So I’ve got Dreamweaver and Fireworks, and I’ve basically taught myself how to use them both. I know more than just the basics, I can build a decent webpage.
My question is this: Once you buils a website on Dreamweaver, how do you get it online? I thought maybe I could just copy all the HTML and paste it into Geocities but it came as no big suprise to me that this didn’t work. My knowledge of website designing ends at the crucial point of actually getting the webpage onto the web.
You have to be sure to name your main page index.html. Geocities has a tool called File Manager you can use to upload the HTML files directy to your webspace. If you need more help, I’ll be glad to provide it.
I don’t think you can upload to Geocities directly from Dreamweaver, unless you are using one of the paid plans that allows for ftp.
What you should do is log into Geocities, and upload each file (graphic and html) one-by-one. If any of the files are in different directories (folders) then make sure they get in the same directory up on the web site.
Most hosts that allow direct ftp access are “uploadable” through Dreamweaver. I use it all the time in Mac OS X.
If you don’t know how to set up the ftp for your site, go to Site >> Edit Sites… >> Edit >> Remote Info. You’ll have to fill in the ftp address, your username and password and stuff like that there. If all goes well, you should be able to directly upload your site from then on. Very handy.
BTW, what version of Dreamweaver do you have, and have you consulted the online help files or manual?
Yes, I did name my site index.html. And I used the file manager to upload it or whatever, and when I do the preview nothing shows up - its blank boxes where the pictures are. Now, I’m not doing a “finished product” webpage here, so if I don’t get it figured out, no biggie. I just want to learn how to get the stuff online for when I actually do make a site.
I have Dreamweaver MX, but it’s a borrowed copy and I don’t have the manual to it. I’ll try the ftp thing, and see where I can get from there. I’m really pretty handy with computers, but getting a page online is something that I haven’t had any experience with up until now and it’s sort of a hit-or-miss thing.
My first feeble attempt at a webpage
Yes, I have a palm tree fetish. And the links don’t go anywhere, because they don’t have anywhere to go yet. This webpage is the result of a very dull Sunday afternoon. So I just uploaded all the image files along with index.html and it all just sort of flung itself together.
Another question - to make multiple pages linked together, can I just continue along the same route, and just upload all the files necessary for the other pages (after linking them on Dreamweaver), or do I have to make a seperate acount for the other pages?
You have to make sure that the links to the images are relative, and they are similarly structured on Geocities. Make sure that the case is the same in the filename too (easiest to keep everything lowercase).
And make sure you uploaded the images as binary, though I think that isn’t an issue with Geocities.
Think of your website like a directory on your local hard drive. Your site’s “home” is root and the rest of the organization is up to you. On my site for example, I have most of my main pages in the root of the site. I have all of the “daughter” pages in seperate folders. So for example, I have a page called mywritings.htm in the “root” of the site, and all of the pages that link for that pages in the /writings directory. I also have directories for /images and /files.
If you’ve ever noticed how some websites sort files, you’ll figure it out. For example, the Toyota website might have an address like this:
http://www.toyota.com/us/cars/camry/xle.htm
On the “administrator” side, the site probably has directories for the USA, the UK, Japan, etc. Inside that directory are probably /cars and /trucks dirctories, then directories for models (Camry, Avalon, etc), then individual pages for each model.