Installing a Blog on Your Website - Altering Files
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Let's make one thing clear: the installation instructions of the blog program you are using will spell out all the necessary alterations for each file. This section will merely outline two of the most common alterations for most blog programs. The first such alteration will be made to the original config (configuration) file. This file is usually uncompressed with the word “original” or “sample” in the filename. You will be creating a brand new config file to upload to the server.
Because the config file is a text file, you can edit the file in any text editor (Notepad is the default text editor for Windows computers). When you save the new config file, be sure to save it in the default location offered by the text editor (i.e. inside the root directory). The easiest way to do this is to remove the word “original” or “sample” from the filename before saving it. This is important for when you upload the entire program to your server. I believe I mentioned this in the last section.
Obviously, each blog program has its differences, but there are two key operational settings in the config file that must be discussed. The first is database configuration. You will have to plug in the following information: the database name and address path, and your username and password. The second setting is the program path (often called the cgi path). This is the server address that identifies the main blog program file. Not every program requires you to set this in the config file, but make sure you find out for sure.
If you open the original config file in your text editor, you will notice an inordinate amount of ASCII symbols (Movable Type uses the # sign, WordPress uses double slashes //). These are merely used to denote instructions for the user; they render any line of text preceded by it useless as program code. A line with this symbol is called a comment line and removing the symbol is called 'uncommenting' the line. If the line you are adding information to is commented, then you must uncomment it.
The next section will continue this discussion on the config file and look at other alterations that may need to be made.
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