Re: client updating pages daily

Chris Giminez <chris(at)cyber-scriber.com> wrote:
>I have a project where the client needs to update his own pages daily for
>some, weekly for others. What is the most efficient way to accomplish this?
>
>The site is for real estate where he would update listings. A database
>format could probably apply.

Well I *know* I'm opening myself up to flames from certain quarters here (hi
Robin!) but if your client is working in an NT environment I would recommend
a combination of SQL Server (or even Access if you don't need a high-volume
solution) and Visual InterDev, all from Microsoft.

SQL Server would run as the back-end database which would contain the
client's data. Your HTML pages ("templates" might be a better word) can be
written in whatever editor you like. The data is fed into the HTML
"template" to produce the page that is then sent to the browser. To update
the page, you simply change what's in the database.

Where InterDev comes in (and this is the clever part) is to provide
server-side script objects (using ActiveX) which allows the browser to
request database records via standard HTML forms. It's like CGI, without
using CGI! You can also update the SQL database from a HTML form, so you
could make your client a HTML front-end to let him maintain his data via a
user-friendly HTML form (he doesn't need to learn SQL!)

Note, this solution is TOTALLY browser independent. All the scripting and
ActiveX is done on the server. All that is sent to the client is a
common-or-garden HTML page, except it has content dynamically created when
the browser requests it.

InterDev is pretty easy to use. It's all typical Microsoft
drag-and-drop-no-need-for-programmers-any-more stuff. You don't need to know
SQL and you don't even need to know much HTML really (it includes Front
Page, if you can bear to use it). I learned the fundamentals in a few hours
and created my first dynamic site (a historical database which served HTML
pages about the events of any date range the user requested) in one
afternoon.

Go on , somebody now tell me how you can do the same thing just as easily
but for free if you get Linux...

Hmmm... on re-reading the above, I don't feel that I've explained it very
well. Any questions?



David Meadows
[ Technical Writer | Information Developer ]
DNRC Minister for Littorasy
david(at)goldenheroes.softnet.co.uk
"Imagination is like the sun. The sun has a light which is not
 tangible; but which, nevertheless, may set a house on fire."
        -- Paracelsus

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