Head First HTML with CSS

How default pages work
5
HTTP response: you asked for a
directory, but I found “index.html”
in that directory, so that’s what
I’m sending back.
Q: So anyone who comes to my site
with the URL http://www.mysite.com is
going to see my “index.html” page?
A: Right. Or, possibly “default.htm”
depending on which kind of Web server
your hosting company is using. (Note that
“default.htm” usually has no “l” on the end.
This is a Microsoft Web Server oddity.)
1
The user types
http://www.starbuzzcoffee.com/drinks/
into the browser.
2
HTTP Request: could I please
have the file “/drinks/”?
www.starbuzzcoffee.com
there are no
Dumb Questions
There are other possible default filenames,
like “index.php”, that come into play if you
start writing scripts to generate your pages.
That’s way beyond this book, but that
doesn’t mean you won’t be doing it in the
future.
3
The server says “that
looks like a directory,
is there a default file
in that directory?”
starbuzz
drinks
4
getting connected
Behind
the Scenes
.
.
.
index.html
Server locates a
default file called
“index.html” in the
drinks directory.
Q: So when I’m giving someone my
URL, is it better to include the
“index.html” part or not?
A: Not. It’s always better to leave it off.
What if, in the future, you change to another
Web server and it uses another default file
name like “default.htm”? Or you start writing
scripts and use the name “index.php”? Then
the URL you originally gave out would no
longer be valid.
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