the menu. The program begins with a Session Properties dialog box, where you tell WS_FTP the remote site you want to connect with. If you want to upload information to your Web site, you will need to know the domain name of the FTP server, such as ftp.webserver.com. Enter this information in the Host Name/Address box. Other fields include the User ID and Password boxes. Some servers allow anonymous FTP (activated by checking the Anonymous box in WS_FTP), which requires no password, but to upload data, a special account is usually required. Your Web site's host will provide you with the appropriate login information when you sign up for an account. Enter it in the boxes, click Apply, and then click OK to access the FTP server. If all goes well, you'll be connected and able to drag files from your computer (listed in the left frame) to directories on the remote server (listed in the right pane). Check the Auto box, which makes sure text files and normal binary format files are handled differently when being transferred. Once you learn the ropes, use the Help button for advanced features, such as creating new directories and using manual commands. by Tracy Baker |
|
Home Copyright & Legal Information Privacy Policy Site Map Contact Us