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<br>Websites at Work develop quality business websites with e-commerce, newsletters, databases, private areas, interactivity, advanced features. Content management systems for fully owner updatable websites.
website, web, site, content management, database, ecommerce, e-commerce, design, development, updatable, business, help, support, designer, developer, design, builder, developer, cost, price, pricing, portal, forum, newsletter, advanced, updatable
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<a href = "june03update.html" title="June 2003 update">June 2003 update</a><br>
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<a href = "searchengine1.html" title="Search Engine Optimisation part 1">Search Engine Optimisation part 1</a><br>
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<a href = "clickandflick.html" title="Click and Flick">Click and Flick</a><br>
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<a href = "oesetup.html" title="Setup Outlook Express Mail">Setup Outlook Express Mail</a><br>
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<br><P><FONT face=Verdana><STRONG>What is an updatable website?</STRONG> Updatable websites allow you to control the content of your website through an easy to use web page. The layout and overall appearance of your website at all times remain to the professional standard built by our website designers.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Verdana><STRONG>How does an updatable or database driven website work?</STRONG> Updatable websites store the content of your website in a database. You modify the database through a simple web page interface known as the administration site or “back end”. The server then integrates the content from the database with your website design and layout to display an attractive and up to date website to your customers. Updatable websites are often called “database driven” websites. Websites at Work uses the ColdFusion programming language to build updatable sites, but other languages such as PHP, ASP and Perl can be used. Websites at Work uses SQL Server databases, but again, almost any database can be used.<BR><BR><STRONG>What can you update?</STRONG> Database driven websites can be set up for literally everything to be owner updatable. In practice this is neither convenient nor useful to most website owners. At Websites at Work, the amount of control depends on the level of service you desire. Our Business Solution package, which suits most businesses, gives control over the structure of the website (adding and deleting sections), section names, the body text, but not the images that define the website layout. Businesses with more demanding needs can opt for our Advanced Solution package, this allows the owner to easily control all content including navigation images. Advanced Solution owners have sufficient control to easily add whole new mini-sites such as the special events sections which are routinely added and deleted from the sail-world.com sailing information portal.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Verdana><STRONG>Can I add and delete images and graphics?</STRONG> Yes, jpeg and GIF images are fully supported. Depending on the way the site is set up, you may be able to control some of the images that form the website layout – this is usually only a feature needed for advanced websites. Any other files, such as Word documents, spreadsheets and multimedia can be uploaded. The trick is to integrate such items seamlessly into your website so they give maximum usability to your visitors. This usually requires some custom work, but the huge flexibility of a database driven website can enable unique solutions to differentiate your website from the competition.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Verdana><STRONG>Can I add hyperlinks?</STRONG> Yes, its as easy as highlighting the text you want to link from and clicking on the hyperlink icon.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Verdana><STRONG>Can I format the text?</STRONG> Bold, italic, tables, underlining, font size, centred text, bullet lists, text colour, and many more useful formatting steps can be easily performed with a single click and absolutely no html or internet knowledge.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Verdana><STRONG>Can I spell check the content before I update it?</STRONG> Yes. Just click on the spell check icon.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Verdana><STRONG>Do I need to understand how an updatable website works to use it?</STRONG> No, most users do not understand how the internet works either, but they can find, view and use websites very easily.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Verdana><STRONG>What do the terms “front end” and “back end” mean?</STRONG> These are convenient slang terms our developers tend to use. Front end is used to refer to the website pages that the public can view. “Back end” refers to the administration section where authorized users can update their website. With Websites at Work sites the back end also gives access to site visitor statistics and other private information.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Verdana><STRONG>What happens when I click “update”?</STRONG> The changes you have entered are sent to the database by the administration system. These changes will then be seen by all visitors to your website from then on.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Verdana><STRONG>How long does it take for my changes to take effect?</STRONG> Depending on how much information you are changing it may take a few seconds to load your changes. As soon as your administration page shows “page updated” the changes are live on the internet.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Verdana><STRONG>Can search engines find updatable websites?</STRONG> Yes, in fact some search engines rank websites by how recently they have been updated, so you will gain higher listings due to the ease with which you can keep your website up to date.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Verdana><STRONG>Can updatable websites include advanced features using Javascript or Flash?</STRONG> Yes, in fact the Websites at Work site uses javascript. These features are usually programmed into the website during development so that they work with the information you create for your website. So for example, we can create a javascript that brings up a message when visitors put their mouse pointer over a certain area. This message can be controlled through the administration page. This feature is commonly used to aid navigation through your site.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Verdana><STRONG>Can different pages have different layouts?</STRONG> Yes, but building in different layouts can offset the savings resulting from the database driven approach. In our experience it is rare for sites to need more than two or three distinct layouts. This is because the formatting control of the updatable content is so powerful.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Verdana><STRONG>Do updatable websites work with all browsers?</STRONG> Yes, when someone looks at a page of your website, the server creates an html page based on the content in the database. So to the browser the website looks exactly like a static site.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Verdana><STRONG>Do updatable websites work on the Mac?</STRONG> Yes, they can be viewed by all operating systems, including linux.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Verdana><STRONG>What software do I need?</STRONG> Only a Web browser, Internet Explorer version 4 or higher is preferred but not essential. No other special programs, nothing to install on your computer. All the clever stuff is done on our servers which you link to through a web page.