Homepage Hosting Scripts - How to Install

This is a step by step guide to install Fingertips, the most sophisticated among all the homepage hosting scripts, into your web site.

1. Unzip the file that you downloaded into the root of your web folder. If you do not have physical access to the server, you have to unzip the file on your computer then upload all files into your online account with your favorite online account.

Example: c:\inetpub\wwwroot\fingertips\

2. You can now have a folder with the unzipped contents in it.

3. Further you have to make it certain that your folder permissions are set correctly. To judge your database type, refer to the below. Make sure that these changes are incorporated into all the files and folders below it. Always remember that you may need to contact your web host provider and ask them to do this for you.

MS Access

Directory	Permission
./logs	Read/Write/Delete
./databsex	Read/Write/Delete	Remove http read access to stop your database from being downloaded via browser.
./users	Read/Write/Delete	Or the directory where you will store your users' file.

MS SQL 2000

Directory	Permission
./logs	Read/Write/Delete
./databsex		Directory not required, it may be deleted to save space.
./users	Read/Write/Delete	Or the directory where you will store your users' file.

Setting up permissions is the important measure you have to perform before attempting a setup. Try to ensure that changes are reflected for the IUSR_<machine name>user.

4. Point your browser to the setup.asp file located at the logs directory of the top-level folder.

Example: http://www.yourdomain.com/fingertips/logs/setup.asp

5. If you have accepted the terms and conditions, continue to the next stage of selecting your database type.

Microsoft Access Setup
Enter the physical path to your database and then click on "Proceed to Step 2". If you are using MS Access, you can jump ahead to Item 6 in this manual. Example:
c:\inetpub\wwwroot\fingertips\databasex\homepage.mdb

Microsoft SQL 2000 Setup
Select the Connection Type that you use to connect to your SQL database.

MS SQL Connection Type - DSN
Enter all the required details and click on "Proceed to Step 2".

DSN	Enter the DSN system name that has been set up by your hosting provider.
DSN User	Enter the username provided for your DSN.
Password	Enter the password provided for your DSN.

MS SQL Connection Type DSL-less
Enter all the required details and "Proceed to Step 2".

Server	Mention your SQL server name. If you use a specific port to connect to the SQL server, e.g., Port 1433, then enter your server address with a comma at the end followed by the Port Number. E.g. 192.168.230.154, 1433
Database	Input the name of the database that you wish to use.
User	Input the username provided for your database.
Password	Provide the username password for your database.

Once you have entered the correct details of connecting to your SQL database, FingerTips will write the required tables to your SQL server.

6. Complete all the required details before proceeding and click "Continue" when finished.

AdminLogin	This is the administrator name that you would like to use when logging into the Admin Center.
AdminPassword	This is the administrator password.
AdminEmail	This is the email address of the FingerTips administrator. Any email sent by the user to the system administrator will be directed to this address.
UserLimit	If you wish to limit the number of users your system will support, enter a number here. If you do not wish to have a limit simply enter -1
DefaultPage	This is the start page set by your hosting provider.
Path	Please enter the physical path to your FingerTips system files. Do not enter a URL.
URL	This is the URL to your FingerTips system files.
EmailHost Name	If you are using an Email component except CDONTS, enter your SMTP email server address. You may have to ask your hosting provider for this address.
ServiceName	This is the name that you would like to give to your FingerTips installation. E.g. Mysites.com
PayPal ID	If you wish to use PayPal for selling additional services, enter the email address that you have registered with Paypal.
EnforceEmail	It enables you to ensure that each user has his/her own unique email address when signing for an account.
SignUpEmail	When a new user signs up, it helps you as the administrator to receive an email.
CensorEmail	It always keeps you up-to-date when a user attempts to upload a web page that is detrimental to the system rules.

