This article presents the procedures that you must follow to make your Web pages available so that others can see them. You find out how to test your Web pages, publish your Web pages with the Web Publishing Wizard, and use FTP to post Web files. Finally, you discover how to announce your site via the major search services.

Previewing Your Web Pages

Before you post your Web pages to a Web server, it’s a good idea to test them. You can preview your Web pages from your hard drive with a Web browser by typing C:\FolderName\filename.html in the Address bar of the browser. (Note that you need to tailor the directory path to what’s on your computer by replacing Foldername and filename.html with the names of your folder and file. Add any subfolders, too.) Alternatively, you can save the files to a disk, choose File -> Open from the menu bar in the browser, and then click the Browse button to open the file and view the page. You’ll want to preview your page using both Internet Explorer and Netscape Navigator.

Using the Web Publishing Wizard

The Microsoft Web Publishing Wizard simplifies the task of transferring files from your computer to your Web server. The Web Publishing Wizard comes with Internet Explorer 4 and later, Windows 98 or later, and FrontPage 2000 and later. To set up the Web Publishing Wizard for your Web site and to copy the Web files to your Web server for the first time, follow these steps:

1. In Windows XP, click a document that you want to publish to the Web. Normally, your document will be in your My Documents folder. If not, go find the document by using Windows Explorer.

2. In the left window pane, click Publish This File to the Web. The Web Publishing Wizard begins.

3. Click Next.

4. Continue following along with the wizard, changing options and clicking Next as necessary. You’re asked about where you want to publish your file and what your e-mail address and password are.

5. Click Finish. Next, you’re asked to choose the folder you want the file published in.

6. Choose the folder (or create a new one), and then continue clicking Next. More than likely, you’ll probably save your files in My Webs, which is a folder located in My Documents. If you don’t like that location, simply create a new folder.

7. Click Finish. The Enter Network Password dialog box appears.

8. Enter the User Name and Password and click OK. Wait a moment while the Web Publishing Wizard connects to the FTP server and transfers your files.

9. Click OK and celebrate you’re finished! The Web Publishing Wizard stores most of the information that it gathers from you the first time you run it so that you don’t have to retype everything each time you use the wizard.

Understanding FTP FTP, or file transfer protocol, is a commonly used method of posting your Web files to a Web server. To use FTP in this manner, you need to obtain the following information from your Internet service provider:

-  The host name for the FTP server: This usually, but not always, starts with ftp, as in ftp.yourwebserver.com.

-  The user ID and password that you must use to sign on to the FTP server: This is probably the same user ID and password that you use to sign on to your service provider’s Web, e-mail, and news servers.

-  The name of the directory into which you can copy your Web files: A directory on an FTP server is similar to a folder in Windows 95/98/XP.

The Windows 95/98/XP FTP Client

If you are a Windows 95/98/XP user, you already have the software you need to access an FTP server. The following procedure describes the steps for transferring files to a Web server using the FTP program that comes with Windows 95/98/XP:

1. Collect all the files required for your Web site in one folder. If you have lots of files say, 50 or more you may want to consider using several subfolders to organize the files. Just be sure to keep the folder structure as simple as possible.

2. Open an MS-DOS command window by choosing Start -> All Programs -> Accessories -> Command Prompt.

3. Use the CD (Change Directory) command to change to the folder that contains the Web files that you want to transfer to the Web server. For example, if your Web files are stored in a folder named Webfiles, type the following command: cd \Webfiles

4. Type ftp followed by the name of your FTP host, like this: ftp ftp.yourwebserver.com

5. When prompted, type your user ID and password. After you have successfully logged in to the FTP server, you see an FTP prompt that looks like this: ftp> This prompt indicates that you are connected to the FTP server, and the FTP server not the DOS command prompt on your own computer processes any commands you type.

6. Use the CD command to change to the directory to which you want to copy your files. For example: cd directory_name Remember that the FTP server processes this command, so it changes the current directory on the FTP server, not on your own computer. The current directory for your own computer is still set to the directory you specified back in Step 3.

7. Use the following MPUT command to copy all the files from the current directory on your computer (which you set back in Step 3) to the current directory on the FTP server (which you set in Step 6): mput *.* You are prompted to copy each file in the directory, like this: mput yourfile.html?

8. Type Y and then press Enter to copy the file to the FTP server. Type N and then press Enter if you want to skip the file. After all the files have been copied, the FTP> prompt is displayed again.

9. Type exit to disconnect from the FTP server. Windows 95/98/XP and Macintosh use the terms folders and subfolders. FTP uses the terms directories and subdirectories to refer to the same concept. If you have files stored in subfolders on your computer, you must copy those files to the FTP server separately. Just follow these steps:

1. If needed, use MKDIR to create the subdirectories on the FTP server. For example, to create a subdirectory named IMAGES, change to the directory in which you want to create the new subdirectory, and type a command like this: mkdir images

2. Use the CD command to change to the new directory: cd images

3. Copy files to the new directory by using the MPUT command. You must specify the name of the subfolder that contains the files on your computer in the MPUT command, like this: mput images\*.* You are prompted to copy the files in the IMAGES folder one at a time.

FTP command summary

Remember that the FTP> prompt indicates that you’re logged on to the FTP server and it’s processing your commands.