Topic: updating solutions for client (Page 1 of 1)

I have my first paying client (yay!) and am busily working on her site, and I've come to a realization. She is from Brazil, I'm in Alabama. She'll be back in Brazil in two weeks (the site should easily be done by then, barring a city wide electrical failure for the next two weeks). She may want to add more to the site in the future, and that may be very difficult for us to work out. Sure, she can mail me a check or PayPal me some money for updates, but allowing her to handle her own updating seems like a good option, too. I know that some people set up templates where clients can log on and make their own updates, thus freeing the site designer from contractual updates and freeing the client from paying extra to add a paragraph of text or another two pictures. I also know there is some software out there you can purchase if you aren't a programmer that sets this up for you.

So my question to the group is, can anyone recommend one of these software packages. Basically, we're talking something that will let her add another picture or two to her art gallery. Cheap is nice, free is better.

Odd Cat: With a bit of quick server-side coding you can set things up so things are updatable without the client having to get into code and potentially messing things up. You'd have to be more specific about what you wanted updating but it should be fairly straightforward

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Emps

FAQs: Emperor

It's a web site for an artist, and she'd most likely be updating the gallery and the ordering page, as more art is added to the site. So basically text and images.

As for server side scripting, I'm afraid my knowledge of that is pretty slim. I'm willing to attempt any tutorials that you can recommend, however.

[This message has been edited by Odd Cat (edited 07-02-2002).]

what your looking for is called a "content management system". Which pretty much has to do with linking your site to a database (free: mysql) and a server side script (free: php) I know that sitepoint has an excellent tutorial on setting up a database driven website using my sql and php, but it'll take you more time and work. Than you have something called editize that replaces your text area tags into a java applet and creates a gui, user friendly/familiar interface for your clients. But you have to already have a database driven cms set up. The best solution that I've found is a website called icanupdate.com . This a webbased editing solution that allows your clients to edit their documents and add/delete and move image through a user friendly interface, and everything is handled behind the scenes through ftp. Its pretty slick. and cheap to. Its 30 bucks a month BUT you get to have 30 accounts with it. Which means your clients get a user name and password (considered one account) and can edit the pages and sections you select. You figure, you can charge the client an extra $5 - $10 a month additional with the hosting fees and after 6 - 3 clients on its paid for....



[This message has been edited by jive (edited 07-03-2002).]

[This message has been edited by jive (edited 07-03-2002).]