[file:///c:/actwdsitehosting/_private/header.htm]

Creating a Web Site

Uploading Files to the Web Server

Web Site Maintenance / Search Engines

E-Mail

Domain Management

Account Management

What's missing from this FAQ??
If you have suggestions for additions to this document, please let us know by e-mailing the webmaster!


Creating a Web Site


How do I write HTML?

There are a large number of documents on the web to help you write HTML. Here is a list of HTML references. We can not help you write HTML.


What should I name my files?

HTML files should end with .html or .htm extensions. The first file you want people to see (your "homepage" should be called "index.html". The Unix file system is case sensitive. So if you put in one of your html files <a href="MYFILE.HTML"> and name the file myfile.html the system will not be able to find it. Gif and jpg file names can end in .gif or .GIF, or .jpg, .JPG, .jpeg, or .JPEG

The Server will search for several different index files in this order:

  1. index.cgi (if you're running your home page as a cgi script)
  2. index.shtml (if you're using Server Side Includes)
  3. index.htm
  4. index.html
  5. home.html
  6. INDEX.HTML
  7. INDEX.HTM

How much web space do I get? / How many pages can I put up? / Can I get more space if I need it?

 You can create as many pages as you want within that space-- note that pages containing lots of large graphics or executable files will take up much more space than pages that are primarily text. You can determine the size of your pages by checking them on your local hard drive before uploading them.

If you fill your space, you can upgrade your account to a larger space free of charge.  You pay only the difference in the new plan price.  Please call Customer Service to order additional space. 1-888-932-3746


How do I create a form?

If you'd like the results of a form to be sent to you via email, ACTWD already has a CGI script you can use.  Please email techsupport@actwd.com to request the script.   Once the script has been added you create the form to use it.  Just paste this HTML into your web page:

<form method="get" action="/cgi-bin/formmailer.cgi">
  <input type="hidden" name="to" value="yourname@yourdomain.com">
  <input type="hidden" name="subject" value="a subject">
  <input type="hidden" name="title" value="a title">
  <input type="hidden" name="redirect" value="http://www.domain.com/">

Name<input name="name"><br> Info<input name="info"><br> Info2<input name="info2"><br>

  • If you want to make a required field, you must put a "~" before the name of the output field.

    For example: Name<input name="~name"><br>

    You should also note any required fields in your form to avoid your customers being delayed by error messages.


The following will create a submit button on your form:

<input type="submit" value="Submit the form"><input type="reset" value="Start over"> </form>


The red parts are things you can (and should) change:

  • to
    where the email is sent to.
  • subject
    the subject of the email.
  • title
    the title of the email.
  • redirect
    the web page where someone is sent after completing the form.
  • name, info, info2, ...
    anything you like. could just as easily be name, telephone, address, shoe_size ...

How do I create a counter?

Please email us and we will set up your counter

For multiple counters in your site: 
In order to have more than one counter in your site, change the domain name in the Web Counter Wizard to include a number.  (ie.   yourdomain1.com, yourdomain2.com...)  You can have as many counters as you like.  You can put one on every page. 


How do I create an image map?

Image maps can be created with such software as:
WebMap 1.0, available for Mac , or for PC. A similar program, MapThis!, is available from CWSApps. A large collection of information on doing imagemaps is found at The WWW Faq.

To reference the map that you created with this software from your HTML page, insert the following:

<a href="file.map"> <img src="your image map" ISMAP > </a>

The only thing to customize here is "filename.map" Just make sure it's the same as the .map file you just created. It does have to end in ".map", though.

Client Side Image maps

Another approach to image maps is to include all the information on the HTML page itself rather than in a separate .map file. This is called a client side image map and offers some advantages and disadvantages. The advantages are that the map is interpreted by the browser so it allows a faster response time when the visitor clicks on a hot spot. It also displays the destination when the visitor moves the cursor over the hot spot, instead of displaying just coordinates.

On the down side, not all browsers are able to interpret client side maps- only MSIE and Netscape currently do. So, taking this approach may limit your sites' usability if you don't provide some type of alternative navigation as well.

