Thanks Jack for your thoughtful input about my DB question:
Fortunately, for once, I planned ahead when I first set up the site a
couple of years ago, and every element is named according to the CD's item
number, i.e.: sh-1105.html, sh-1105.jpeg, sh-1105.ra, etc. I can't believe
I actually did something right for a change! It'll be really easy to build
a database -- I could almost do it without looking at the old HTML pages
except, of course, I'll have to copy off the text, artists' names, and
titles.
I just went out last night and bought Filemaker IV and Claris Homepage,
which supposedly will work together to do most everything you've described.
I've talked to our ISP, and he's already running Filemaker III to generate
his own stats, plus he's running MacAuthorize to verify credit cards on his
monthly service and his software sales (he's written a bunch of WebStar
enhancements). His recommendation is that we set our client up on a
dedicated server running Filemaker IV, their own modem, and MacAuthorize.
Since a colocated server would cost only a little more than the client's
current monthly fees, and because our ISP already knows how to do all this
stuff and I can easily get him on the phone for help, this is the direction
I'm leaning towards.
It looks like I could do it fairly easy with MerchantPlanet since they
don't require the catalog pages to reside on their server, but I'm more
inclined to do it on my own as a learning experience that should result in
some marketable skills. Also, I have no idea how much backoffice data the
client would have access to with MerchantPlanet since their web site
doesn't show a demo and, of course, they haven't answered my e-mail.
So, I'm going to rip into my new software this weekend and, hopefully, will
soon have a more clear idea about what's possible. Wish me luck!
Suz
Suzanne Stephens, Stephens Design; Ashland, Oregon
541-552-1192 http://www.KickassDesign.com/ ICQ #8190023
CyberCircus Grand Prize Winners http://www.thecybercircus.com/
Web Page Design for Designers Design Resources: http://www.wpdfd.com/wpdres.htm
Clip Art: http://www.freeimages.com/stephens/
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