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Verdana><STRONG>Can I add new pages to my updatable website?</STRONG> Unless you have opted for the Introductory Solution, the number of pages you can create is unlimited. Adding new pages is as simple as clicking on “add page” on the page you want the new page to link from.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Verdana><STRONG>How are the pages of an updatable website structured?</STRONG> An updatable website can be built with any structure you desire. We almost always set sites up with a hierarchy of Home-sections-subsections-subsubsections. That is, the home page links to several sections of your website such as product information, news, contact us, etc. Each of these sections then contains links to subsections which in turn can link to subsubsections. So for example the product information section may link to the subsection for widgets which may then link to a subsubsection on the best way to choose the right size widget. Usually this structure provides ample depth and has the benefit of ensuring clear navigation. Information in the website should be no more than three clicks from the home page, and this structure ensures this is always true.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Verdana><STRONG>Can I add new sections to my updatable website?</STRONG> Yes, but only if you own the Advanced Solution. Otherwise you are limited to the original sections which we build for you. You can add and delete as many subsections and subsubsections as you need.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Verdana><STRONG>Can I get statistics on visitors to my website?</STRONG> Yes. In fact, because the dynamic website creates a unique “session identification” for each visitor to your site you will gain information on the actual number of visitors, in addition to the number of “hits” or pages viewed. The information available includes the “referrer” which is the site the visitor came from, the visitor’s IP address and the duration of the visit. This is a powerful tool for optimizing the content and promotion of your website.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Verdana><STRONG>Why can I only use Internet Explorer to access the administration system?</STRONG> Actually, you can use any web browser that supports frames, which is all but the oldest. These will allow you to perform all functions and enter plain text or html. But you only get the neat text editor if you use Internet Explorer version 4 or higher. This feature relies on a function called ActiveEdit that for the moment only Internet Explorer supports. Since IE can be downloaded free, this should be no hardship. For those like myself who prefer a different browser, you only need to use IE for updating your website content.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Verdana><STRONG>Can someone else change my website?</STRONG> Yes, you can easily grant access to your staff or trusted colleagues. The administration system allows you to easily add and remove users. You can grant users different levels of access. So for example you may authorize a staff member to add and change content, but not to add or delete whole pages or sections.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Verdana>Of course you need to ensure that you and those you grant access carefully protect your usernames and passwords. In most cases the most vulnerable element of your security is practices such as choosing obvious passwords rather than technical “hacking”. We recommend that you do not store passwords on your computer, which is usually less secure than our well maintained web servers. Even if all precautions are followed, no system is invulnerable. In the unlikely event that your website is compromised, we can rapidly restore it from our daily backup. Further details of our security procedures will be supplied to our customers on request, but for, well, security reasons, we have not posted them on our website.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Verdana><STRONG>What does it cost?</STRONG> As the developer doesn’t need to organise and input the content, updatable websites are often lower in cost than comparable static websites. See the solutions and pricing section of this website for a no-nonsense list of our fees. Content input is a significant element of the cost of static sites. More importantly, many businesses who do not have the luxury of a trained in house webmaster have to pay high hourly rates for their website developer to post content. While actually posting your content to your website is fairly quick for a competent developer, liaising with you, checking the details, manipulating images, and so on rapidly eats expensive hours (we charge $Aus 60 per hour but many charge between $US100 and $US150 per hour).</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Verdana><STRONG>Do updatable sites work with e-commerce?</STRONG> Yes, in fact they enable your shop to be more closely integrated with the rest of your website.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Verdana><STRONG>Do I need an ftp account and password?</STRONG> No, all you need is the url (web address) of your site’s administration centre and the username and password that Websites at Work will set up for you.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Verdana><STRONG>What sort of databases can be used?</STRONG> Websites at Work usually work with Microsoft SQL Server databases, but most major relational databases, including Access, Oracle and FoxPro can provide the basis for an updatable website.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Verdana><STRONG>Can I download information from the database?</STRONG> Yes, for example an Excel spreadsheet of customer information gathered through your e-commerce shop can be easily downloaded for convenient further analysis. These features are set up by the developer during construction of your website or can be added later at a very reasonable cost.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Verdana><STRONG>Can I upload information to my website in bulk?</STRONG> Yes, but only if you have an Advanced Solution website. This will enable you, for example, to upload a spreadsheet or database with a large number of new products to your e-commerce section.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Verdana><STRONG>Can an updatable website be linked to other company databases?</STRONG> Yes, but we recommend that you never connect databases containing commercially sensitive or confidential information to your website.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Verdana><STRONG>What determines the download speed of an updatable website?</STRONG> The server processes requests to view your website in a tiny fraction of a second, so the download speed of your website is determined by the amount of data in each page. In almost all cases this means that the download speed is determined by the number and size of images on a page. Designing the layout involves a compromise between the appearance and graphical content and the download speed. Our website builders will work with you to design an attractive and useable front end that matches your needs and those of your customers. You can then manage the content without worrying about these issues further.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Verdana><STRONG>Other questions?</STRONG> We are happy to answer your questions on updatable websites. Just email </FONT><A href="mailto:questions@websitesatwork.com.au"><FONT face=Verdana>questions@websitesatwork.com.au</FONT></A><FONT face=Verdana> and we will promptly reply. We will also probably add the answer to this FAQ.</FONT></P>
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