Step 3: Creating a TEMP Index file for your website

[FTW]

If you have purchased your domain name from a reliable service you will be able to “control” where people go to find your website, once they put your website name into a browser window.


If this is a blank slate type website with no data, the first thing you need to do before you set up a “name server” is create a “temporary page”

The easiest way to create a temporary page is to open a “Text” writer application.

Now, I have to admit up front that I know nothing about current Windows operating systems. I personally use Linux, because it is FREE and much more secure. With that being said, in the past, Windows had a program called “Notepad”. I don’t know if they still do or not, however any type of “text” editor should work.

So, at this point, you simple type out any message you would like the public to see, UNTIL you actually have a website ready for viewing. One example of a quick and easy message is to simply type out the words:

This site is currently under construction.
Please check back later.

As a beginner, I would not suggest that you try to get to fancy with images and large text YET.

Now, you need to save your document with the name, “index.shtml” The reason I suggest you use the extension shtml is because EVERY website needs a file titled INDEX and the normal extensions are usually index.php or index.html or even index.htm, so in order to avoid confusion with other “index” files in case you upload a pre-written web design program, you will be safe with the shtml extension.

Next comes the uploading of your new index file.

There are multiple ways you can upload a file to your new server. The technique that you use will depend on how many different programs you want to cram into your brain. Personally I would recommend that you start with the easiest and then you can learn some of the other more advanced programs later.

Therefore, if you have followed my advice and purchased space on a server containing “cPanel” or “Plesk” control panels, you should have received an email from your hosting provider containing a control panel address along with a user name and password to access it.

This control panel address, user name and password SHOULD be different from the address, user name and password you used to log into your hosting company.

Once you log into your “Control Panel”, you should see an icon and the words File Manager like the one in the image below.

At that point if you click on your “File Manager” and scroll down the list of files until you see the words, “public_html” and click on that ICON.

You can click on the image below for a larger view.

An important note here is to be sure you ALWAYS click on an ICON instead of the words, because you don’t want to RENAME a file by accident and while public_html is not a file, this is an important habit for you to acquire when working with raw files on a website and server.

The next step is to “upload” the index.shtml file you just created, So while you are in the ROOT part of your “main” website, click on the ICON for UPLOAD.

ON the next screen, you will see a simple window that allows you to upload a file from your computer. Simply select or drag the index.shtml file that you created earlier over to this window and your new index file will be uploaded.

Now, the public will NOT be able to see this file YET, because your Name Servers are not pointing them to this hosting service YET. So that will be in the next article, and it will be much shorter then this one, I promise.