What Is FTP?

What is FTP?

FTP, or File Transfer Protocol is a network protocol used to transfer data from one computer to another via a network, such as via the internet. FTP can be used for a wide variety of different connections, such as between game servers, voice servers, internet hosts, and other physical servers.

The objectives of FTP are:

• To promote sharing of files (computer programs and/or data).
• To encourage indirect or implicit use of remote computers.
• To shield a user from variations in file storage systems among different hosts.
• To transfer data reliably, and efficiently.*

Positive Aspects of FTP

• The FTP protocol supports resuming of interrupted downloads using the REST command. Always a good thing, especially if your firewall is gay (and not in the good lesbian kind of way), or if your computer decides that it doesn't like you and crashes. I have had this happen to me more than once, especially when I was downloading a really huge file on extremely slow bogan dial-up. I cried for hours ):

Negative Aspects of FTP

• While data is being transferred via the data stream, the control stream sits idle. This causes issues with large file transfers due to the fact that firewalls time out sessions that have idled for extended periods of time. Even though the file may have been transferred successfully, the firewall may cause an error message to appear.
• Resuming an interrupted uploading file is difficult even though the FTP protocol has the option to restart an upload, the client can not pin point the exact point where the upload was interrupted. To be able to find this out the client has to obtain the size of the file some other way, for example by using a directory.
• Passwords are sent in clear text so they can be intercepted. However, this can be stopped by using computer security protocols.
• Multiple TCP/IP connections are used, this may result in your firewall needing to be configured to support the extra connections.
• It is difficult to filter active FTP traffic.
• It is possible to abuse the protocol's built-in proxy features to tell a server to send data to subjective port of a third computer.
• There is no integrity check in the receiver FTP server. To avoid this, integrity checks have to be managed externally.
• The FTP servers have a high latency protocol due to the high number of commands that are needed to initiate a transfer.

*information taken from wikipedia

A Href =Templates

First of all I would like to point out that my entire blog has been customized. I am not using one of the templates that was provided by Blogger.

When working with HTML the editing possibilities are endless. You can change anything from the width of a table to the font style and color. You can also change border width and the entire layout of a page. For example, most of the blogs that you will come across are pretty much a standard layout. However, for the sort of people who would prefer something more extravagant they go for a navigational blog (you can see examples in my previous blog post).

In my opinion, these are far more fun to work with. However, in editing the HTML to create a navigational blog it means that you must revert to classical mode. Which in turn means that you lose the Page Elements option and trust me, if you don’t know HTML well it is best to stick to using the Page Elements option. At least Page Elements isn’t temperamental.

-Sigh-

Anyways, as an example I changed the titles for all of the page elements that I added using the HTML editor. Below you can see a screen shot. The areas in red indicate what I changed. Yay!

Also, to give you an idea of how the changes I made affected my blog there is a screen shot below that you can have a look at.

I love Templates. So much fun to screw around with. Yay!


No Drugs Or Children Were Harmed During The Creation Of Theses Posts

Oh What A Feeling, CSS.

First of all, please excuse the title. I have the stupid Toyota slogan stuck in my head. DAMN YOU TOYOTA.

CSS is the acronym for Cascading Style Sheets.

The term is used in web development to describe the presentation of a document written in a markup language*. It is used by webpage readers to be able to define color, font and the layout of a page. It is designed primarily to enable the separation of document content from document presentation. In normal people words that means that the pretty stuff stays as pretty stuff and all the crap that goes on the webpage still is, you guessed it, the crap on the page.

///Okay, enough of the definitions. Today we were asked to have a look at the differences that were made when you were to switch your webpage reader from it’s basic style to no style at all. ///

The first thing that I noticed was that the layout of my blog became appalling!!! It was actually quite upsetting to me after I made it all cutesy and all.

–Pout.-

Also, instead of having the multiple pages like my blog is set up to do (It’s a navigational blog), it had the one page with all of the details outlined on it. It removed the specified blog font and the coloring, not to mention separated the background from the blog. Now my poor lion is all lonely…

)=

I can see why CSS is such an advantage for both web page designers and viewers. It enables the viewer to be able to see the layout in the way that it was intended to be viewed, not in a simplistic style.

Although, I can see why the no style setting could be an advantage too just because of the simple fact that it decreases the amount of time spent downloading a page’s content and settings. But, I much prefer things to look all pretty and be set out the way I coded them to be set out. Much love for the CSS.

*A markup language is a set of annotations to text that describe how it is to be structured, laid out, or formatted.

