Using the Filemanager

The Filemanager lets you manage all the files in your Tripod member directory. The different file type and actions you can take on those files are explained below. In addition to managing files, you can do the following from the Filemanager:

Create a new page: You can create a new Web page, using either the Quickpage or Freeform page editor.

Upload: If you have an FTP-capable browser (specifically, Netscape 2.0 or better), you can use this function to transfer one or multiple files from your computer to your Tripod directory. For more information, please see the section on Uploading Files.

View lets you look at a file. Using this function, you can see your file as visitors to your page will see it.

Make Pages Private lets your determine what pages you want made available to a limited audience.

Create and Edit Access Lists lets you determine who can view your private pages, chats, and message boards.

Invite helps you get the word out about your pages.

Add Chats and Message Boards are your own personal discussion centers. Both can be made private.

The Filemanager also displays statistics of the directory such as disk usage and space remaining.

Q: What do the different file types mean in the Filemanager?

The Filemanager classifies files into these catgories: text & HTML, QuickPages, images, private and public directories.

Quickpages: Tripod-specific file format indicating that the page was built with the QuickPage editor of Tripod's Homepage Studio.
Freeform: Tripod specific file format indicating that the page was built with the Freeform editor of Tripod's Homepage Studio.
Text/HTML: Regular text or HTML files. These files are built with the Freeform editor or are uploaded to Tripod.
Image: All files with extensions of .gif, .jpg, or .jpeg are designated as image files.
Directories: All folders you have created.
Private: All the private directories you have created.
Public: All the public directories you have created.

Remember that the file types recognized by the Filemanager are not the only types supported by Tripod. For a comprehensive list of file types that Tripod supports, please see the section called MIME types.

Q: What are the various actions that the Filemanager allows me to do?

The various actions allow you to manipulate files in your directory. Each action is explained below:

Edit is an option for HTML, text, or QuickPage files. Using the 'Edit' function for QuickPages lets you modify your page by using the QuickPage editor and going through the same steps you used to create it. Text and HTML pages are modified using the Custom editor. The Filemanager takes you to the appropriate editor automatically.
Edit With takes a QuickPage file and changes it into a regular text or HTML page. Pages built with Tripod's QuickPage include special formatting information; therefore, they cannot be edited in Custom mode. When a QuickPage file is converted, all the special formatting data is deleted. After converting, the page is a standard text or HTML file, which you can edit in Custom mode. You have complete control over the HTML source for the converted file, but you will no longer be able to edit the page with the QuickPage tools.
Delete removes a file from the directory. Be careful! Once you've deleted a file, Tripod cannot retrieve it for you.
Copy makes a duplicate of a file, but gives it a different name.
Rename is just what it sounds like. It lets you change the name of a file.
Move allows you to move a file from one directory to another.

Q: Can the Filemanager display the contents of my directory differently?

Under the 'View - options' pulldown in the Filemanager, you can view your files by name, type, size or date. You can also list your files by HTML, image, directory or all at once.

Q: How do I make a directory private?

Select the directory you wish to make private. Click on the 'Make Private' icon in the Filemanager toolbar. You will be prompted to assign an access list to this directory. After all, what's the point of making a directory private if a few lucky people can't have the exclusive privilege of viewing it? If you don't have an access list to assign to this directory, you will have the option to create a new one.

Q: Can I make individual pages private?

Nope. You can only make directories private (another excellent argument for organizing your files into directories).

Q: How do I make a directory public?

All directories are automatically public unless you make them private. To make a private directory public, check off the directory, then click on the 'Make Public' icon in the Filemanager toolbar.

Q: How do I invite people to visit my pages?

You can only invite people to directories, chats or message boards (yet ANOTHER good reason for putting your files into directories). To invite people to visit your directory, check off the directory, then click on the 'Invite' icon. Remember: Name the main page of your directory index.html.

Q: How do I establish who can view my private directories?

You need to create and edit an access list for your private directories. To create an access list, click on Community Tools. Select 'Access Lists' in the popup box. If you have already created an access list that you would like to assign to your newly privatized directory, then select the 'Access Properties' icon in Filemanager toolbar. FYI: You can have multiple access lists that are assigned to various directories, so if you want Aunt Mabel to peruse your Europe pictures, but would rather she not read about how much you hate her cooking, you can put her on the Europe access list only.

Q: How do I take people off my access list?

Click on 'Community Tools,' and select 'Access Lists' within the popup. Your access list directory will appear in the lower frame of Filemanager. Check off the list you want to edit, then select 'Edit Access List' in the Edit - options pulldown.

Q: I just want to delete my access list altogether; how do I do that?

Click on Community Tools, and select access lists within the popup. Your access list directory will appear in the lower frame of Filemanager. Check off the list you want to delete, then select 'Delete' in the 'FILE - options' pulldown.

Q: How do I add a chat room(s) to my page?

Whether you've already created a chat room or you want to make a new one, it's easy to add one to your page. Click on Community Tools, and select chats. In the 'FILE - options' pulldown, select New. Enter in the name of your new chat room, and VOILA!

Q: How do I add a message board(s) to my page?

The same way you'd add a chat: Go to Community Tools and select 'Message Boards.' In the 'FILE - options' pulldown, select 'New.' Enter in the name of your new message board.

Q: How do I know my file sizes?

The Filemanager displays the size of each file in your Tripod directory. Each Tripod membership comes with 11 megabytes (MB) of space. A Premium Membership includes 22MB of space. Remember: 1000 bytes = 1 kilobyte (KB), and 1000 kilobytes = 1 megabyte (MB).

Q: How do I know how much space I have left?

Choose the "member stats" option from the "SPECIAL" pull down menu. Your information will be instantly displayed.

Q: How do I promote my page through Filemanager?

Choose the 'Promote' option from the 'SPECIAL - options' pulldown menu. Fill in the blanks in the spaces provided.

Q: Why does Tripod care about my filenames?

Files must be named correctly so that they can be properly read and served. For example, a file named 'pic.gif' or 'pic.jpg' would be recognized as a graphic and served accordingly. A filename is illegal, which means that it won't work properly, if it contains any characters other than A-Z, a-z, 0-9, ., _, or -. A filename is also illegal if it starts with a period or a dash. And remember that filenames are case-sensitive: MyPage.html is not the same as mypage.html.

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