Here's how to set up the HTML page to run a client side map.

1. First, define the map name and hotspots with a tag like this:

<MAP NAME = "map">
<AREA SHAPE = "RECT" COORDS = "0,0,124,10" HREF = "destination1.html">
<AREA SHAPE = "RECT" COORDS = "128,0,249,10" HREF = "destination2.html">
<AREA SHAPE = "RECT" COORDS = "253,0,375,10" HREF = "destination3.html">
<AREA SHAPE = "RECT" COORDS = "377,0,499,10" HREF = "destination4.html">
</MAP>

The SHAPE can be RECT, CIRCLE, or POLY. The COORDS are the same type of coordinates that would be used in a standard .map file, and indicate the position of the top left and bottom right corners of each linked hotspot you want the map to have. NOTE: th e coordinates are in a comma-separated list with NO SPACES (unlike the standard .map file setup, where they are included as pairs separated by a space! The HREF is the URL or filename the hotspot defined by the COORDS should link to.

2. In the HTML where you want the image to appear, include an IMG SRC tag like this:

<IMG SRC="someimage.gif" BORDER=0 USEMAP = "#map" ISMAP>

using your image file name instead of someimage.gif. Assuming you've called your map (defined in the previous step) "map", you can leave the USEMAP tag as it appears.

Save the HTML file and upload it to the server to test it with either Netscape or MSIE.


More about CGI scripts

A cgi script is a way of extending what you can do with the web. Many of the "interactive" web sites make use of CGI scripts to take data from the browser, send it to the server where it can be manipulated (often by a script written in perl or C), and then do something with the output of the script.

For example, you would use a cgi script if you wanted to use a form to search a database or mail the output of a form to someone. You can also use a cgi script to do something like put a counter on your page.

CGI stands for Common Gateway Interface, which is a specification for how information is exchanged between client browsers and http servers. The CGI specification includes many environment variables.

Where does my CGI have to be located?

Your CGI scripts should be located in the cgi-bin directory located in the same directory level as httpdocs.  The script filename MUST end in .cgi


What language can my CGI be In?

ACTWD's web servers support the following languages:

  • Perl
    both perl 4.036 and perl 5.002 are available
  • compiler languages
    c, c++, objective c, fortran, pascal*
  • shell languages
    bash, ksh, csh ...

*(must be compiled on a Pentium processor machine running FreeBSD)


What are the paths to perl, sendmail and my base directory

  • PERL 5 - /usr/bin/perl
  • Sendmail - /usr/sbin/sendmail
  • Absolute Path - /usr/local/plesk/apache/vhosts/yourdomain.com

Once your script is written, here's what to do to run it on your web site:

  1. Save it for Unix format in an HTML editor such as BBedit or HotDog. This is VERY IMPORTANT, as the most common cause of script errors is the inclusion of CRLFs (carriage return line feeds) that result from editing scripts in DOS/Windows/Mac based text editors. Saving in Unix format prevents CRLFs.
  2. Upload the script to your cgi-bin directory  If the script is in perl , UPLOAD IT AS ASCII PLAIN TEXT!! This is extremely important! Binary uploads of ascii files result in corrupted scripts that will not run, even though their syntax may be completely correct.
  3. You MUST upload a PERL script as ASCII.
    Once uploaded you need to change the permissions by chmod 755 filename.cgi
    You can use the Change File Mask option on CuteFTP to do this or click here for other FTP programs.

To learn more about perl, check the books
Learning Perl by Randal Schwartz
Programming Perl by Larry Wall and Randal Schwartz.
Both are published by O'Reilly & Associates
You can also look at http://www.perl.com.

The following references provide additional information on CGI scripting and advanced web site development:

 

Can people download a file from my site?

ACTWD does not currently support anonymous ftp access to the server; however, people can download files from your website through whatever web browser they are using. To link a file for ftp, put this tag line in your html file:
<a href="file.zip">download here</a>
It is recommended that you use .zip or .exe extensions if the files to be downloaded are very large.

