Managing multiple sites in different iWeb versions - PLEASE HELP!

Question

apnewbie/cyclosaurus/roddy/old toad (and any others more knowledgeable than i):
i've run into a bit of a pickle. i am hoping someone can help straighten me out. i am about to jump out of a window. here's the rundown:
(for starters, i have a .mac account and am publishing to .mac.) i created a site in iWeb 1.1.2 on my work computer (mac book pro). worked great, really lovely. thought to myself, "hey, i'd like to create another site from home, but i don't have iWeb at home (powerbook G4) - i should buy iLife 08 so i can build these things from home and not have personal files on my work computer."
so: i had a site that i created within 1.1.2 with files written to iDisk. i purchased iWeb 08 and would like to have another site, but this one is being created in 2.0. i also am using a personal domain name this time around bought with google apps and hosted by godaddy. i published the new work in progress for a test run and...you guessed it...my original 1.1.2 site was rewritten by the 2.0 site. and the 2.0 site comes up as the standard google search page for domains that aren't up and running. whooopsie.
sorry for the lengthy intro, but that's the background. i guess my specific questions are:
1) i want to be able to maintain multiple sites from iWeb 2.0...can i open my 1.1.2 domain file in 2.0 and successfully bring that site into 2.0?
2) what is the most efficient and easiest way to get both of these sites running in 2.0? right now i have two domain files (created on two different computers).
3) for domain management, is it best to move from the iWeb folder in my home library to different folders (one for each site, with separate domain files, and my 2.0 domain file is NOT called domain, it's the name of the site) to another location? (and of course, i will back these up just in case.) and when i want to update a site, i just open that individual domain file, right? or will these sites publish over each other?
please help. i am at my wits end. i'm sure this is a relatviely simple issue, but i'm new to iWeb.
thanks, thanks, thanks for your help guys.
joojy

Answer 1

joojy,
Welcome to the forums!
First of all, your original 1.1.2 site may not, in fact, have been overwritten. It is quite possible that the site remains in it's position on the iDisk, Web/Sites/iWeb/YourSite, but because you published to the iDisk (.Mac) from 2.0, a different index.html file has been placed in the root level Web directory which is causing the 404 error. Navigate to the directory on the iDisk, using the Go menu in Finder, and look to see what is actually there. Follow this path:
Go/iDisk/My iDisk/Web/Sites/iWeb/YourSiteWillBeHereIfYourLuckIsGood
If your site is there, great; if it isn't, it's not really a problem because hopefully you still have the Domain.sites file on the MacBook Pro and you can republish it if necessary. If it is there, you can modify the index.html file on the iDisk using a text editor and get your url redirected back to where it should be.
Second, do not open your 1.1.2 Domain.sites file with 2.0 until you have a backup of this Domain file. External drives are best for this. Assuming the backup is in place, launch 2.0, choose the Domain.sites file, and click on "update". It will be updated to a Domain.sites2 file. If the site looks ok then continue on with editing/publishing.
Skipping to question (3), by all means, abandon the default location of the Domain.sites file in the Home folder's Library and get accustomed to keeping your Domain files in their own, respective folders. When you want to open one just double-click it.
You are going to encounter difficulties publishing multiple sites in 2.0.2, unless you keep all of the sites in a single Domain file. 2.0 is publishing to a different directory on the iDisk than 1.0; it publishes to /Web/Sites/, as opposed to /Web/Sites/iWeb/. Publishing a site from a separate Domain file erases previously published sites. I have been able to publish multiple sites, from multiple Domain.sites2 files, by mounting the iDisk and actually moving the Site folder back one level, into the root Web folder, and then publishing. When finished, I move it back again. If you have RSS feeds you will probably get a 'file in use' error. The alternative, (other than keeping all sites in a single Domain), is to publish the site to a folder and then manually drop the Site folder into the Web/Sites/ directory on the iDisk. Of course, some .Mac functions are lost when publishing this way.
Work through this info and post back.
-Mark