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FTP and Telnet Resources
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- CNET's Beyond the Browser feature gives a good introduction to FTP and how to use it. Once you are ready to get started, you will need to choose your own FTP client, so check out FTP Chic. This page will tell you why the once unfashionable "leisure suit of the Internet" is back in style, and reviews the top Windows and Mac clients. Once you have downloaded your favorite, take it for a test drive using their 10 hottest FTP sites on the Internet, including the Happy Puppy gaming site and ever-popular Walnut Creek.
- If you are a Mac user, Dartmouth College's Fetch 3.03 page includes helpful diagrams and information on bugs on the most widely used Mac FTP client. You may want to take a look at MacFTPbase, freeware that can help you keep track of the most useful FTP sites and includes a chart of common archive formats.
- When choosing an FTP client, be sure to pick up some software to expand compressed files. Most FTP sites store and distribute compressed files to save space and speed download time, and you will need an application like PKUnzip for Windows or Stuffit Expander for Macs to access your new software.
- Even after arming yourself with the most user-friendly applications, there may be times when you need to know some FTP commands to negotiate a site, so make a note of Netsmart's Anonymous FTP FAQ page. The site contains a list of useful FTP commands and common file suffixes that should save you the embarrassment of downloading a Mac file for your PC and vice versa.
- If you plan on living out your fantasies in a multi-user dungeon (MUD), make sure your Telnet program isn't as old as the medieval knight you're playing. CNET recommends a couple of the most recent shareware programs for PCs and Macs and runs through the basics of Telnet in How Do I Use Telnet?
- Using Telnet to access file libraries also may require the use of commands, which can be problematic unless you happen to be fluent in Unix. The University of Cambridge Hytelnet page gives an overall view, and its tips page contains descriptions of basic commands and when to use them.
- When you are using Telnet or FTP to access someone else's server, please observe the proper netiquette. This means that if they request an e-mail address from you, it is polite to give it to them. On the other hand, don't give away too much information; if you are prompted to use a password, never use one you use on your own system.
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