It is not possible for people to upload files to your site unless you give them regular ftp access with your username and password. It is highly recommended that if you do this, you change your password afterward.


Do you support server side includes?

Yes. A server side include is a way of calling a procedure directly from an HTML document. The syntax works something like this:
<!--#exec cmd="The command here"-->

The file that uses this command has to have the file name extension of .shtml


Do you support Real Audio?

HTTP Pseudo-Streaming

HTTP enables audio content providers to stream RealAudio from a World Wide Web server. While this method is not as robust as using a media server, it provides a reasonable method for providing low volumes of RealAudio content form sites such as personal web pages.

Our World Wide Web servers are pre-configured with the MIME types to run Real Audio.

To stream RealAudio content using HTTP:

  1. Copy your encoded RealAudio files (files with the .ra extension) to your World Wide Web server.
  2. Use a text editor (such as Notepad) to create a metafile containing a RealAudio URL. For example, the contents of your file should be in the following form:
    
    http://hostname/path
    

    where hostname is the name of your World Wide Web server. For example: www.real.com

  3. Save your metafile in as text using a .ram filename extension.
  4. In your HTML document, reference the metafile in a hyperlink. For example:
    
    <A HREF="filename.ram">
    <A HREF="http://hostname/file.ram">
    

    You can use relative or complete paths. If you use complete paths, you must include both the hostname and the complete path. For example:

    
    <A HREF="http://www.ra.com/home/welcome.ram">
    
  5. When a user clicks on the link, the audio file(s) begin to download. The RealPlayer begins playing after a few seconds; it does not need to wait for the entire file to be downloaded.

Where can I find someone to design Web pages?

A Creative Touch Web Design

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Uploading Files to the Web Server

Do you support FrontPage2000?

Yes, we do support MS FrontPage2000. If you are using FrontPage and did not notify us at time of account set-up, please e-mail techsupport@actwd.com  and provide us with your domain name, FTP username, and FTP password letting us know that you would like to have your account set up to handle FrontPage. If received before 5PM that business day your account will be set up for FrontPage by the next morning.

For more information on the FrontPage editor , please see Microsoft's home page or call
206-635-7088 for FrontPage technical support.


How do I publish in FrontPage?

In FrontPage Explorer you go to the File menu option and go to Publish FrontPage Web. When it asks you for the Destination Web Server or File Location, you put in http://www.YOUR_DOMAIN.com. When it asks for the Name of Destination FrontPage Web, you leave that blank.


How do I publish using MS Publisher?

  1. * Go to "File" and Save Your Files as HTML.
  2. Go to "File" and Publish to the Web
  3. Descriptive Name = Anything you would like (ex: my web site)
  4. URL or Internet Address = http://www.your-domain.com
  5. Username = Your FTP user name (usually the first 8 characters of your domain name)
  6. Password = Your FTP password
  7. Service Provider = FTP
  8. * FTP Server Name = www.your-domain.com 
  9. * Subfolder = /httpdocs

* Frequent trouble spots
Anything in blue means you need to type it in


How do I upload my web page files to my site?

Please visit our ftp helper page

For page creation we recommend Web Edit Software

TROUBLESHOOTING:

IMPORTANT NOTES:

  • BACKUP All files FIRST!
  • When logging in always use all lowercase
  • All file names and paths MUST be lowercase
  • A reference to files in html must be lowercase
  • Your file names that you uploaded MUST MATCH EXACTLY to how you referenced them in your html (It is case sensitive!)
  • Your first page must be called index.html or index.htm
  • Make sure you are uploading to the /httpdocs directory

 


How can I change file permissions thru FTP? (CHMOD)

Unix file permissions specify how a file can be used. The permissions settings are given in three classes-- owner, group, and other. A file's owner can specify the level of file protection for each of these groups. The numerical file protection levels are:

1 executable
2 writable
4 readable
5 read and executable
6 read and writable
7 read, write, and executable

In a directory listing, these protection levels are given in a format that looks like this:

-rwxr-xr--  1 owner group   filesize date modified time modified  filename


The file in the example above has permissions of 754, means that the owner has read/write/execute ability, the group as read/execute, and other has read-only.

