Support :: Technical

Downloading and Uploading

Under normal usage, most of your downloading will come when you are using Netscape or another kind of web browser. There are other ways of downloading such as using an FTP program such as WS_FTP for Windows or Fetch for Macintosh. When using Netscape for downloading files, simply click on the link to the file that you wish to download, just as you would when you click on links to other pages. When you click on the link to download the file this screen will usually pop up.

If you click on the link and instead of either this screen or the following screen showing up, you will need to "force" the file to download. To do this on a Macintosh, either hold down the mouse button and select 'Save link as...' or hold the Option key down when you click on the link. On a Windows machine, you can either right click on the link and choose 'Save Link as...' or hold down the Shift key when you click on the link.

After you click on 'Save file...' or 'Save to Disk' (Depending on what version of Netscape you using), the following screen will appear.

The purpose of this screen is to let you select into what directory you would like to download the file. You may want to simply download to your c:\ directory in order to find the file easier, but it is best to put in a temporary directory such as c:\temp. It is VERY IMPORTANT to remember into what directory you downloaded the file, so you can access it after the file has been downloaded.

Another thing to pay attention to on this screen is the File Name. On this screenshot the file name is n32e301.exe. You can choose a different file name if you prefer, but make sure you keep the same extension on the file, ie '.exe' is the extension on this particular file.

When you are finished selecting into what directory you want the file to download, click on Save. You will now see the following screen. On this screen you can see where the file is coming from and the file name (Location), where the file is being saved to and the file name (Saving), how much of the file has been transfered already (Status), and how much time is left (Time Left).

When the file is finished transferring, the above screen will disappear and you will then need to access the file. There are several file types that you will come across on the Internet but the most common ones end in either '.exe' or '.zip' for Windows and '.hqx' or '.bin' for Macintosh.

The file that ends in '.exe' can be run by simple double clicking on the file name when you are in File Manager or Windows Explorer. In order to use the '.zip' file, you will need a compression utility such as Winzip. When you are finished uncompressing the file you will need to run the file if its a '.exe' file, depending on if you downloaded a program.

For Macintosh, when you download a file ending in '.hqx', Stuffit will normally start up immediately when the file finishes transferring and uncompress the file. If it does not, you will need to start up Stuffit and uncompress it that way. Files ending in '.bin' can also be uncompressed using Stuffit. After these files are uncompressed you may need to run an installer or some sort of setup program, depending on what type of file you downloaded.

Most importantly, the Internet is a place to learn and a place to have fun. We make it more enjoyable for ourselves and our fellow Netizens (InterNet citizens) by being courteous. If you have any questions, feel free to ask the NetNet staff or your fellow users.