This is an icon of a partial file:
Q) How do I connect to a port other than 21?
A) Append a colon and the port number to the end of the hostname in the "Host" field. For example, to specify port 23 on the host archie.au, enter "archie.au:23" into the "Host" field.
Q) I can't connect to a FTP site. What's wrong?
A) There are a number of possible reasons, including:
Q) How do I get a file from a FTP server?
A) There are several ways to do this.
Q) How do I get a folder (also known as a directory) from a FTP server?
A) You must first connect to the FTP server and navigate to the directory which contains the directory you want to download. For example, if the directory named "apples" is inside a directory named "oranges" you need to navigate to the "oranges" directory and have it open and displaying the "apples" directory. To then download the "apples" directory, just drag the "apples" folder icon to a folder on your disk or to the Desktop - it's the same easy technique you would use when you copy a folder in the Finder. NetFinder will then download it to the specified destination. Note that unlike for files, you cannot double click the folder icon because that will just open its contents in another window (just like what the Finder does).
Q) How do I store a file (or folder) onto a FTP server?
A) First, connect to the server where the file (or folder) is to be stored. Next, navigate to the directory where the item is to be stored in. Then, just as you would do to copy a file in the Finder, drag the item from your Mac's disk to the NetFinder window where you want the item to be. That's it! Simple, eh? :-)
Q) Why can't I put a file onto the server?
A) You may not have access rights to that server. Mail the administrator of the server if you are supposed to have access rights.
Q) What is a partial file? How do I use it?
This is an icon of a partial file:
Q) Why doesn't the partial file continue transferring?
A) This may be due to a number of reasons:
Q) A crash occurred and the file is only partially downloaded, but its icon doesn't look an icon for a partial file? Can I continue downloading it?
A) When an unexpected crash occurs, NetFinder does not have the opportunity to change the file into a partial file hence the icon looks wrong. But, NetFinder has probably remembered how to continue transferring that file. What you need to do is change the file so that it can be recognised as a partial file. The easiest way to do this is to drop the file on to the program "Change file to partial file" which is included in the NetFinder distribution. To change it manually, you need to change the 'type' of the file to 'Part' and the 'creator' of the file to 'Woof' using a utility like ResEdit or the Norton Utilities' Disk Editor.
Q) Can I override the default upload and download settings?
A) Yes you can. All you have to do is to hold down the Option key when releasing the mouse button after a drag. You will then be presented with a "once off" upload or download window. Change the setting to your liking then press the OK button.
Q) Can I setup a default Upload Permission?
A) Yes you can. Please refer to the "default upload permissions" in the Upload Preferences.
Q) I am downloading a file that ends with ".hqx" but the progress dialog says I am downloading a MacBinary file. Is this a bug?
A) No, it's not a bug. The filename on the server merely does not reflect the true contents of the file. NetFinder does not rely on the file extension when determining what type of file it is. Instead it looks at its contents. For more info see "Intelligent options" in the Download Preferences.
Q) I know there is a file there, but it just doesn't show up? Is this a bug?
A) Some servers have bugs that cause them to not show the contents of a directory properly. The work around is to use the "Compatible commands" mode in the Preferences.
Similarly, some server do not recognize the "-alL" option that NetFinder uses to resolve aliases. This also causes some servers to not display a listing. To get a listing from such a server, you need to turn off the "Show target of alias instead of the alias itself" option in the Listings pane in the NetFinder Preferences window.
Q) The server says "-alL file not found", and I don't get a listing. What's going on?
A) The server does not support the -alL option. To get a listing from such a server, you need to turn off the "Show target of alias instead of the alias itself" option in the Listings pane in the NetFinder Preferences window.
Q) Why don't I get nice looking icons? All I see are generic file icons?
A) You need to install Internet Config's preferences. (Internet Config will create a file called "Internet Preferences" in your System Folder's Preferences folder when you run it). Another possible cause is that the desktop database on your disk(s) is corrupted - try re-building the desktop database(s) on your disk(s). Also, if the application which has the icons is not available (is it mounted on your desktop?) then the icons will look generic.