The Unix chmod command can be executed thru most ftp clients. Here are instructions for using some of the most popular ones.

WS_FTP (Windows 95, 3.1 and NT)
click with the right mouse button on the file listing, then pick ftp commands from the menu and site from the sub-menu. When it asks you for a command, type:
chmod thepermissionsyouwant yourfile.whatever
FTP (Unix,Linux or any text based ftp client on Mac or windows)
type this line
quote site thepermissionsyouwant yourfile.whatever
Fetch(Mac)
Go to the Remote Menu and choose Send FTP Command in the box type
site chmod thepermissionsyouwant yourfile.whatever
CuteFTP(Windows31)
Go to the Commands menu, select Custom Commands and click on Change Files Access Mask. In the box type
thepermissionsyouwant yourfile.whatever

I am getting "permission denied", "invalid login", or "unknown host" when I try to connect-- what's wrong?

If you are getting Permission denied after you connect you are probably not in the httpdocs folder.  Double click on the httpdocs folder and then try to upload.  Invalid login error messages indicate that the username/password you're using don't match what is set up on the server. This could be due to case sensitivity (for example, if your username is susan and you put Susan into the FTP program as the userid), a wrong password, or a problem with your directory itself.
Unknown host error messages usually indicate that there is a problem with your web site's DNS records.

If you've checked and are putting correct information into your FTP program, or if you never had trouble before and are now getting one of these error messages, please  email techsupport@actwd.com


I've uploaded my files, but all I see is something that looks like the Index of my files.. What's up with that?

To have a page display automatically when someone visits an address such as www.YOUR_DOMAIN.com , you need to have that page be named "index.html" or "index.htm". So, if you've called your "home" page "myfirstpage.html", it won't appear when your site is accessed, and the server will display an actual index of your files instead. Renaming the file from "myfirstpage.html" to "index.html" will resolve the problem.


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Web Site Maintenance

I have this page how do I get people to look at it?

The best way to have people find your page is to make it interesting. Big graphics that take a long time to down load tend to discourage people. The real trick is to target some interest and then make a page that someone will want to come back to. There a lots of pages of pictures of people's dog, cat, kids etc. Do something different. Once you have a page, you can try getting it listed in some prominent place on the net. Search engines are usually free to register your site.  You can go to any of the big ones and register yourself by clicking on the link at the bottom of their page.  For example you can try these

  • ACTWD Marketing Services-Web Service Promotion services
    Yahoo - The Yahoo! directory is organized by subject. - This may be a little difficult to get into but a VERY Important place to be.
  • The Altavista server - This is a server sponsored by Digital They have put a lot of hardware into it and it gives exhaustive results.
  • Lycos - Lycos Searches the web if you do nothing it will probably find your page sooner or later but you can submit your page yourself to speed things up.
  • The Webcrawler - The webcrawler works in a similar fashion to Lycos.
  • Infoseek - Yet another Internet Search engine.
  • Usenet There are almost 10,000 newsgroups on every subject you can think of. A short relevant postings can sometimes really help. Before posting on the Usenet please read the newsgroup news.announce.newusers or news.newusers.questions - The Usenet has rules like most other things in life and these 2 groups exist to help people learn the rules of the net.
  • Links from other pages. You may be able to convince other people to put in a link to your page. Of course it helps if your page is relevant in subject to theirs.

We also strongly recommend the use of "META TAGS" - These hidden tags are read by many search engines to help correctly and effectively index your website (They should be place between the HEAD tags):

<head>

<title>Web Site Title< /title>
<META name="description" content="A full 2 or 3 sentence description in here">
<META name="keywords" content="keyword1, keyword2, keyword3, keyword4, etc... ">


</head>


How can I get usage statistics for my site?

There are several ways you can track how many people look at your page. Most simply, you can put in a counter or guest-book. ACTWD also offers for FREE industry leading Web Trends, a full graphical  access information page.  Email techsupport@actwd.com with the Subject "addstats DOMAIN.com" 


 

My page doesn't work

This is a listing of the most common problems that we see and how to fix them. Things here are mostly things that didn't fit somewhere else in this FAQ.

