Making Google Docs, Gmail and other web-based editors easier
Server configuration Help
All versions of PicturePaste provides the option for hosting images on your
own server (that is a server for which you have control and either own or
rent). You can configure PicturePaste to use either FTP servers or Amazon
S3 servers.
Note: In all cases, images that are converted with PicturePaste are hosted in
a secure and private fashion so the images are not discoverable, will not be
indexed by search engines and remain private until or unless you include
them in a blog or public email.
FTP: There are hundreds of companies offering low cost ‘web space’ and
these all provide an FTP (File Transfer Protocol) method to transfer files from
your computer to the server.
Amazon S3: A more recent alternative is to use the Amazon simple storage
service (S3). Amazon provide a low cost, high-availability file hosting service
using their worldwide server infrastructure, with high performance reliability.
Important: Before you purchase the HomeHost version please test that you
can use your own servers by configuring the free version to use FTP or S3.
You can configure either the FTP or Amazon servers by selecting the spanner
icon and selecting the Settings option. Select the Advanced option in the
dialog if you can’t see the settings. You should see this dialog: (Click to enlarge)
Select either the Amazon or FTP option.
Configuring for FTP
You will need the following information for your FTP server:
•
The FTP server name
•
A username and password to access the server
•
A folder name on the server where you want to store the images
•
The matching http URL. When you upload a file to your server with ftp
it will appear as a published file on the web at a related URL. Enter
that URL here. Sometimes the URL is similar to your server name,
sometimes it’s completely different. Your hosting company should
provide this information.
You can test whether the ftp details are correct with most modern web
browser by entering the ftp server name instead of a normal web address
e.g. enter ftp://myserver.com into the address field on the web browser. It
will prompt you for a username and password.
When you click Apply, the program tries to write a small test file and read it
back again. It will error if this fails asking you to check the settings.
Configuring for Amazon S3
Amazon offers an alternative low-cost, high availability file hosting service,
called Amazon S3 (stands for Simple Storage Service). You can find out and
sign-up to Amazon S3 web services here: http://aws.amazon.com/s3/
There’s a guide here that describes the steps to go through to get an
Amazon S3 account. See here. Once you’ve sign up you will be giving the
following details which you need to enter into the Settings dialog shown
above:
•
Access Key
•
Secret Key
•
Bucket name
•
Folder name (optional)
The Bucket name is the name under which all your files are stored. If you do
not enter a folder name then all your files are put into the bucket at the top
level. If you enter a folder name then they are placed inside this folder.
There are a number of useful S3 utilities available, some for free, that let you
explore, view and manage your S3 account and files in your account.
When you click Apply, the program tries to write a small test file and read it
back again. It will error if this fails asking you to check the settings.
Click to enlarge
