New Server Coming Soon

[griever]

That sounds good!  I'm just wondering how large the images would be.  Is this going to be a 300x300 type ad, one of those long vertical ones like on Fes' site, a standard width banner, etc.?

[Virmir]

The downside (to a few people) will be that it won't really be configurable anymore. It's going to be a set size/color/shape/etc. so people will have to redesign their pages a bit.

Awww... I've got mine all styled up and colorized too.

Counter's no big loss, as they're pretty easy to write.

Looking forward to the new server!

[Xepher]

On newsbox size, I'm thinking something around the size of the current newsbox, or the keenspot one. http://www.egscomics.com/ has a good example of the keenspot newsbox in the lower left. I might do a little wider and a little shorter, but I'm open to input on what would work best for people.

[griever]

Ah, cool.  In the past, I've usually stuck the newsbox in a 200px column, so I was hoping it would be vertical more than horizontal.   When you do account confirmations, should we also have an image prepared?  Or is this something you've already (or will) take care of?

[otrstf]

well, I tried the current php newsbox, and it was so amazingly easy and painless I'm almost afraid  to see what a javascript alternative would look like.  I'll probably migrate the woc-archive splash page to the php version tommorrow.

The sites I maintain at my day job (painfully, slowly!) finally are requiring I learn scripting, so this is an opportune moment.  Dealing with these (on an over-secured intranet) makes me appreciate the well-mannered webhost you are!

As far as the donation issue, as far as I know, nobody has ever clicked the 'donate' link on the old phase I site... Maybe it needs  to have a more prominent position?

PS: I'm working over in killeen this week. Who painted all the grass in Texas green this summer?  I've never seen it _not_ brown before.

[Xepher]

Griever: I'll keep in mind what everyone comments about size preferences. As for images, the new newsbox system will probably be put in place a bit after the new server goes online. I figure I should focus on getting our capacity back up to par first. As such, there will be a large notice given for the newsbox when it gets done, and there will be an easy upload form under you account settings to upload/change your ad in the rotation. I'm debating allowing "animated" images. I probably won't allow actual animation/gifs, but may allow multiple images (3 or) so that will scroll or fade during the time your ad is displayed... let you put more information in, and (reasonable, non annoying movement) helps attract attention.

Otrstf: The new code should actually be simpler than the current PHP implementation (from the user perspective anyway) since there will no longer be any configuration. It should be a simple copy/paste snippet to put in your page, and that's it. At most, you'll have to change one bit to your username. The php stuff is, I agree, easy... if you're already using php. For some people, it's a royal pain, as their editor doesn't support PHP code, so they have to add it in manually each time they update their page. Also, it doesn't work when they try to preview pages locally in something like dreamweaver. A lot of people also have issues with file permissions, and hate having to set it executable all the time because their upload program doesn't maintain permissions. (Though that won't be neccessary on the new server.) Personally, I wish everyone would just use some more modern software. :-) As for javascript... I hate it, as it's an ugly kludge of a language to me, but there's no other option if you want to do interactive stuff in a web page. And as much as I disparage the "young punks and their hippy haircuts" (I'm only 25, FYI) I actually do like things like popup menus, fading/dynamic images, and the other so-called "web 2.0" stuff... as long as they don't get in the way of actual content and function.

[fesworks]

What's the current status of progression, if I may ask?

[Xepher]

Yes... sorry, been meaning to update. Between the time sink that is harry potter, and this deal I'm working on with my father falling apart due to water-drilling regulations, I've been a bit sidetracked.

Anyway, status is that pretty much everything is installed, working, tested. That is, all the server software such as mail, web, etc. What's left is scripting the management system to work with all the new stuff. I can reuse a lot of the old code for things that haven't changed (such as user password changes) but other things, like email/spam settings, have to be rewritten entirely. It's not really that much code, but because it's code that's going to be messing with low level, very important things like accounts and passwords, I tend to be uber-cautious. Last thing I need is some bad form submission blanking the password table or something. :-)

Beyond that, there's a couple of optional things I may or may not do before bringing the new system online. One of those is a stand-in/temporary newsbox script, since the old one isn't going to be used much longer, and I'd have to rewrite most of it to work with the new system anyway. Another is a basic facelift for the site appearance. Perhaps not a complete one yet, but enough that I know what basic shape it's going to take, so when I rewrite the management system it fits the new layout and I don't have to redo it later. Lastly, I'm not sure how much to script the account migration. For example, transfering email folders to the new system... only about 20 people actually WANT their email transfered, and it's a rather complicated process with a lot of variables. I may script it, or I may just do that part by hand.

Now, as for a timeframe... I'm gonna be working on it a fair amount tomorrow and this weekend, and we'll see how much I get done. I'm going out of state for a week from the 15th of august through the 22nd or so. If I manage to get this done this weekend, and maybe ship it off by monday or tuesday, I think two weeks should be enough time for a transition before I leave. I don't want to push it much closer than that, because a new system is bound to have small problems that won't be found right away. If I don't finish it mostly by this weekend, I may push it until I return. I'd plan to have it all ready to go when I leave, and would ship it as soon as I got back. That would put the new system online that last week of august. I'd really love to let it be the former option here, (I want this thing done!) but I can't promise that.

[fesworks]

Sounds goodly

[Xepher]

Well, it's turning out I'm not nearly as speedy at coding/html/etc as I thought I was. I spend 3 hours just trying to get a handle on how CSS position attributes function in the real world. I still can't figure out how to make a footer with left and right "columns" without resorting to tables. Anyway, point is that I'm not getting the server off by tomorrow or anything, so we're now aiming for the last week of august.

[griever]

I end up using a container div and setting the middle div (I'm assuming this is 3 column?) to have margin: auto for the left and right areas. 

EDIT: I should add...there's probably an easier/better way, but I do miss table layouts sometimes.  Just easier with tables.

[otrstf]

I've found a site that has css examples for just about every box type - I'll post it when I get to work - in about an hour...

[otrstf]

Try these!:

http://www.thenoodleincident.com/tutorials/box_lesson/boxes.html

sample css for boxes

[Xepher]

Thanks... that's a useful reference, though sadly it doesn't list the particular problem I was working at. I was simply trying two boxes inside a footer box. I wanted the same thing you see on http://xepher.net for the footer, but with divs instead of a table. The problem is that the "float" boxes that are so common for that don't expand the footer itself down the page, so any background you have just makes a thin band, and then the text flows well past it. I think I got it worked out though, apparently the "position" attributes work differently depending on the absoute/relative setting of the PARENT as well as themselves. Weird.

[Databits]

Things in css are all inherited from their parent element, that's how it's always been. Though it's not supported correctly in most cases.

Technically, if you set a font for your <body> it should transcend to all the contained elements, but for some reason this doesn't always work as intended. The issue is, well... Internet Explorer. Which rarely handles things "to standards" and always ends up doing things the way they think it should be done. But if you write something for IE and don't test it in other browsers, then it's technically broken since you've got Internet Explorer (7 and 6 is still widely in use), Firefox (1.5 and 2.x), Safari (Mac and now Windows too), and Opera. Opera is especially important since most cell phones and things like the Wii use an Opera web engine. So having it display correctly on that is a must if you want people to be able to usably access your site from mobile devices and such.