Test URLs for BIRCH web site
The URL builder helps
you to build URLs by minimizing the amount of typing necessary to enter
a full URL. At any point, you can check whether or not a URL works by
clicking on the "Test" button.
Two URLs must be
created in order to access the BIRCH web site through
a web server:
- The BIRCH home
page
- The BIRCH
home directory
How to enter a URL
A URL is built from
the following components:
http://
|
prefix
|
.
|
second-level
domain
|
.
|
top-level
domain
|
/
|
directory
character
|
userid
or dir
|
http:// - Fixed.
prefix
- www, home, none, or blank (enter your own prefix). If prefix is
"none", there will be no period before the second-level domain
second-level
domain - The part of the domain that is specific to your host.
For example, if your BIRCH host was birch.myuniv.ac.uk, then the
second-level domain would be "birch.myuniv.ac".
top-level
domain - There are a large number of top-level domains, and the
pull-down list will have many of the common ones, such as .edu, .org,
.com, .gov, .ca, .us, .uk etc. Choose from a list, or type in your
domain. For example, if your BIRCH host was birch.myuniv.ac.uk, then
your top-level domain is "uk".
directory
character - This
is either none or tilda ( ~ ). The tilda is used for Apache web servers
on which the tilda is followed by a userid, meaning that the
$HOME/public_html directory for that user is the location of the web
site.
userid or dir - This is either the userid
of the BIRCH administrator, or the directory path corresponding to
$BIRCH/public_html.
If you don't have a
domain name, type the IP address in the
second-level domain field, and leave the top-level domain empty.
How to test a URL
You can test a URL as
often as you wish by clicking the "Test" button. This will either bring
up the web page in a Java help window, or print an error message. Note:
Java help windows are limited in features they can
display. Just about anything in standard HTML will work, but beyond
that (JavaScript, Flash animation, MS-Windows extensions) will not be
rendered. The purpose of the test window is solely to prove that you
can reach a web page.
WARNING!
The best that the Test procedure can do is to verify that there is a
web page at the chosen URL. You still need to
check by inspection that this is the correct page, rather than
something that has been automatically forwarded, or a page displaying
an error message.
|
How to Apply your
changes
The changes made in
the URLBuilder window will not be applied until you
press the Apply button. Apply will not be permitted if any of the URL
fields have been changed without testing.