School Website

[David]

Our school is going to run our own website soon. I am quite deeply involved with this (for some reason :rolleyes: ). I just have a few questions:

1)Domain name - we want to use www.wchs.org.uk , do we have to register this or do we just set up our server and claim the name?

2)Frames - good or bad?

3) Operating System - Is there a cheap, server OS, that we could use. I jave mentioned Linux, but only two people in the school who know how to use it. Me and the network administrator who is always 'busy'.

[Guid0]

1)Domain name - we want to use www.wchs.org.uk , do we have to register this or do we just set up our server and claim the name?
Ummmmm..must be registered and have DNS server or some one to serve it. you can also register it with say like Namezero and have it redirect to you server
so like
www.wchs.org.uk -->take to http:\\192.168.0.2\index.html


2)Frames - good or bad?
Some people shouldn't have the right to use frames, but used correctly frames can be awsome. in my experience frames have been great for information pages, and photo pages...there are other things too


3) Operating System - Is there a cheap, server OS, that we could use. I jave mentioned Linux, but only two people in the school who know how to use it. Me and the network administrator who is always 'busy'.

if your looking cheap/free linux is great plus there is thousands of books writen just on apace wed server so manuals and reference will not be a factor to the non lazy. Another thing good about the linux thing is the stability of being up for months\years\decades without a reboot.


I would assume if your directing this thing you and your admin are the only people that need to know linux everyone else should be able to do thier business through FTP. If you worried about the people after you, well it would be a great experience for them to learn linux. Just gives them incentive.

i have been running turbo linux, redhat, and mandrake for about 3 years and i am willing to bet between the 3 of my linux machines they have a combined reboot of maybe 6 due to problems

Have Fun......!!!

[Yakbak]

I think the majority of amateur people don't make frames look good on their website, so use tables instead.

About the server, why not use Windows 2000, and install the latest Apache on it. People will be familiar with the environment, and Apache doesn't have most of the serious security issues with Microsoft's IIS.

[David]

- We have ditched frames in favour of a standard imagemap.
- I have seen somewhere that it costs x to register a domain, but you have to host it yourself
-OS - Will try and push the admin towards linux, but also the IT dept (the people who provide the network connection to the net) might not approve of linux - but I'll try

Thanks everyone :D

[rogerdugans]

Linux will probably be best, and you know your way around it; others will just have to learn to participate! (Just make sure they don't get root accounts! <LOL>

An option if the school doesn't go for it is checking Microsoft's policies and programs for schools: I know they do some dicounting, etc, but don't know details.

Older versions of MS oses can be had secondhand, but that is questionable legality at best: more ammunition in Linux's favor!

[David]

SuSE have offered us any version but 7.3 free of charge, or 7.3 1/2 price. Looks good...

[Guid0]

I have heard that 7.3 was not the version a person wants.........why or whatever i do not know.........I am a VP of a local Linux users group and that was brought up @ a meeting no more questiosn were asked cause the one person who used/uses Suse no longer attends

[David]

I use SuSE 7.3 - I see nothing wrong with it.

We have registered www.wchs.org.uk - we have it for 2 years but there is nothing there yet.

[rogerdugans]

Well, get going! I figured you to have something up immediately <LOL> even if its just a page saying that your website is Coming Soon!:D

[David]

Originally posted by rogerdugans
Well, get going! I figured you to have something up immediately <LOL> even if its just a page saying that your website is Coming Soon!:D
We will have something up when we get the server (has to be approved by the headmaster and also by IT dept who are going to complain like crazy :D)

[Matt1001]

Personally I like tables much better because they are more organized.

Try register.com. You can register your domain there.

[Guid0]

Good call on the tables. they do make for great organization and you can chop your pics up and that makes for faster downloads..

[rugby]

Keep in mind Apache is Apache, so why not use the free version with a Linux distro? Mandrake is easy enough to set up from the get go.

