How to Make Assignment Pages: Basic Steps

EDIT 6300 Job Aid
How to Make an Assignment Page: The Bare Basics
Step by Step
by Mary Ann Fitzgerald
Partially updated 9-15-05

This is the easiest method I know. If you want to "fancy it up," look at some other resources.

This is the PC version. I'm not qualified to make a Mac version!
2005 note: Netscape Composer has become somewhat obsolete. Mozilla Composer works almost identically and doesn't have the same problems. The Mozilla substitution should work throughout the instructions below.

Before you begin, you need these things:

Netscape Composer, version 4.x (this means any number after the "4." should work OK)
WS-FTP (free download, to UGA community: http://sitesoft.uga.edu/ugakit.html )
Internet connection
A print-out of this page
UGA MyID (the login you use for WebCT and all other UGA electronic services)

Some parts of the steps below can be done off-line. It's easiest if you are online the whole time, however. This job aid is written as if you were online.

Making the Page

First, we will set up the assignment page using a template, and give it a proper filename.

1.    Start by opening Netscape Navigator as your web browser.
2.    Click on this link: Assignment Page Template
3.    On the upper menu bar, click "File," and then "Edit Page."
4.    You have just made a temporary file on your hard drive that looks exactly the same as the link you clinked. Netscape has also switched you over to Composer, which is the program that allows you to write web pages. Let's make it a permanent file before we make any changes.

On the upper menu bar, click "File," and then "Save As." (Or - hit control-S; or - hit the "Save" icon in the second menu bar.)
You will now see a dialog box that asks for a filename. Type the following in the box, but replace my name with your name:

maryann-assignments

It is very important that you use no punctuation (with the exception of hyphens), no capital letters, and especially no spaces. If you did, go back and change that now.
Make sure you note where the file is saved - which folder it will be in. Saving it to the A: (floppy) drive is a great idea, because it will be easy to find later.
Make sure the second box "save as type" says "html." It usually defaults to this automatically.
Click the little "save" button, and the dialog box should disappear.
Now you have your own personal copy of this file on your hard drive.

5. Personalize the page. Just as if you were using a word processor, replace Janette's name with your name, and make any other appropriate wording changes.
6. When finished, hit the "save" icon.

Linking in an assignment
Let's pretend that you need to link in an assignment called "Biography." It's a Word document that you've already finished. Before you begin, the Word file should be saved and closed.
1. The filename for your assignment must meet the same rules as all web files: no punctuation (except hyphens), no capitals, no spaces. So, it could be something like

biography.doc

Use the "save as" function in Word to change the name if needed.
2. Make a place on your assignment page for your biography assignment. For example:

EDIT 6320
1. Biography

3. Next, you need to make the "Biography" word "hot" - in other words, make it link to the actual Word file.

Using your mouse, highlight the text you want to make hot. (Try double-clicking on the word).
Click on the "Link" icon in the 2nd menu bar. This will bring up a dialog box. Under "Link to..." type the filename of your assignment EXACTLY as you named it above (in our case, "biography.doc" - no quotation marks.)
Click OK, and the dialog box will disappear. Now, the link is hot. When someone clicks it, Word will start and open your Biography assignment (after uploading).

4. Save your page. You are now ready to upload your page to the Internet. We have chosen to place our files on the UGA server called "Arches."

A cool thing: you can link lots of different types of files into a web site. As long as the end user has that application on his/her machine, the file will work. Examples: Powerpoint files (.ppt), Excel files (.xls), etc.

Uploading your files
1.    Start WS-FTP. (Hint: if you can't find it, use "Find" or "Search" on the Windows Start Menu. I have to do this all the time on a strange machine.)
2.    Refer to this Word document ("How to Use WS-FTP for Arches") to help you: it has pictures. Print it out.
3.    Follow all the steps. The hardest part is finding your new web page ("yourname-assignments.html) on your hard drive. Use the little green arrow on the left side to navigate around on your hard drive. If you saved the file to your A: drive, just click on the little A: icon near the bottom of the lefthand window.
4.    Make sure to FTP all of your assignments as well (like, biography.doc).   If you used any pictures, FTP those files, too.
5.    Next, you should test your page. Go to Netscape Navigator (the program with the ship's wheel icon). In the Location bar, type

http://www.arches.uga.edu/~xxx/yourname-assignments.html

Instead of "~xxx" type your MyID login name, with the ~ character in front. Make sure you type in the filename exactly as you saved the file. Hit Enter. If everything is right, you will see your assignment page on the screen. If you get "File Not Found," go back and check spelling on all filenames everywhere first before you panic.

Backing up
Caution: always keep a copy of your web files on your own machine. This serves as a backup, and gives you access to them if you need to make changes at times when you can't access the Internet.

Do NOT depend upon a single floppy disk to keep your web files for you. They're ok for moving files around between servers and hard drives (like in the FTP example above), but they are not a dependable back up system!

When something doesn't work
Here are the major and most common reasons something doesn't work in a web site. Check as many of these as you can before you call for help:
1. Spellings of filenames and links don't match. They must match EXACTLY.
2. A file has not been loaded onto the web site: especially with pictures. Make sure to FTP every file involved in your assignment page.

Using Dreamweaver? Try this job aid to help you publish from version MX.

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