No Drugs Or Children Were Harmed During The Creation Of Theses Posts

Blog Skins Pt 2

But, out of all of these pretty blog skins I couldn't help but pick the amazingly wonderful Lion skin. Ish so cute! I loves it, as you can see, seeing as how it is my blog skin right at this very moment. Hooray! I hope that I can stick with it for a little while.

For larger views of all of these blog skins go to:
My Flickr

No Drugs Or Children Were Harmed During The Creation Of Theses Posts

Blog Skins Pt 1

For the last three weeks of the holidays I have been playing around a lot with the HTML coding that we can use for Blogger. I’m not too much of a fan of the XHTML that we have been working with during our workshops, so I decided to opt for the classical HTML views to create the layouts for my blog.

I’m a freak, in the sense that I can’t just stick with one type of layout. There are so many different layouts that we can use so I like to be able to experience them all. Below you will see screen shots of some of the blog layouts that I went through during the holidays. I’m such a blogskin whore. ):

No Drugs Or Children Were Harmed During The Creation Of Theses Posts

As Nummy as Del.icio.us

My my my, Damian has asked us to have a look for sites that are equally as tasty as Del.icio.us. So I had a look and I found these three that I have encountered before, or have an account with. Hooray!

FaceBook

The first is //FACEBOOK.
Hooray For Facebook. I love it. Where else because EmoSpace could you make a profile and have cool little activities linked to it? I love it to death. Yeah, I have a face book. Much love. If you would like to check out my FACEBOOK account click on the link below. Yes. FaceBook. A BOOK IN THE SHAPE OF A FACE?! Scary. Spooky. Mysterious. I dunno...whatever. Anyways, moving on to the next item on the list.

//FEAR MY FACE BOOK PROFILE//

Digg.Com

Okay, what the hell is //Digg.com ? Well I got this from I Can Has Cheezburger (Heaps Funny Site!!!!!! It's on my sidebar, check it out) and it is basically the same thing as Delicious, only it wants you to Digg It rather than eat it. I'm not much for digging holes, but hey if this website tells me to do it, why the hell not? Wait...I just realised that what I said has no relevance to this blog post. ANYWAYS. Moving on to....DUN DUN.

STUMBLE UPON

Very interesting website. I have found the funniest stuff on here. The most random videos and stuff. Don't have much to say about it, except that you should definately have a squizzy at it. DO IT NOW

DO IT.

GO

HERE ----------> //STUMBLE

Num Num Num, Delicious

...Num Num Num...

...Delicious...

I had no idea what Del.icio.us was until I was introduced to it in this class.

I think that is an excellent way to be able to bookmark your favorite sites so that you can access them anywhere on the internet. Defiantely very handy if you don't have your personal computer around, or if you want to show your friends some of the sites that you enjoy looking at without the hassel of having to find them.

I would definately have to say, after the brief experience that i have had with Delicious so far that it is one NUMMY website.

I thought that Delicious was just so tasty that I had to make my very own Delicious account. Mmmmm, Traceytastic. If you wanna check out my tasty bookmarks, take a bite out of my delicious account below



...Num Num Num... ...Delicious...

Check it out! TASTE THE GOODNESS OF MY BOOKMARKS.

Hitman Movie

(Timothy Olyphant Looking Great As Agent 47)

The Hitman Movie!

Well, for my first post I thought I would write about something that I really like, so I chose the Hitman Movie. I've always been a huge fan of the Hitman games, to the point where it was almost boardering on obsession. So it was only natural that I fell in love with the movie, and the actor that plays Agent 47, Timothy Olyphant. I was very pleased with the way that the producers portrayed this movie and the actors that were chosen for it.

In all honestly I expected Vin Diesel to be cast in this movie as well as producing it, but I am glad that they didn't. I mean, don't get me wrong I like Vin Diesel as much as any oter girl but he is more suited to the very eccentric movies. Such as Fast and the Furious. He was great in that.

However, Olyphant was perfect for the role. Timothy Olyphant was able to capture the essence of Agent 47 to a tee. He was very reserved, almost shy, but very intellegent at the same time. I also liked the fact that they didn't have the two main characters making out. There was an obvious intimate connection between Agent 47 and Nika Boronia (Olga Kurylenko) but there was no sexual conduct. Well, except for Nika Boronia getting naked and cracking onto 47. I was both amused and slightly jealous.

Anyways, if you haven't seen this movie yet, I recommend it. I know that alot of people think that the storyline was a little predictable, but I really enjoyed it. Mainly, as I said before, that I really enjoyed the hitman games. But definately check it out if you haven't already, or if you don't wanna have a look at the movie you should look at the website seen below.

Click To Check Out The Hitman Website