The Do’s and Don’ts of File Naming For The Web

Ready to upload your files, documents and images to your HOATown Website? Follow this quick list of do’s and don’ts to eliminate any issues that may arise from improper file naming.

Use the following in your file names:
– Letters (ABCabc…)
– Numbers (0123456789)
– Underscores (_) can be used to represent a space
– File name length no more than 32 characters
– Document File Extension (i.e. doc, docx, pdf, xls, xlsx, ppt, etc.)

Avoid the following in file names:
– Special characters ( ~ ! @ # $ % & etc.)
– Spaces (there have been problems related to this, though they are technically supported)
– Long File Names (Limit to 32 characters or less)

Examples of Good File names
– STpaper1.doc (short file name, includes file extension, no spaces or special characters, properly named)
– peer_review_presentation.ppt (properly named, less than 32 characters, includes file extension, no spaces or unsupported characters)

Examples of Bad File names
– HOA Rules #1 (no file extension, includes unsupported special character and spaces)
– my hoa proposal for Mike’s house on elm street.doc (filename is more than 32 characters, spaces and unsupported special characters are included)