URL Format Question

[cindi]

Here is a mythical example of a URL I ran across. What does it mean and how would I use it if I wanted to do so.

(http stuff)myquestion.com/page/article.html

Thanks
Cindi

Is this just a folder in my public html, like my image folder?

[troyzone]

Hi Cindi,

Yes, that is correct. In this example, "page" is just the name of a folder under your root folder (public_html in most people's case), and article.html is the name of a web page file contained inside that "page" folder.

The http:// plus your domain name part of a URL tells browsers that a web page is to be displayed and where to find your site's hosting account on the web. If only the domain name is specified then the URL refers to the root or public_html folder, and anything following a / that doesn't have a filename extension (.html, .htm, .php, .jpg, .gif for example) is generally the name of a folder. The name of a specific file would go at the end of the URL following another / after any folder name(s) have been specified.

If no file name is specified at the end of the URL, the web server is generally configured to search for and display a default page, usually called index.html or something similar, depending on the configuration of the particular web host being used.

If no page name is specified and no default page exists then either a directory listing of files is displayed or a HTTP 404 File Not Found error message results, depending on whether the web host is configured to display or disable directory listing in such a case.

You've likely seen this before, but here is an illustration that Jim once created demonstrating a typical web site file and folder (or directory) structure:

www.theworkathomeindex.com/template/folderstructure.gif

Hope this helps.

Troy

[cindi]

As always Troy, you are a big help ;D

I have so many files I thought it might be better to put them in folders on my public html.

Thank You!

Cindi