7. Once you are through with the above steps you will be informed with a congratulations screen. In this way, you can set up the system. Now you need to enter your Administration Console and add a Plan. This can be accomplished by clicking "Ad Plan" from the left-hand menu of the Administration Console. This can be reached by pointing to browser to:

Example: http://www.yourdomain.com/fingertips/adminx/

8. Once you have successfully installed FingerTips, it is recommended that you delete the following files from your web server for the security reasons:

- /log/setup.asp;
- /log/setup_sql_1.asp;
- ./logs/setup_sql_2asp: and
- ./logs/update_ft2002.asp

The FingerTips Admin Console
The moment you enter the Console, you will be asked to set up your first Plan. To move ahead, you have to complete this step.

To add your first plan, click on the "You Must Create a Plan" and then supply the required information.

Censor Rules
Censor rules are used to stem the use of inappropriate language in the files uploaded or developed by your users. The in-built censor will compare all users file with your selected censor setting. If you wish to turn the censor off, set your sensitivity level to zero.

Through this page, you can set your alert action, add/edit/delete censor and change their sensitivity level.

Add News Updates
Thanks to the news module, you can add/edit/delete news articles that will appear in the user-side interface. News articles can be set for different communities or all at once.

Edit Header/Footer
Edit the header and footer that are displayed on users' pages. The headers and footers are added to your users' pages when they are edited and uploaded.

If you change the header and footer after the users have developed their pages, the new settings will not appear until the users edit their pages again.

View Logs
Each action undertaken is screened by the system automatically. Different actions that are considered important are recorded by the system so that the administrator may review those later.

System Variables
System variables give you a quick snapshot of how your FingerTips setup looks like.

Server Variables
Server variables give you a glimpse of how your server setup looks like.

System Settings
Here you can update your system settings. You have to make sure that you have sound fundamental idea on the system settings. If you fail to provide adequate information, you might not be able to operate FingerTips properly.

System Log Off
If you have finished working on the Administrative Console, don't forget to log off.

Communities
Communities are a way of clubbing like-minded web sites together. Use the menu items to add/ edit/delete or list the communities setup in your system. As long as you have one, you can have as many as and as little as communities according to your wish.

Plan
Plan allows you to decide which features will be available to your users after signing up. You can have as many plans as possible.

Users
Manage the particulars of your users, check their billing records or add extra services. Remember any changes that you make are reflected immediately. If you delete a user, this will be a permanent action and cannot be reversed.

Email Users
You can email users individually, either by plan or by community.

Ban Files
You can ban certain types of files from being uploaded or created by your users. If users try to create or upload those prohibited files, the system will automatically warn the users. Users are informed of the banned file-types in the user-side interface.

Services
With the help of services menu, you can add any service that you would like to offer to your users as an add-on. If you have a PayPal account and have setup FingerTips to use PayPal, you can make the new service payable before it is added to the users' account.

Get Help Online
You can use the links on the left to see or modify the settings of your account to get this online help window and to control the settings of your Forum and Guestbook.

Use the links in the middle to build your Home Page fast with a few clicks.

You can also search FingerTips User Directory by entering a word in the text-box and click the "Find" button. The search will be performed according to the descriptions of the FingerTips users' home pages.

By clicking on the communities below the search text-box, you can see the users in each community. To go back to the Community listing, click on the "back to listing" link.

Use the links on your right to manage and edit the files to your site or to install a Message or Guestbook on your site.

Message Board
Click on the "Message Board" link on the lower-right corner to install a Message Board into your site. You can maneuver the settings of your new Message Board by clicking on the "Message Board Settings" link on the left of the page.

Guestbook
Click on the "Guestbook" link on the lower right corner to install a guestbook into your site. You can control the setting of your new Guestbook by clicking on the "Guestbook ettings" link on the left of the page.

Logout
To log out of your account, click on the "Logout" link in the upper-right corner of the screen.

Account Settings Help
By using your Account Settings page, you can modify your general details and descriptions of your site. Just modify the fields and click "Update Account" and your new account settings will be updated immediately.

You can also choose to add some extra services to your account.

The services you choose to add, will be included into the already existing services to your account.

Account Services Help
Thanks to Accounts Services Help, you can have a clear picture of all the services you have purchased and the expiry date of each of them.

