Defining a Site

Note: Only the settings required to publish pages to central CSUN web server are described in this document. Please refer to your Dreamweaver manual for additional information.

If you've never defined a site, you can click the Define a Site link in the Site window of the Files panel group to begin the process (see Figure 1, below). You can then go through the site definition wizard (a step-by-step setup process) or click the Advanced tab and enter the necessary information in the Site Definition dialog box.

FIGURE 1. Site Window of the Files Panel Group

Using the Site Definition Wizard

Do one of the following to begin:

• In the Site window of the Files panel group, click the Define a Site link.
• From the Site menu, choose New Site.

If not already selected, select (click) the Basic tab. Then go through the wizard, making selections and/or entering information on each screen and clicking the Next button to move to the next screen.

There are three main sections in the procedure:

• Editing Files — where you set up the group's local folder
• Testing Files — where you can set up a folder for processing dynamic pages (not discussed in this document).
• Sharing Files — where you set up the group's remote folder

A bolded selection at the top of the each wizard screen indicates where you are in the process. The individual screens are explained in the table below.

Using the Site Definition Dialog Box

Do one of the following to begin:

• In the Site window of the Files panel group, click the Define a Site link.
• From the Site menu, choose New Site.

Select (click) the Advanced tab. Make selections and enter information for both your local and remote site as described below.

1. For the Local Info category (already selected), enter the following information.

3. In the Category panel of the dialog box, select (click) Remote Info.
4. From the Access drop-down menu, choose FTP.
5. Enter the following information in the text boxes that appear.

6. When finished, click OK.

Site Definition dialog boxes (Local Info and Remote Info) are shown in Figures 2 and 3, below.

FIGURE 1. Local Info Dialog Box for a New Site Definition

FIGURE 2. Remote Info Dialog Box for a New Site Definition

Transferring Files

1. In the Site panel of the Files palette (as shown in Figure 4, below), select the folder or file(s) you want to transfer (upload). For example:
   • To transfer the entire site, select (click) the top-level folder. You may want to make this selection the first time you publish the site. Once the site is published you'll probably want to transfer only files that you add or modify.
   • To transfer a single file, select (click) the desired file.
   • To transfer several files, hold down the CTRL key and click each file to be transferred.

FIGURE 4. Site Window


2. Click the Put File(s) button (a blue upward pointing arrow) —or choose Put from the Site menu.
3. When the "Enter Password" dialog box appears, enter the password for your campus account and click OK.
4. A question appropriate to your transfer selection — file(s), folder(s), or the entire site — will appear in a dialog box. For example:
   • If you choose to transfer the entire site, the question will be "Are you sure you wish to put the entire site?" Click OK to continue with the transfer; click Cancel to cancel the procedure.
   • If you choose to transfer one or more files, the question will be "Include independent files?" Make your selection — Yes, No, or Cancel. You can also choose not to see this question in the future by clicking the box next to "Don't ask me again".

Other File Management Features

In addition to uploading files (put) to the campus web server, you can also download (get) files from the site. Click the Connects to remote host buttonto display the remote site. Then select (highlight) the desired file(s) and click the Get File(s) button (a green downward-pointing arrow) — or choose Get from the Site menu.

Deleting files from your site — either local or remote — is simply a matter of selecting (clicking) the desired file(s) and taping the Delete key.

To update the file listing, click the Refresh button.

In short, you can use the Dreamweaver Site window in much the same way as you can use any FTP (file transfer protocol) software. For additional information about the Site window click the Displays help for this window button (a question mark in a gray circle).

The Web Address(es) of a Group's Published Site

If your group's main web page file is called index.html your web page address is:

http://www.csun.edu/~webfolder

The web page address for any page other than index.html is of the form:

http://www.csun.edu/~webfolder/filename

where filename is the name of your web page file (homepage.html, for example).

Custom Web Addresses

If a custom web address (URL) has been assigned for your department, organization, or other campus group, replace the "~webfolder" portion of the URL with the assigned alias.

If an alias exists for the group and the main web page file is called index.html, the web page address is:

http://www.csun.edu/GroupAlias

The web page address for any page other than index.html is of the format:

http://www.csun.edu/GroupAlias/filename

where filename is the name of your web page file (homepage.html, for example).

To request a custom web address, contact the University Help Desk at campus extension 1400.

A Note About Multiple URLs: If more than one alias has been assigned for your group, any one of those may be used. 

Example: Academic departments might have four custom addresses, as exemplified by those for the Department of Communication Studies shown below. All four URLs are correct and all go to the same site.

• Full department name:
http://www.csun.edu/CommunicationStudies

• Lowercase department name:
http://www.csun.edu/communicationstudies

• Catalog abbreviation:
http://www.csun.edu/COMS

• Lowercase abbreviation:
http://www.csun.edu/coms

Questions?