Suz wrote:
> Thanks Jack for your thoughtful input about my DB question:
Well, at least as thoughtful as I can be at 3 a.m. ;) I had one of those
info overload days when my head was swimming with stuff and there wasn't
much point in trying to sleep.
> 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.
Good deal, that will make writing the code for the templates easier, too.
You'll be able to plug the variable in something like this:
<td>#item#.jpeg<br>#item#.ra</td>
or something similar, depending on the db scripting tool you use. However,
in the planning of your database/template scenario you may find times when
using the CD item number may be a hindrance to progress. For that reason you
may want to consider setting up each of the table in your RDBMS using
primary keys that are just numbers. That would allow you to use fred.jpg and
mable.jpg for item # 1105, for example. It would give you more flexibility
to not have the "real" item ID (sh-1105) be so important.
> 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.
Sounds OK. I have not used the Filemaker/Homepage combination, though.
Actually, I don't know why you'd need Homepage, unless Filemaker uses part
of it for generating the necessary templates. One thing to consider, and
this is just a guess...it sounds like Filemaker requires some kind of server
addon of its own to read the templates it produces, so it can shimmy data
back and forth from the db. You may be locking yourself into some
proprietary solution...Mac only, dependant on Claris and the progress they
make on their product. Check it out. Let me know. I'm curious.
I usually chose ColdFusion for NT db stuff because I have faith in Allaire's
future development scheme. On UNIX I use different tools for different
reasons, but for small db demands I usually use some sort of free/cheapware
that does the job...I am starting to think more into the future when
selecting my UNIX solutions, though.
> 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.
No demo? No email response? No sale. If your ISP is already using a solution
that they endorse, you will probably be able to get assistance from them, to
your benefit.
> 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!
Waiting til the weekend? Hmm, hope it's a good day for a bike ride today!
Sun's finally peeked through here in the foggy part of San Francisco.
Jack
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