Create a Simple Web Site

Create a Simple Web Site

This explains how a cheap simple web site can be hosted by Amazon S3 using Sissle. For experts, I mean contains only html, including any scripts to run on client and no server side scripts such as php. You can miss the next sections and go to'Amazon S3 Website'

The first problem is to define what is meant by a cheap simple web site. The easiest way is to build a 'beyond' simple site consisting of 3 pages. Firstly download the web site editor Kompozer, as we are doing this cheap this is free, do not download the 0.7.10 (very old) but go for 0.8b3(latest).

Create a folder on your PC 'mywebsite' and a sub folder 'images', that is we have c:\mywebsite and c:\mywebsite\images, note that the filenames are all in small letters, this wil save you  learning the rules for the use of capital letters. Start up Kompozer and copy the box below by dragging the mouse through the box contents, use Ctrl - C to copy the contents. Go to Kompozer and for a new page in design mode (the default) enter the content with Ctrl - V to paste contents. Then save this page as index.htm in c:\mywebsite, right click on the from  image and select image as and save it to c:\mywebsite\images. Test by going to c:\mywebsite\index.htm in windows explorer and double click on index.htm, this should produce some recognizable version of below, if not try again.

index.htm

| Home | Information | Contact | Home     This is my web site detailing the dangers of driving in Germany.. ©2011 MySite MySite

| Home | Information | Contact | Information   My father in the 1930s serving with the Gurkhas.. ©2011 MySite MySite

Repeat procedure above on following.

contact.htm

Check you should have folder c:\mysite containing 3 files index.htm, information.htm and contact.htm. The subfolder images should contain 2 images, dangerfrogs.jpg and fathertomingurkhas.jpg.

Using Sissle
- Create a bucket "mysite.com". First problem area this name must be unique accross the whole, repeat whole, of the Amazon S3 system. So do not expect john.com or johnsmith.com to work.
-Transfer your web site files to the above bucket. That is 3 htm files mysite.com and the folder images also to mysite.com, this should include all the images, but worth checking.

Amazon S3 Website

Sissle contains a dialog which performs the last few steps, register bucket as website with default and error documents and make all files publicly accessable. In Sissle select the bucket "mysite.com", right click, tools, and click on WebSite, a new Dialog opens. Set the enable checkbox, this will change all the files from private to public readonly. The Index Document must be set to index.htm, this means when you call a site http://www.test (say) it actually calls http://www.test/index.htm. If you enter nothing here this turns of this facility. The Error Document is optional, a good idea here is to enter error.htm (which we have not created yet). If someone enters a misspelled address such as http://www.test/indian.htm, then error.htm is shown. So return to Kompozer and create a new file error.htm which just says in large letters "This page does not exist" and use Sissle to upload it. Sorry, back to dialog, notice the button "Endpoint to Clipboard", click this to do just that. Now click OK to action everything.

Test, quickly click on "mysite.com" right click,tools,WebSite and bring up the same dialog, check everything is set correctly. Open a browser and in the address bar clear whatever is there and enter your address with a Ctrl - V (paste from clipboard). Hopefully your wonderfull site will appear. You can now send an email to friends with your address which is still on the clipboard.

I have the address http://disttest.s3-website-us-east-1.amazonaws.com. I have used disttest as mysite.com, note the .com in mysite.com here is just part of a name whereas the .com at the endamazonaws.com is the real thing. The next part of the name s3-website-us-east-1.amazonaws.com as you can see from the table below means the bucket is the US standard area. That is just info, you can ignore it.

The obvious statement is http://disttest.s3-website-us-east-1.amazonaws.com is a mess. The quick answer is you have simple website which with 3 pages will cost you cents per year.
The longer answer is
- obtain your own domain name, typically $10 dollars a year, say www.bestnameever.com
- you require a change in your DNS server, a CNAME entry, this is usually linked to your ISP

A typical CNAME is

www.bestnameever.com CNAME bestnameever.com.s3-website-us-east-1.amazonaws.com

There are rules
Not all ISP allow it, some make it difficult to do (my ISP) and some let you do it simply online.
There other complications within the above, typically if you host your site with your ISP it is easier, we are not doing that so expect complications. Note the use of the name "bestnameever.com" on both sides of the CNAME.
In fact I have not succeeded, even though I have the correct form, an ofiicial stamp,......