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Database-driven websites - I need help!

newinvention
Grafter
Posts: 139
Registered: ‎30-07-2007

Database-driven websites - I need help!

Hi,
I do websites as a hobby really and so far they've been just static sites with no great technical difficulty.
Now I have been asked to do a site that will require some database elements - ie the owner will want to update the site regularly with information (on certain pages) by filling in a form on/offline (not sure).
I use Dreamweaver 8 and have only scratched the surface with it - my question is: is it easy to integrate what I think is called a database driven element into an 'ordinary' site? What software would I need other than DW8? Where would I go online to find out more?
Please note, I'm not a pro designer and don't understand a lot of the jargon!!
Any ideas/help/tips v. gratefully accepted. Thanks!  Wink
2 REPLIES 2
samuria
Grafter
Posts: 1,581
Thanks: 3
Registered: ‎13-04-2007

Re: Database-driven websites - I need help!

DW 8 is old now as 10 is out and i cant remember back to version 8 but in 10 you can connect to a database with built in wizards and even use tables or xml as databases. You dont need anything else other than DW unless he wants a strange database. You can use mysql on Plus net or down load it for free.
We cant realy answer the question until we know what data he want to store and what he wants to do with it once he has got it, has considered the Data protection act? Get some more details of the data and we may be able to help more.
Is he using plusnet or some other host as this may effect the database but most now supply mysql
decomplexity
Rising Star
Posts: 493
Thanks: 26
Registered: ‎30-07-2007

Re: Database-driven websites - I need help!

DW8 has all the necessary database connection, bindings, server behaviours etc for ASP, ASP.NET, JSP and - thank goodness - PHP. It is, alternatively,  also quite instructive (i.e. educational) and quite easy to write MySQL calls long-hand from PHP.  Note that if 'the owner' wants to add or update simple text, your don't necessarily need a database: just read and write files, then include the updated files with an SSI (server-side include) directive in the appropriate webpage.  SSI is useful in that it allows you to divorce the static part of the webpage from the dynamic part. You can of course serve up all your webpages from PHP, but reserving PHP for things which really need some 'programming' is not a bad idea.
Offline updating usually means FTP download, update and FTP upload. I would go for online updating where you can do all necessary validation there and then.
Zen from May 17. PN Business account from 2004 - 2017