Fetch Tutorial

The time has come to demystify the FTP process. FTP stands for file transfer protocol. Its name is pretty self-explanatory: FTP is the protocol you use to transfer files between two machines. The nifty thing about FTP is that the two machines involved in the file transfer can be different platforms. You can do your work on a Mac and send files to a PC or Unix machine (as long as it's running FTP server software).

There are a whole slew of ways you can FTP, but since my favorite client is Fetch (for the Mac only), I'll use it as an example to illustrate how transferring files works. If you work on a PC, you might want to check out CuteFTP. If you're on a Unix box or using a telnet or terminal emulation program on any platform, you can simply FTP from the command line.

So let's get down to the nitty-gritty. Once you figure out which program to use, you have to open a connection and log on to the server. To do this in Fetch, I go to the File menu and select New Connection. A New Connection window will pop up and provide me with a space to type in a Host name (the server I want to connect to), a user ID (my account name), my password, and a directory (this option allows me to specify exactly which directory I want to go to on the server).

If I wanted to upload a file called sleater.html to my homepage on my friend's server, my New Connection settings would look something like this:

If you are always uploading and downloading files to the same server, you may want to create a shortcut. A shortcut is similar to a browser bookmark. You can create a shortcut by going to the Customize menu and choosing New Shortcut. A bookmark window will open up and allow you to type in all the information you type into a New Connection window. Only this time the information will be saved, and you can access it directly from the New Connection window via a pulldown menu.

So once I've made my connection, I'm ready to begin moving things around. Hooray! Since I want to add sleater.html to my stars directory, I click on the Put File button, the little Fetch dog starts running, and a window opens up that allows me to locate the document on my hard drive. Once the dog stops running, I find it, select it, and click the Open button. A Put File window opens, which tells me the name of the document I selected (sleater.html), and asks me which format I would like to use when I transfer it.

Now, this is a really important step - one some people tend to forget. In the Put File window, there's a pulldown menu that allows you to choose what format you wish to use for sending your document. There are a few options here, but as far as Web pages go, all you really need to know is that text files should always be sent as Text or ASCII, and image files should be sent as Raw Data. This ensures that your files can be read on any platform, which, of course, is pretty important when you're publishing on the Web. Once you've got the proper formats selected, click OK, and off your files go to the server.

So, now that you know how to transfer one file, chances are you like this little taste of power, and sooner or later you'll want to move more than one file at a time. The Remote menu can make all your megalomaniacal desires come true. If you select Put Folders and Files under the Remote menu, you'll get a window that allows you to add multiple files or folders to the server all in one shot. You can move around your directories the same way you do in the Put File window.

So there you have it. Now you know the FTP basics. What are you waiting for? Get your site on a server! Just don't blame me if you become obsessed with the little running dog.