To add new items to your account, just use the "Buy Add on" function. Once payment has been made, the new item will be added to your account. Please wait up to 48 hours for the changes to be implemented.

Account Status Help
In your Account Status page, you can check the status of your account. This page will caution you if you have run out of server space for your files, list all items that are installed and provide you with the expiry dates of your purchased products.

Template Center Help
The Template Center provides you with ready-made page layouts. The Preview option attached to every template allows you to have a peek at the working demo before making the final selection.

After selecting the image, simply click on the image. You will then be presented with a page asking for a name that you would like to assign to your new page. You have to be extra-careful here because if you enter a name that has been used previously, the previous page bearing that name will be overwritten.

There are page templates so you will need the Template Center for each page of your web site if you require a consistent layout.

WYSIWYG Editor
WISIWYG Editor allows you to create and edit your web pages without worrying about the underlying HTML code.

After finishing the editing process, click on "Save" button to make the changes permanent.

Basic Editor Help
The basic editor is a text editor where you can edit the HTML code and/or scripts in your selected file. Simply select the file you want to edit from the pull down menu or by clicking "Edit different file".

Preview	By clicking this button you can preview your selected page.
HTML Help	By clicking this button you are presented with some web sites that can provide you with valuable information on Hypertext Markup Language Syntax, tags and tips.
Exit No Save	If you wish to exit the edit without saving changes click this button.
Save and Edit	To save changes you have made and get on with your work on this file click on this button.
Save and Exit	To save your changes and exit back to the File Manager click this button.

File Manager Help
This is very much like the Windows File Manager. You can create, copy, move, delete and rename files and folders. You can also upload files by clicking on the Upload File Link.

On the right, you can select the editor that you prefer in editing files. You can either choose WYSIWYG Editor or opt for Basic Editor. After selecting the desired editor click on the "SET" button in order to save this setting. You can edit the files by clicking on them and they will be opened with your preferred file editor.

Create Folder	Enter as much as 10 folder names at once then click on the Create Folder link. The folders will be created in your current folder.
Copy Folder	A list of the folders in your current folder will be displayed. On the right of each folder you can select the appropriate action you take. You can select either "Don't Copy" or the location where this folder should be copied. Click on the "COPY FOLDER" button when you have finished.
Move Folder	A list of the folders in your current folder will be displayed. On the right of each folder you can select the appropriate action you take. You can select either "Don't Move" or the location where this folder should be moved. Click on the "MOVE FOLDER" button when you have finished.
Delete Folder	A list of the folders in your current folder will be displayed. By clicking on the checkbox of the on the left of each folder, you can select which folder or folders will be deleted. Click on the "DELETE FOLDER" button when you have finished.
Rename Folder	A list of text-boxes containing the names of the folders of your current folder will be displayed. Modify the names of the folders as you wish and Click on the "RENAME FOLDER" button when you have finished.

Create File In the first text-box enter the name of the file you wish to create and in the second text-box the file's extension, then click the "CREATE FILE" button and an empty file with that name and extension will be created in your current folder. You can then click on the file to edit it.

Copy File A list of the files in your current folder will be displayed. On the right of each folder you can select the appropriate action you take. You can select either "Don't Copy" or the location where this file should be moved. Click on the "MOVE FILE" button when you have finished.

Move File A list of the files in your current folder will be displayed. On the right of each file you can select the appropriate action you take. You can select either "Don't Move" or the location where this file should be moved. Click on the "MOVE FILE" button when you have finished.

Delete File A list of the files in your current folder will be displayed. By clicking on the checkbox of the on the left of each file, you can select which file or files will be deleted. Click on the "DELETE FILE" button when you have finished deleting the selected file or files.

Upload File(s) Upload File Enter path and the name of the file you want to upload or BROWSE your computer in order to find it and select it. Click on the "UPLOAD FILES" button when you have finished.

Rename File A list of text-boxes containing the names of the files of your current folder will be displayed. Modify the names of the files as you wish and Click on the "RENAME FILE" button when you have finished and your files will be renamed.