hosts, shopping and servers

Hi  all -

I'm after advice and education, rather than a problem -

So i'm not entirely sure that this is appropriate here (also, whether i'm
inviting "Do your own homework"-type comments )
(And i'm hoping no-one else from TT280 is watching....hi there if you are
:-)   )

Also, i want to cross-post to basics, but i'm not sure that that is allowed
under list-rules.
Is it?

So what follows is
"homework,  help please :-)"


My spec is a Website proposal for  a (UK) manufacturer which is losing its
high-street customer base.
I have no idea what their sales volume is; but they are planning to spend a
fair bit on an "experimental" site, so it is not a cheap outfit (and they
sell high-quality goods).

They want a product catalogue and prices, and also an archive for a large
amount of (digital!) photos and historical information, to be made
freely-available for students.

My rough for the Server-side  and e-commerce issues includes the following;
any comments, correction, expansions, and suggestions or links would be much
appreciated.

I'm *not* trying to cheat, i just need some expert to pass comment on what i
have gleaned from web-searches, and point out any glaring omissions;
I'm unfamiliar with the whole web-development environment beyond static
pages /client-side scripting; and i know nothing about commerce.
But i will :-)

so - my notes to date:

For server hosts, 3 options:

1/   Shared server:  <help, I've lost the link and proper name/details for
this>

Pros:   Cheapest; sharing a server with 100's of other customers.

Cons:   Fighting for processing power; if the others are popular, you lose.



2/   Less-Shared server: :

Pros:   Maybe only 10-20 customers per server, so better response

Cons:   More expensive: h/w and licence fees split between less people.



1/   Dedicated server:

Pros:   Best response

Cons:   Most expensive:



(Recommendation, dedicated server)



Note that not only the h/w costs, but licensing costs are also affected
depending on the number of sites per server:

For mySQL, a licence is required per server,  however many client sites that
server serves.



<<I don't know about Access and the others - does anyone? >>

<< anything else?>>



For database and scripts, 2 options (of many) have been considered:

1/   MySQL and PHP:

Pros:

Cons:   .



2/   Access and ASP:

Pros:   .

Cons: Requires an MS server for best results, due to some incompatibility
problems    .



(Recommendation, Access and ASP - but only due to developer experience of
the M$ world)



For the catalogue and shopping page, 2 options:

1/ Ready-written "shopping-trolley" scripts (that may or may not be
customisable);



Pros:   Quick, easy and available "off the shelf".

Includes a standardised set of e-commerce features

Cons:   any updates and extensions mean more expense and work in the
long-run.

It may become obsolete and need complete replacement when it cannot be
updated.

Most such scripts are written in Perl / CGI, which have run into performance
problems in sites with heavy traffic.







2/ New scripts, written by us, to directly address your requirements.

Pros:   Easily extendible by us, as we will "know" the software.

Designed and tailored exactly to your requirements.

"Room to grow"

Cons:   More expensive, and longer to develop.



 (Recommendation, New scripts)



For online payment,  2 options (of many) have been considered:

1/   Accept credit-card payments, and install Security software - SSL
(Secure Socket Layer)  - as part of the app

Pros: you get all the money.

Cons: Additional complications and expense of security s/w.



2/   Use WorldPay, who relieve you of the security issues, they do all that
and collect the dosh

Pros: Less problems and security complications on your server/site  -"leave
it to the experts"

Cons: They take a cut of your profits for this service!



  (Recommendation, no idea)



For the Photo-archive. 2 options:

1/ Store all descriptions and text in the DB, but only a path/filename  for
images (that are stored in a flat file.)

2/ Store everything, images included, in the database.





 (Recommendation,  I have no idea which would be best, or why J


And i know there is another major heading/consideration,  which i had just
now but it slipped out my mind when i was not looking.....




Apologies if this is not the right place for this,. but any input would be
much appreciated :-)

hilma
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