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As more of us own and operate our own websites, maybe through free web hosting
and one of the most frequent questions amongst new webmasters is how do I use
FTP? This usually follows the related question of what is FTP?
FTP stands for File Transfer Protocol; a protocol is like a rulebook, in this
case it is the rules that computers use when transferring files to each other,
and it is needed when you upload any files to your website so that visitors
can view it okay, and stands as an important aspect of HTML, which is the language
of the web.
Although you can use a web browser for downloading with FTP, don't think; I
won't need anything else as this is the only thing you can do; so for more complicated
and fully interactive stuff, you will need a proper FTP program, and there are
very many available; some for free, others ranging in price that may give you
a free trial period of around thirty days.
So you just log in with your program to the server, type in your user name
and password, and then you can rummage around to exchange files and see what's
what in the directory; copy and view, rename and delete files and so-on. Your
program should take care of the necessary commands but viewing the log to see
what was going on is still a useful way to learn more.
Do think about these things when making your client (program) choice:
An interface that is simple to use, and makes the local (your pc) and remote
(server where you're connected too) clear.
Allows anonymous FTP (for connecting to open public servers easily).
Fully logs your user sessions.
Warns you when ASCII transfer is necessary.
Allowing for multiple logins on different servers, choosing between passive
and active FTP and setting permissions for server-side applications will also
be necessary as you get more used to things.
Do Binary? Or Should I Use ASCII?
How these latter points are involved is beyond the remit here, but a common
problem that has webmasters asking How did I do that wrong? is file corruption
during transfer, and this is mostly down to the difference between Binary and
ASCII. As these different transfer modes can cause confusion, let's check them
out simply.
ASCII (aka TEXT or TEXT DOS) is an abbreviation of American Standard Code Information
Interchange and is basically just text, though a computer only sees numbers
and it uses these to make up the text.
Binary (aka All Files and Raw Data) are also a system of numbers, but they
differ in how they are composed and utilized and a computer can use them for
more complicated things like forming images for example.
Nowadays most programs will know what is best for the situation, but the human
factor can still make accidental alterations which will be the cause of trouble.
ASCII is quicker for example, but you can't do as much with it; which is why
the default is always binary.
How And When
ASCII mode is good for HTML and Text files and CGI, but not for images, applications
and file formats like .doc and .xls and all the others, plus packets of .zip
for example, which must transferred (both downloading and uploading) as binary
- aka raw data and all files - or they will be corrupted and not work! This
is because both instruction as well as order is involved with these and computers
need binary mode to know how to use them and in what shape they take.
So the question now is should I forget about ASCII and just use binary? The
answer is no - although you can send any other ASCII files in binary mode, the
exception are CGI scripts, which is incompatible with this mode and must be
ASCII.
So after you've made up your mind of how to choose a affordable web hosting
company you can have some fun learning more about ways to help your site grow
and flourish.
About the Author:
Matt Jacks is a successful home based freelance copywriter, one of experience
and diversity. His numerous articles offer moneysaving tips and valuable insight
on typically confusing topics. |
