Every website is built inside directories on a Web server. And each Web page is a separate file on that Web server. But sometimes, when you go to a URL, there is no file listed in the URL.
When you go to a URL without a file named at the end, the server looks for a default file and displays that automatically.
There are three commonly used default page names that you can use on most Web servers:
* index.html
* index.htm
* default.htm (on some Windows servers)
It's a good idea to stick with index.html or index.htm on most servers, as default.htm is most often used on Windows servers, and isn't as common as it used to be. You Should Have an index.html Page in All Your Directories Whenever you have a directory on your website you should have an index.html page. This allows your readers to see a page when they come to that directory without typing a file name in the URL. It also prevents them from seeing things you might not want them to see.
If you don't put in an index.html file in a directory, most Web servers will display a file listing of all the files in that directory. While in some situations, you might want that, most of the time this is ugly at best and a security hole at worst. Writing a default Web page and naming it index.html helps solve those problems. Your Homepage Should be an index.html PageWhen you start building your website, you should create your main page and name it index.html. This is true whether you're using a free hosting service or you have your own domain name. That way, when people come to your URL, they automatically get your main page.
All other pages will have names like "about.html" or "contact.html", but your home page should file should be called "index.html".
When you go to a URL without a file named at the end, the server looks for a default file and displays that automatically.
There are three commonly used default page names that you can use on most Web servers:
* index.html
* index.htm
* default.htm (on some Windows servers)
It's a good idea to stick with index.html or index.htm on most servers, as default.htm is most often used on Windows servers, and isn't as common as it used to be. You Should Have an index.html Page in All Your Directories Whenever you have a directory on your website you should have an index.html page. This allows your readers to see a page when they come to that directory without typing a file name in the URL. It also prevents them from seeing things you might not want them to see.
If you don't put in an index.html file in a directory, most Web servers will display a file listing of all the files in that directory. While in some situations, you might want that, most of the time this is ugly at best and a security hole at worst. Writing a default Web page and naming it index.html helps solve those problems. Your Homepage Should be an index.html PageWhen you start building your website, you should create your main page and name it index.html. This is true whether you're using a free hosting service or you have your own domain name. That way, when people come to your URL, they automatically get your main page.
All other pages will have names like "about.html" or "contact.html", but your home page should file should be called "index.html".
