Directions for transferring biographies

Please transfer biographies from the DVD version of the website ONLY. The biographies online in the old site are two years out of date. You may get a DVD with the biographies from John Elberfeld. Email him at [email protected].

Nothing ever goes smoothly - gremlins are everywhere. Different browsers, and different versions of the same browser all behave differently.

Setup

1. Everything goes MUCH faster if you transfer all the files on the DVD to your hard drive. This can take 3 or more hours, so this a job to start just before you go to bed, or leave for work. You can work off the DVD until you make the transfer.

2. Open Index.html on the DVD. CTRL-O (for Open) will open a dialog box that lets you navigate to the Index.html file. If the Index file you see first causes a problem (demands cookies even though you allow them), go to the Index.html file inside the Wiki folder. You can also look at the files on the DVD and double click on either Index.html and it should open in your default browser. Experiment until you find a way that works, and then remember what you did for next time.

3. Use the browser's BACK BUTTON ONLY for navigating back a level when in the file on the DVD. Clicking any of the links in the navigation bar will bring you to the old web page with the outdated files. Just hit the BACK BUTTON until you are back to the DVD files. You want to transfer ONLY files on the DVD. Make sure the address of the file you transfer starts with "file:///C:/Users..." or something along that line.

4. I usually have two different browsers open. Internet Explorer seems to work well with the DVD version, and so I use Chrome or something else for the online work. This helps me keep track of what I am doing.

Transfer

1. As more name are added, it may pay off to check the names of the files already transferred so you don't attempt to create a duplicate.

2. Copy the name of the person from the top of the page on the DVD version: Abrams, Elijah

3. On the NEW online version, click on "Hilltown Biographies" in the navigation bar down the left side of the page. If you are reading this, you know how to do that. Click on "Create a Biography" and select the bottom "Blank" template.

4. Paste the name you copied into the name box. IT IS THE WRONG ORDER. Cut and Paste until it is first name, middle name, last name: Elijah Abrams. Make sure there is only one space between names, and you got rid of the comma.

5. Click "Create Page." An almost blank page appears. You will see . THis command eliminates the table of contents, which for most biographies is bigger than the page content so it is an unnecessary distract. If you have a complex biography that needs a table of contents, you can get rid of that command.