Q) What are those files that have italic text? Are they aliases?
A) Yes they are. If you wish to resolve them so you can see their size, turn on the "Show target of alias instead of alias itself" option under the Listing Preferences.
If you have this option on and still see the item with italic text, it's probably because the server does not resolve aliases or the alias on the server cannot be resolved.
NOTE: the "resolve alias" option is only really applicable for UNIX servers. Many other servers do NOT support this feature. If they do, then its a bonus.
NOTE: you can get NetFinder to disable displaying all these visual locked file/folder indicators by truning off the "Folder icons indicate permissions" option under the Display Preferences.
Q) How come the listings are really fast and other times really slow?
A) You probably have directory caching on. Cached directories are displayed faster because the listing is retrieved from your hard disk and not from the server, which is slower of course. When a listing is not in the cache or is outdated, NetFinder then gets the listing from the server.
Q) How come the directory caching doesn't seem to work?
A) It is possible that the directory cache files have become corrupt. If this occurs you need to purge the cache files.
Q) The displayed directory listing is wrong! Some old files are no longer there and there are new files that aren't displayed. How do I fix this?
A) The listing is probably coming from the directory cache that NetFinder maintains when the "Cache directory listings" option is on. To update the listing, you need to select the "Refresh Listing" command from the FTP menu.
Q) Why do I get a "Bad Data" error when doing a listing?
A) This will generally only occur when you are listing from the cache and the cache entry has been corrupted. One solution is to use the "Refresh Listing" command from the FTP menu. If this message occurs too often, it may be best to purge the cache files.
Q) Why is changing the "View By" setting so slow? Why is it fast when sorting by size?
A) When sorting by name, the time it takes depends on the "Non-English sorting of lists" setting in the Display Preferences. If this option is OFF, sorting by name is faster. However it may not sort the way you expect it to, if you are listing files with non-english characters. See the "Non-English sorting of lists" preference section for more details.
When sorting by size, NetFinder does not have the same problem as when sorting by name, hence it is faster.
NOTE: Some servers do not like full paths in a command being sent to them. As a result, they may also cause a delete operation to fail. To see if this is the case, change NetFinder to use compatible commands and try again.
Q) Why can't I rename or move or list a directory? I have permission but I keep getting an error dialog.
A) The directory/file you are operating on may have a "full path" that contains a space in its name. eg "/mac/my file/some programs/".
Some FTP servers do not handle this properly, so they return an error.
Most Macintosh FTP servers do handle this correctly. You may also need to set NetFinder to use compatible commands.
Q) Can I change the permissions of a file/folder?
A) You can set the permission in one of two ways:
Q) Why can't I change the permissions of a file or folder?
A) There could be a number of reasons:
Q) Can I set the permissions of all files and folders within a folder to a specific permission?
A) Yes. See the FAQ question "Can I change the permissions of a file/folder?" above.
Q) Can I duplicate a file/folder?
A) You can duplicate a file using the "Duplicate" command from the "FTP" menu. Currently you can not duplicate folders because it has not been implemented.
Q) Can I copy a file to another server without having to transfer it to my local machine first?
A) Yes you can. Just drag the file you wish to transfer and drop it onto another listing window of another server. Its that simple!
Q) Why can't I perform a remote copy?
A) There are numerous reasons:
Q) I am doing a remote copy, and I see a PASV command being sent, but I configured NetFinder to only use PORT commands. Is this a bug?
A) No it's not a bug, it is merely the way the command works.
Q) Can I create an alias to a file or folder on the server?
A) In theory, yes you can. But NetFinder does not support it because almost no server on the internet has the required setup. It is likely that no one will want such a setup because there are security loopholes in such a setup.
Q) Can I change the owner or group of a file or folder?
A) In theory, yes you can. See "Can I create an alias to a file or folder on the server?" above for reasons why NetFinder does not support it.
Q) Can I rename a file or folder?
A) You sure can. Just do what you do in the Finder. If this does not work, its probably because you forgot to turn on allow renaming in the preferences.
