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Ok, due to numerous picture uploading questions, I have decided to make a picture help page!

First, let me tell you about pictures. If you want to include them with your auctions, you must post them somewhere on the web. No other way around it. FTP is a means to transfer your pictures from your hard drive to a web site so that users can see them when they view your auction. They click your ad and the browser is "informed" that there is a picture to include and it goes to the place where it is stored on the web and then puts it into your ad so they can see it.

You'll need an FTP account so you can transfer your pictures to the web for display.

Once you get the FTP set up, you can cruise. Trust me.

A lot of information is in your 'Help' file, and more is below. Now, click on a question below to see if you find the answers you need...

• What is FTP and why do I need it?
• What happens when you upload item pictures?
• I already have pictures uploaded for an item. How do I handle this?
• I use eBay picture hosting services. Can I still use them?
• How do I check to see if I have free space with my ISP?
• Why do my pictures still not show up, even though the FTP test worked and the pictures uploaded?
• I still can't get pictures to show, even though I think the URL prefix is correct and the pictures seemed to upload. Now what?
• What are the instructions/settings an FTP site (pair.com) that actually works?

FTP is File Transfer Protocol.  It's simply a means by which your computer can talk to another and place files (like picture files) on the web so people can see them.   For auctions, you need to be able to find the picture(s) of your item on the hard drive, upload (send) them to your FTP space, and add the link to the picture(s) to your auction ad.  kAuction does this all for you, all you need is an FTP account.  You do need an FTP account; many ISPs provide free space or you can buy space for a few dollars per month.  I use pair.com and the EXACT directions for joining them and setting up kAuction to use the space the provide is indicated below.  Noone wants to pay for space, but they are VERY reliable and for $5 per month, you get 250 MB of space with 10GB per month transfer rate!   That's about 17 cents a day for problem free pictures and that's money well spent.

What happens when you upload item pictures?

This is what kAuction does when you upload pictures through the program.

• It takes the picture from your hard drive (that you have found with the 'Browse' feature) and uploads it (sends it) to your FTP web space.
• It uses your FTP settings to determine the name (www address) of the picture.
• Then when you start an auction, it uses the web address of all pictures for the item and builds them into your auction's ad.

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I already have pictures uploaded for an item. How do I handle this?

If you already have the pictures uploaded for an item you can use it instead of uploading them through kAuction. Do this:

• Go to the item record
• Enter the complete URL (www address) for your item's pictures into the URL fields.

Then when kAuction builds the auction, it will use the exact web address you have entered for the picture locations.

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I use eBay picture hosting services. Can I still use them?

Not really. They make you use their uploading tools, which you may think are convenient, but it's just another built-in hassle. It's eBay that decides the picture names and assigns them to your ad when you use their service. Plus you have to upload them when starting the auction (where with kAuction, you can upload them in advance), they delete them when they want to, and they charge for multiple (more than 2? 1?) pictures. Ridiculous. Trust me, you want more control over your pictures than they provide.  See the next question for info on finding out if you have space already.

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How do I check to see if I have free space with my ISP?

Before buying space you'll want to see if your ISP provides you with free FTP space. Some do. Search their online help files and FAQs to see how to set it up.   If you find no information on FTP, you can email your ISP.  Simply copy and paste the following into an email to them:

1. Do you provide me FTP space that I can access from FTP client software?

2. If so, do I need to do anything to activate that space?

3. What are my settings for using the space you provide?  I need to know the following:
   Username
   Password
   Directory to upload to  (if necessary)
   FTP server name
   URL prefix for the files that I upload to my space

If/when they reply, enter the settings into the kAuction FTP fields

If they do not, or they provide just a small amount of space (you'll probably need at least 5-10MB), it's simple to setup an FTP account. Then YOU control the pictures. You can upload them at any time, upload as many as you want, delete them or save them indefinitely, etc.  Taking control of YOUR auctions is what it's all about.

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Why do my pictures still not show up, even though the FTP test worked and the pictures uploaded?

It's probably your settings. kAuction adds the URL (www) prefix that you have indicated in your settings to build the picture's name. For example:

• You have a picture named "clock.jpg"
• In your kAuction FTP settings you have indicated that the URL (www) prefix for all pictures is "http://members.nbci.com/dkinem"
• when kauction uploads the picture it will name it with your prefix followed by the picture's filename. In this example it would be named "http://members.nbci.com/dkinem/clock.jpg" It simply adds the filename to the end of the picture prefix found on your kAuction FTP settings tab.

So, check that the URL prefix is accurate in your FTP settings. Small mistakes will lead to NO PICTURE showing up! It could be a missed "/" or an incorrect web address.

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I still can't get pictures to show, even though I think the URL prefix is correct and the pictures seemed to upload. Now what?

Could be a couple things.

• the web server is currently having problems. Check again later to see if the picture shows up.
• your FTP space does not allow pictures to be accessed from other web sites. In this case, give up on them and join another FTP space like pair.com (see instructions below)

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I give up! What are the instructions/settings for an FTP site (pair.com) that actually works?

Here are the steps for joining pair.com.

Follow these instructions exactly!

1. click here to go to pair.com (will open in a new window so you can continue to follow the directions BELOW!)
2. click the 'Web Hosting' link in the 'Hosting Services' area
3. click the 'Sign Up Now' link in the FTP section
4. choose your billing terms.  There is a one time set up fee (approx $15-20) and it is $5.95 for one month all the way down to less than $5 per month if you sign up for a year
5. scroll down on the same page and CHECK the option that says 'You are not attaching a domain name to the account at this time' - you just need an FTP account.
6. click 'Continue Signing Up' at the bottom of the page
7. finish paying for your new FTP space and choose a login name
8. pair.com will send you your information in an email in about ONE day.

Then your settings in kAuction's FTP fields will be as follows:

• Username: your login name
• Password: the EXACT password they send in the email
• Directory: public_html
• Host: the server name they send you in the email
• URL prefix: this will also be in the email, and it will say something like this...
  • http://www67.pair.com/dkinem/
  • MY URL (www) prefix is http://www67.pair.com/dkinem/, yours will be whatever it says in the email.

Then you will have clear sailing from then on. they are VERY reliable and give lots of space.

I have had extremely good luck with them!

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Finally, if all else fails, email me. First start a test auction with the item. You can even cancel it immediately, I will still be able to go to it and look at the HTML and help you solve this perplexing area of online auctions! Be sure to let me know the item number of the test auction.

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