I've deleted the directory the files were in from my webspace now, created a new one, and uploaded the files into that one (so, this is my third attempt to reinstall). The result is still a blank white page, but this time I noticed that it took an awfully long time to 'load' that blank white page, so it would seem that the page can't be entirely empty, after all - my browser was clearly trying to do something.
ETA: When I try to look at the source of the page, though, there's nothing.
Is that info any help?
When I try to go to the install page directly (where I think it should be based on the information you've given), I'm getting a 404 error. Did you upload ALL the files and folders? Including the install folder? Did you put the files inside another folder. I.e. an efiction folder inside the httpdocs folder?
I feel I'm a step further towards solving this problem now... I deleted everything again and then re-uploaded not just the contents of the eFiction folder but the eFiction folder itself, and then created the stories folder inside that and moved the config.php file and CHMODed them as instructed. So... I don't get the empty white page anymore. Unfortunately, I don't get the installation interface, either, but rather, an error message that says 'access not allowed' (in German, of course *g*). Still, that's somewhat better than the blank page, and hints at, perhaps, faulty CHMODing?
No. CHMOD'ing will not cause errors until you get farther along in the install. I think you're not putting the eFiction files in the right place. Are you putting the efiction files/folder in public folder?
Since I'm not entirely sure what a public folder is, here's how my file structure on my webspace is organised - in the hope that that answers the question of where I've put the files (I could swear, btw, that I put them in exactly the same place I put them when I installed eFiction the first time - the time it worked):
folder: subdomain 1:
-- index.htm
-- file 1.htm
-- file 2.htm
-- file 3.htm
-- etc.htm
folder: subdomain 2:
-- index.htm
-- file 1.htm
-- file 2.htm
-- file 3.htm
-- etc.htm
folder: subdomain 3 ("lomarchive"):
-- folder: "eFiction331"
---- folders that were contained in the eFiction folder (as downloaded), i.e. "admin", "blocks" etc.
------ files that were contained in these folders (as downloaded)
---- other files that were contained in the eFiction folder (as downloaded), i.e. "admin.php", "authors.php" etc.
So, basically - I've just copied the entire unzipped "eFiction331" folder into the folder "lomarchive", and the folder "lomarchive" is on the same tier as the other folders housing the pages of my other subdomains on my webspace.
Addendum: I've *actually* managed to find out which versions of PHP my hosting company supports. Yay! It says PHP 3, 4 and 5 are supported.
folder: subdomain 3 ("lomarchive"):
-- folder: "eFiction331"
---- folders that were contained in the eFiction folder (as downloaded), i.e. "admin", "blocks" etc.
------ files that were contained in these folders (as downloaded)
---- other files that were contained in the eFiction folder (as downloaded), i.e. "admin.php", "authors.php" etc.
With this structure you're going to access your site from http://lomarchive.allabouthmpf.com/eFiction331 not http://lomarchive.allabouthmpf.com You need to move the files up one folder to the main subdomain3 folder. Then go to http://lomarchive.allabouthmpf.com and run the install.
The main folder is where I had them during the previous two failed attempts at installation. Oh well, I guess I can move them once again. I live in hope.
Have contacted my webspace provider now, too. Maybe they'll have a useful reply this time? *sigh*
Oh, and http://lomarchive.allabouthmpf.com/eFiction331/ takes me to that dreaded blank page again. 🙁
(Sorry for this neverending story here. I'm not *trying* to be stupid...)
Right. Re-downloaded the software, on the off chance that my files may have been damaged in the download or on my disk; unzipped it; uploaded everything from the unzipped folder directly to the 'lomarchive' top level folder; CHMODed etc. - blank page again.
I don't know what else to try.
Well if I go to http://lomarchive.allabouthmpf.com/install/install.php I still get a blank white page but it is loading the install script up to the end of the head tag. I'm guessing somewhere after that before the script outputs the rest of the info, you've got something causing it to die. Do you have the languages folder and files uploaded?
If you kept eFiction in it's folder, you have to use the folder name as part of the url.
So for example, if your site is at http://allabouthmpf.com/lomarchive then you are looking for http://allabouthmpf.com/lomarchive/eFiction331/install/install.php
Whoever said nothing is impossible never tried slamming a revolving door.
url: https://www.potionsandsnitches.org/fanfiction
php: 7.4.33 msql: 5.6.51-community GPL
efic version: 3.5.5 latest patches: yes
bridges: none mods: challenges, tracker, story end, beta, word
You seem to have the install in the right folder now. I just think you might have some of the files in the wrong place or missing.
I've uploaded the complete contents of the unzipped eFiction folder to the lomarchive folder, honest. I just compared them again, to make absolutely sure. Everything's there, and everything is where it should be, as far as I can tell.
I just got a thoroughly unhelpful reply from support, telling me that the problem may be the name of my index page file. This, obviously, is rubbish, as I haven't changed the name of the index, and it worked fine on the first install.
ETA: One interesting bit of info from that support mail: the support guy says that my files seem to be empty. Now, I don't know how, but is it possible that the contents of the files somehow weren't uploaded - just the filenames? I mean, that sounds bizarre to me, but who knows...
ETA2: I've opened some random files in Wordpad and they all seem to have contents... except for the ones titled index.php.
The only index.php that should have contents is the main one. The others are there to keep people from browsing the folder's contents which can sometimes help hackers hack your site.
See if you can find your error logs and post the last 20 or so lines of that.
Where do I find those? I tried to post a list of the files contained in my 'logs' folder so you could tell me which of those was the most likely to contain/be the error log, but I keep getting a combined 403 and 404 error when I try to post that. Found out after some test posting here and in another thread (all test posts have been deleted again, of course) that I can still post to the forum, so it must be something about the content of that particular post I was trying to make that made posting impossible. So, if I can't give you a list, maybe you can tell me where the error log would 'normally' be hiding? Or is that different for every host?
The plot thickens: I've just uploaded a couple of simple html pages to one of my other subdomains, and those, too, come out as blank pages. So there seems to be either a general problem with my webspace, or a problem with - possibly - my ftp program or my connection or whatnot. Anyway, the problem seems not to be eFiction but something else. Will contact support about that now.
ETA: I've looked at the settings of my ftp program and remembered something from the last time I installed eFiction successfully, though the memory is vague. Wasn't there something about setting the ftp program to text mode or something? Mine seems to be in binary. I don't know where I got that information from, though, nor what it all means (my ftp knowledge being practically non-existent). And I may be remembering this from some other install - I tried something else before eFiction.