Q) Why can't I rename a file or folder?
A) It is very likely that you have not enabled allow renaming in the preferences. If you are wondering why it is not enabled by default, it is because most of the time users perform anonymous FTP, which does not give you privilages you to rename files.
If however this is not the case, then it is possible that:
Q) How do I save a bookmark to a directory listing window?
A) You can either choose the "Save Bookmark" command in the FTP menu, or drag the folder icon at the top left corner of the window to the desktop a folder or a text editor window.
Q) How do I save a bookmark to a file or folder in a directory listing window?
A) Select the item(s) you wish to bookmark and then press and hold down the control key. With the key held down, drag the selected items to where you wish to make the bookmark(s). You can drag to the desktop or to a folder to into a text editor window (like into a SimpleText window). When you let go of the mouse/trackpad button, the item(s) are bookmarked (or their URLs are copied into the text editor window).
Q) I noticed that all my bookmarks have my password in it. Can I disable this?
A) Turn off the "Export passwords in URLs" in the General Preferences.
Q) I setup the proxy server setting in Internet Config, but NetFinder just doesn't work.
The proxy server works with my web browser though! Is this a bug in NetFinder?
A) No, it is not a bug in NetFinder. The reason why it does not work is because the proxy server you entered is specifically for web browsers. Hence it "speaks a different language" to FTP proxy servers. This is why it does not work.
Q) How do I get other programs to use NetFinder for FTP transfers?
A) If the programs use Internet Config's "helper applications" settings, then you can get them to use NetFinder for FTP transfers. To do this, open Internet Config and click the "Helpers" button. Double click the "FTP" item and change the program to NetFinder. To configure a web browser to use NetFinder for ftp services, see the Getting Other Applications To Use NetFinder For FTP transfers section.
Q) How do I stop Netscape from using NetFinder for FTP transfers?
A)
Go to the General pane of the preferences and uncheck the "Tell Netscape to use NetFinder for FTP URLs:" checkbox. There is also more information in the Getting Other Applications To Use NetFinder For FTP transfers section.
Q) I want to record the file transfers. Can this be done?
A) To record the file transfers, turn on Transfer logging in the Connection pane in the NetFinder Preferences window.
<http://www.ozemail.com.au/~pli/netfinder/>
and
<http://www-personal.usyd.edu.au/~vtan/sw/NetFinder/>
Q) How do I use passive connections to transfer files?
A) Open the NetFinder preferences (select "Preferences" in the File menu) and select the Connections pane icon. Then select the "Use passive mode (PASV)" option. Click OK to save the preferences.
Q) NetFinder does not work with a certain site but the other FTP programs I use work fine? What should I do?
You have probably found a server that NetFinder does not support. Please send an email to
Peter Li <pli@ozemail.com.au> with the details. Peter will try to fix the problem.
NOTE: some servers do NOT support this command.
Q) What is this "CHMOD" command I see being sent to the server?
A) This command enables you to "CHange the MODe" of a file or folder. ie Set the permissions for a specific file or folder.
NOTE: some servers do NOT support this command.
Q) What is this "MACB" command I see being sent to the server?
A) This command tells the remote server to enable/disable "MACBinary" mode. This results in servers (generally MacOS based ones) to package up a file so that you do not lose essential bits of data.
NOTE: Most non-Mac servers do NOT support this command.
Q) Can I find what the "original" file/folder path is of an alias?
A) Yes, just select the item(s) you are interested in and hit Command-I to get information on the selected item.
Q) Why do I get the message "Can't establish data connection" when I perform a listing or try to transfer a file?
A) This is generally because the server is too busy. However if this occurs after you reconnect to your ISP when your modem drops, then it is a known problem which Peter will fix in the future. For now you will have to quit and restart NetFinder.
Q) How long do I have to wait before I get my registration code after I Register?
A) If you provide an e-mail address, you will usually get your code via e-mail within a few days of receiving the payment. If may take a few weeks if no e-mail address is provided.
Q) How do I register the program?
A) See the How To Register section.