File Management
Files can be managed in the system. The likely uses of a file are:
- to be used in a page e.g., an image, sound or movie file
- to be available to download from the website e.g., a document
Typical file types are documents (.doc, .swx, .pdf), spreadsheets (.xls) and multimedia files (.mp3, .wav, .mpg, .swf).
Files are uploaded using the File Module . The amount of files that can be uploaded is limited by size, the size depends on the plan type.
When should files be used?
Files should be used when the content they contain can't be represented easily on a web page or where the customer will want to keep the file offline. Where possible the contents of documents should be added into a page rather than making a client download them.
The disadvantages of making someone download a file are:
- They client needs to have the software that the file uses installed on their system. Some common word processing software is not always installed on the end-users machine
- downloads can take time and use too much bandwidth
- some file types contain 'clutter' that makes them bigger than needed.
The advantages of downloaded files are:
- They retain their formatting, more colours and complex layouts can be used
- the customer can retain them for reference even when offline
- Media files that are downloaded can be viewed often on the clients computer without using more bandwidth.