My Images don't load
There are a few things you should check, first look at the filenames. remember Unix filenames are case sensitive. So if you put in a link for Image.gif and your file is image.gif the system won't find it.

Also if you are on a mac please turn MacBinary OFF

My ImageMap does not work
Please make sure you are using the NCSA imagemap format not the cern format. Also please upload the file as ascii text. The Mac, Dos and UNIX have different conventions for the end of each line and this can mess things up.
 
My CGI script does not work
Upload at ASCII as above.

Web Server Software

ACTWD Uses Apache web servers


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E-Mail

How Does my E-mail account work?

With all accounts on ACTWD's servers, you get a fixed number of POP E-mail accounts 

Click here for pop accounts.   

Click here for additional email forwardings or pop accounts.


I have Exchange Server - how can I receive all of my company's email from a single pop3 account?

By asking your account representative to route all of your domain's inbound email to a single ACTWD pop3 account, the middleware program POP3 Gateway can retrieve and correctly route your messages to Exchange Server (or other NT SMTP server) for distribution within your organization. ACTWD has been certified POP3 Gateway compatible by J.A. Korsmeyer, Inc. For complete information on POP3 Gateway, please visit http://www.jak.com/pop3info.htm.


How do I set up my additional E-mail accounts?

 To get the additional accounts set up please visit your control panel.  The control panel tutorial provides detailed information on setting up email accounts and forwards.


I have a POP3 mail account, what is the server information ?

The way you set up your pop accounts will depend on what email program you are using.  Here are your basic mail server preferences that you need to follow:

Your POP3 (incoming mail) server is: YOUR-DOMAIN.com

Your SMTP (outgoing mail) server is: YOUR-DOMAIN.com

Your usernames and passwords for your email accounts are the username and password you entered in your control panel when you set the mailbox up.  Keep in mind that forwarded mail cannot be pulled down using a mail program like Outlook Express, etc.  Forwarded mail is directed straight to the address you specified.


Eudora Mail Users:

For your pop3 account setting use:  username@pop.YOUR-DOMAIN.com



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Domain Management

Who to contact for InterNic billing?

Questions regarding InterNIC Invoicing and Payment Procedures should be referred to Registration Services.

Cards accepted by Internic: Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Diners Club, and Discover/NOVUS. Use our Interactive Voice 


Can multiple domain names point to the same HTML file?

Yes. You can have more than one domain point to the same root directory. Our set-up fee and InterNic's fee still apply for this additional domain name. The yearly pointing fee is $75.


Can I change my domain name?

You cannot change the name, you can only register a new one.  You will need to submit an order for a new domain name. This can be done through  or by calling us at 888-932-3746. In the online order form, please make reference to your current domain name that you are replacing in the comments section.

Please note that we must set up an entirely new account for this new domain name. Also another set up fee will be charged and you will need to reupload your files to the new account. And since this is a new domain name, the InterNic fees still apply.

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Account Management

How do I update my billing with ACTWD?

If you need to update or change any of the billing information associated with your account with ACTWD, go to info@actwd.com. Note: please include your domain name in your E-mail.


How do I change my password on my account?

If you want to change the password on your FTP account or on your POP E-mail account, send E-mail to techsupport@actwd.com, or call us at 888-932-3746. Note: please include your domain name and any other pertinent information in your E-mail.


Important e-mail addresses

Here are some addresses you may find helpful:

For sales questions. info@actwd.com
For questions about the online registration or the status of such. techsupport@actwd.com
For activation of a domain name or questions regarding the status of one. techsupport@actwd.com
For setting up additional email addresses or pop accounts. techsupport@actwd.com
For setting up web statistics. techsupport@actwd.com
For questions or info regarding your bill. billing@actwd.com
For advanced technical questions or for the set up of the online statistical program techsupport@actwd.com
For secure server info. info@actwd.com
For Microsoft FrontPage Extensions installed on your site.   techsupport@actwd.com
For general info. info@actwd.com

 

 


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