350/570:465: Writing HTML for the Web: Transferring files between microcomputer and network

Most of us prefer to edit on a microcomputer (PC. Mac, etc.) but then must face the nuisance of moving those files to a Unix server such as Pegasus. There are many methods of uploading (PC to Unix) and downloading (Unix to PC) your files

• Text blocks can be transferred in either direction (up/down) as cut-and-paste segments using the Windows clipboard. The editing menus must be used at the Unix end rather than the CTRL-C, CTR;-X, CTRL-V keystrokes. Obviously this method is inconvenient for longer texts and will not work for binary files such as .gif,.jpg,or .zip files. .
• Use Hyperterminal Transfer to upload individual text files or groups of related text files in Windows. Browse to locate the target files; the command may accept wildcards for mutiple files with related names. This will not work for binary files or (apparently) for downloads.
• Use pegasus sz filename (zmodem) to download individual text files or groups of text files. The Unix command is
  sz filename
  By the way Unix accepts wildcard statements (sz filena* or sz filenam?) and even multiple file statements separated by spaces:
  sz   filena*   *.s25   pizzaorder93

  Use FTP (file transfer program) to move text (ascii) or image (binary) files in either direction. (This is the only method to transfer binary files such as zip files, images, audio, etc. ) The Rutgers labs have WS_FTP, which you can download to your PC gratis from the vendor for school use.

  You will need an unzipping program such as Winzip, which may be downloaded without charge.

  Hint: Configure your account to upload and download from parallel Unix and Win/Mac directories (folders) which you use as staging areas for this purpose. You can use TRANSFER as an all-purpose area, or you can create separate UPLOAD and DOWNLOAD directories. The staging area is useful in your pegasus account to protect files in your working directories from being overwritten until you are sure you are ready to do so. There is no automatic backup in Unix when you overwrite files -- and there is no undelete (short of relying on the system tape backup).

  Reminder: Zip and exe files downloaded from vendors and archives will go usually to your local hard disk, not your Pegasus account.

  Network v. remote:Procedures on the network at Rutgers may be different in some regards from the procedures on a dialup connection from off-campus.

  Using the Clipboard with e-mail
  

  • Create and save a message for e-mail in a text editor such as Notepad on your PC. Leave the file open.
  • Login to your Pegasus account and start to compose an email message (to yourself if you are testing).
  • Switch to the text editor (ALT-TAB) and drag the mouse to define the passage you wish to copy. Or use CTRL-A to select the entire text file. Select Edit - Copy from the Windows menu or press CTRL-C to copy the text to the Clipboard buffer.
  • Switch back to the pine mailer (ALT-TAB) and position the cursor where you want the text to go. Use EDIT - PASTE from the top menu if the CTRL-V (Paste) action doesn't work. Send the message to yourself. When the message arrives, read it to see if the formatting is legible. If your right margin was too wide, you may see broken line wrap. See the next hint.
    

  Visible versus HTML word wrap.

  Although HTML doesn't care how long your text lines are in paragraphs, you may find it convenient to keep them under 65 or 72 characters for human visibility. (This is also true of email with bizarre line breaks.) If you forget to do this in your original text editor, use the Unix fmt command with the old filename, the > symbol, which here means to redirect the file, the new filename, and finally a dash and the desired margin value in characters.

  Example: fmt lumpy.html > smooth.html -72
  By the way, without the redirect sign and the second filename the output goes to the screen, which is beautiful but useless.

  Oh, of course you can use files with email. In the pine mailer, "e" exports the current message to a file you specify and y" sends it to the printer (if one is attached). In Pico (which is also the pine editor) , CTRL-R reads in an existing file at the cursor and CTRL-O writes out the current file to another filename.