[thelist] ASP/open source/static/dynamic sites pro's and con's

[aardvark]

> From: "Tony Crockford" <tonyc at boldfish.co.uk>
[...]
> The project requirement is to create a web site that will:
> 
> allow 6 different levels of presentation material, dependent on user
> selection (learning depth, basically, from pre-school to researchers)
> 
> over nine different themes (pathways or trails)
> 
> to end up accessing over 6,000 digitised images / video / sound and 3d
> models etc.
> 
> They are suggesting using ASP to deliver pages based on user
> selection, dynamically.

sounds like they've already given you some direction... if they 
suggested that over PHP, or just instead of anything else, find out 
if it's because they *know* that's what they want, or that's all they 
know...

> I can't see why they need to, since the information will not be
> changing once created in the database, just growing as they add to it.

well, that may be true today, but if you build a system well, that 
little fact just might change...

that and what happens when they want a quick site-wide change?  
open 6*9*6000 pages and do a massive search and replace?  what 
if they want a layout tweak?  or they want to edit a few entries 
because they found spelling errors?  plan for the most extreme 
case and scale back from there...

> I like to keep things simple.

for who?  you?  if so, then  you're already starting off on the wrong 
foot... build the solution your client needs, not the one that you 
think they need, or the one you like best...

ultimately, if the client feels they got a system that's too limiting, 
you won't get much more business out of them... if you build a 
system that's robust enough, you can get more business out of 
them -- ideally for new stuff instead of maintaining the system or 
data... and that's good work to get...

> I already have a system based on GDIdb Pro (http://www.gdidb.com) that
> will work with a database (e.g Access) and build a static site that
> can be browsed heirarchically and searched with a site search engine.

don't take this response the wrong way, please, but so?

sounds like they don't want that... have they seen it?  do they like 
it?  is it a good match for their business needs?

[...]
> I'm looking for sensible reasons why they should avoid ASP and go with
> my solution.

i'm guessing there aren't any... you don't have any... if they've seen 
your option and they don't have any, then there may not be any...

> So far I have:
> 
> Pro's of my system:
> 
> The database is never online and therefore never exposed to hackers.
> The static site should be faster, and can be indexed by Internet
> Search engines. Any web server can be used. Hosting is limited to html
> and any CGI scripts they might want (feedback etc)

- the database on any system should never be exposed to 
hackers... secure the db and that argument is moot...

- the static site *may* be faster, but with a good server and a good 
db, that might only be a matter of milliseconds...

- the site should be indexed by search engines no matter how it's 
built... that's up to you build the HTML correctly...

- perhaps they don't care that any web server can be used... 
maybe they have an IIS box ready to go?  maybe they want ASP 
so they can maintain it?  maybe they don't want to mess with 
HTML, just a data source?

> Con's of ASP:
> 
> Security issues (what are the main ones?)

lots, but again, whomever is hosting should be/have a good admin, 
and if they're doing it, it's their problem, you just need to guide 
them...

> Possible proprietory problems in the future (Microsoft licensing?)

possibly... but they *could* just not upgrade their system, too...

> Dynamic pages can't be indexed by Internet search engines.

not entirely true... more and more SEs are indexing dynamic 
pages... and depending on how you build the site, you can mask 
dynamic URLs....

> So the choice is:
> 
> an offline system that produces a static web site according to data
> entered and metadata describing it (can be automated to ftp only
> changes to server)
> 
> Or an online ASP system building pages on the fly.

or, in the clients' eyes, the choice is the latter... again, i dunno 
enough about the project, so it could range from they *know* that 
they need an ASP solution to someone's nephew said ASP 
rox0red...  that's key to keep in mind...

> Any ideas as to why I should go out and hire an ASP guy to do this -
> is there a big advantage that I can't see yet?

you give the client what they want, and still get to make money?

ummm... others covered above...