“Content is king.” Cliché, yes; but it has never been more true. Once you've mastered HTML and learned a
few neat tricks in JavaScript and Dynamic HTML, you can probably design a pretty impressive-looking
Website. But your next task must be to fill that fancy page layout with some real information. Any site that
successfully attracts repeat visitors has to have fresh and constantly updated content. In the world of
traditional site building, that means HTML files—and lots of 'em.
The problem is that, more often than not, the people who provide the content for a site are not the same
people who handle its design. Frequently, the content provider doesn't even know HTML. How, then, is the
content to get from the provider onto the Website? Not every company can afford to staff a full-time
Webmaster, and most Webmasters have better things to do than copying Word files into HTML templates
anyway.
Maintenance of a content-driven site can be a real pain, too. Many sites (perhaps yours?) feel locked into a
dry, outdated design because rewriting those hundreds of HTML files to reflect a new look would take
forever. Server-side includes (SSIs) can help alleviate the burden a little, but you still end up with hundreds
of files that need to be maintained should you wish to make a fundamental change to your site.
The solution to these headaches is database-driven site design. By achieving complete separation
between your site's design and the content you want to present, you can work with each without disturbing
the other. Instead of writing an HTML file for every page of your site, you only need to write a page for
each kind of information you want to be able to present. Instead of endlessly pasting new content into your
tired page layouts, create a simple content management system that allows the writers to post new
content themselves without a lick of HTML!
In this book, I'll provide you with a hands-on look at what's involved in building a database-driven Website.
We'll use two tools for this, both of which may be new to you: the PHP scripting language and the MySQL
relational database management system. If your Web host provides PHP and MySQL support, you're in
great shape. If not, we'll be looking at the setup procedures under Linux, Windows, and Mac OS X, so
don't sweat it.
few neat tricks in JavaScript and Dynamic HTML, you can probably design a pretty impressive-looking
Website. But your next task must be to fill that fancy page layout with some real information. Any site that
successfully attracts repeat visitors has to have fresh and constantly updated content. In the world of
traditional site building, that means HTML files—and lots of 'em.
The problem is that, more often than not, the people who provide the content for a site are not the same
people who handle its design. Frequently, the content provider doesn't even know HTML. How, then, is the
content to get from the provider onto the Website? Not every company can afford to staff a full-time
Webmaster, and most Webmasters have better things to do than copying Word files into HTML templates
anyway.
Maintenance of a content-driven site can be a real pain, too. Many sites (perhaps yours?) feel locked into a
dry, outdated design because rewriting those hundreds of HTML files to reflect a new look would take
forever. Server-side includes (SSIs) can help alleviate the burden a little, but you still end up with hundreds
of files that need to be maintained should you wish to make a fundamental change to your site.
The solution to these headaches is database-driven site design. By achieving complete separation
between your site's design and the content you want to present, you can work with each without disturbing
the other. Instead of writing an HTML file for every page of your site, you only need to write a page for
each kind of information you want to be able to present. Instead of endlessly pasting new content into your
tired page layouts, create a simple content management system that allows the writers to post new
content themselves without a lick of HTML!
In this book, I'll provide you with a hands-on look at what's involved in building a database-driven Website.
We'll use two tools for this, both of which may be new to you: the PHP scripting language and the MySQL
relational database management system. If your Web host provides PHP and MySQL support, you're in
great shape. If not, we'll be looking at the setup procedures under Linux, Windows, and Mac OS X, so
don't sweat it.
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