[David]

If we were to run linux, I'd grab a copy of Slackware or Debian (or SUSE) and run it with the bare minimum. Kernel, bash, networking stuff, Apache. under 500MB hopefully.

[Anonymous Jeff]

Definately Linux for my vote. Cheap *and* stable. :) Relatively secure, as well.

[Angry]

Well at least you guys have stuck to PC's..Im useing MAcs at my school....they are okay but man..even MS looks better...But Im the genius when it comes to Mac OS X (10)...I dumbfounded my own teacher when I got Photoshop 5.5 to scan in 10...but we are all getting ahead of him..(isnt it sopposed to be the other way around?) Im also the VR guy...

http://www.bland.k12.va.us/bland/rocky/gap.html

[David]

We already have a Mac server - for the macs. But it isn't working - appletalk+faulty hub=problems :ek:

I wouldn't host on a Mac OS. I would run linux on a powerpc based machine tho :D

[rugby]

I host a couple of sites on OS X server (which runs Apache). No problems whatsoever. Granted I haven't gotten into cgi at all, but for basic hosting you don't even need OSXS, regular old OS X has APache built in.

I hear you about getting ahead of your teachers. WHen I was in the classroom teaching computers I didn't have time to keep up with the latest stuff, I was too busy doing teacher stuff. Now that I"m IT, it's my job to know the latest and greatest.

[David]

We should get the server soon, and I hope to put the bare minimum on and get it up & running in a luchtime.

Does anyone know if there are windows clients for ssh?

[Yakbak]

SecureCRT. Very good client, but costs money. They offer a trial d/l, www.vandyke.com

Putty is another alternative, and it's free: http://www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~sgtatham/putty/

[Guid0]

I'm using SSH Secure Shell avaialible from SSH (http://www.ssh.com) Runs Very nice. and is a small prog..........allows you to do drap and drop and regular console stuff too. nice and fast.........

[matti2]

The only issue I will way in on is the tables. Go with the tables. They make it much more organized than frames. Almost all websites use tables. They make it more organized and professional.

[Guid0]

What if you use table within frames...........oh nelly............this is how new web pages get started...........If your creative and you just sit down and do it you will your style. every web developer/desinger had their own style just like every programmer does.........you will most likely start over several of time and eventualy you find your niche........try them all frames, tables, heck why not try a pure flash page.........how about DHTML..........shoot what do you got to loose except some hair....(running a little short myself)

[matti2]

While you're at it why not some random images of students at your school. Our page has that and they are kind of funny.

[David]

Originally posted by matti2
While you're at it why not some random images of students at your school. Our page has that and they are kind of funny.

We are going to have a 'hall of fame' - ie mugshots of geeks :D

[David]

Originally posted by Guid0
What if you use table within frames...........oh nelly............this is how new web pages get started...........If your creative and you just sit down and do it you will your style. every web developer/desinger had their own style just like every programmer does.........you will most likely start over several of time and eventualy you find your niche........try them all frames, tables, heck why not try a pure flash page.........how about DHTML..........shoot what do you got to loose except some hair....(running a little short myself)

I'm not the only web designer. I am responsible for the first page, and also for overseeing the whole thing, but my style will HAVE to suit everyone. It isn't just me working on it.

PF

PS thanks for the SSH recomendations, I'll see if I can use one of them :D

[Guid0]

that'll make it even better several styles coming together to make one cool web.......if it aint fun why do it

[David]

Oh no!

Looks like the IT dept are going to get annoyed - they probably wont let us have a routable IP address to allow access from outwith the firewall :eek:

Looks, like I'll have to do something....

[bjork]

if your IT dept

1. doesn't like linux

and

2. has a problem with using an internal IP NATted thru the router for a webpage

there are serious problems with your IT staff.

and apache on windows? no. the very way windows deals with multiple requests alone is just... bad.

http://ist.uwaterloo.ca/~dwhitesi/docs/apache-vs-iis.html

see "cons" under IIS.