I knocked together a small site for someone in bog standard html/css on the 
assumption that it would have static content but now they want the ability 
to be able to upload news items to the homepage themselves. I'm wondering 
what is the best way of doing this without risking breaking the site. The 
site is hosted on Apache with the usual SSI, php and mysql available.

I would rather they just emailed me the stuff to be uploaded but they are 
very keen to do it themselves to streamline the process and minimise costs 
(ie. my time!).

One possibility I've considered is to give them access to a password 
protected wiki/bbs style webform into which they paste or type their 
articles, which is then converted into a html file by a php script on the 
server. The resultant text would then be injected into the homepage using 
PHP or SSI. 

However, I suspect they are not familiar with bbcode or wiki code and are 
probably thinking in terms of preparing their text in Word (which might 
suggest something like RTF -> HTML conversion might be better), or MS 
Publisher, which they are already using to make printed newsletters etc but 
which I know produces horrendous looking HTML.

Any suggestions?

If I go the webform route, are their any php scripts for this that people 
would recommend (esp ones that could convert RTF text might be nice.)

If you have prepared the site using a template, you will have defined 
editable areas - the page content.  Giving the client an application such as 
Adobe Contribute will enable them to make changes (adding/editing text, 
images, links etc) only to those areas which you have defined as editable.


"Marty Fremen" <Marty@fremen.invalid> wrote in message 
news:Xns9BCDBBB083B65C9A6@212.23.3.119...
>I knocked together a small site for someone in bog standard html/css on the
> assumption that it would have static content but now they want the ability
> to be able to upload news items to the homepage themselves. I'm wondering
> what is the best way of doing this without risking breaking the site. The
> site is hosted on Apache with the usual SSI, php and mysql available.
>
> I would rather they just emailed me the stuff to be uploaded but they are
> very keen to do it themselves to streamline the process and minimise costs
> (ie. my time!).
>
> One possibility I've considered is to give them access to a password
> protected wiki/bbs style webform into which they paste or type their
> articles, which is then converted into a html file by a php script on the
> server. The resultant text would then be injected into the homepage using
> PHP or SSI.
>
> However, I suspect they are not familiar with bbcode or wiki code and are
> probably thinking in terms of preparing their text in Word (which might
> suggest something like RTF -> HTML conversion might be better), or MS
> Publisher, which they are already using to make printed newsletters etc 
> but
> which I know produces horrendous looking HTML.
>
> Any suggestions?
>
> If I go the webform route, are their any php scripts for this that people
> would recommend (esp ones that could convert RTF text might be nice.)

On Mar 14, 10:24 pm, "Trent SC" <inva...@bogoff.invalid> wrote:
> If you have prepared the site using a template, you will have defined
> editable areas - the page content.  Giving the client an application such as
> Adobe Contribute will enable them to make changes (adding/editing text,
> images, links etc) only to those areas which you have defined as editable> "Marty Fremen" <Ma...@fremen.invalid> wrote in message
>
> news:Xns9BCDBBB083B65C9A6@212.23.3.119...
>
>
>
> >I knocked together a small site for someone in bog standard html/css on the
> > assumption that it would have static content but now they want the ability
> > to be able to upload news items to the homepage themselves. I'm wondering
> > what is the best way of doing this without risking breaking the site. The
> > site is hosted on Apache with the usual SSI, php and mysql available.
>
> > I would rather they just emailed me the stuff to be uploaded but they are
> > very keen to do it themselves to streamline the process and minimise costs
> > (ie. my time!).
>
> > One possibility I've considered is to give them access to a password
> > protected wiki/bbs style webform into which they paste or type their
> > articles, which is then converted into a html file by a php script on the
> > server. The resultant text would then be injected into the homepage using
> > PHP or SSI.
>
> > However, I suspect they are not familiar with bbcode or wiki code and are
> > probably thinking in terms of preparing their text in Word (which might
> > suggest something like RTF -> HTML conversion might be better), or MS
> > Publisher, which they are already using to make printed newsletters etc
> > but
> > which I know produces horrendous looking HTML.
>
> > Any suggestions?
>
> > If I go the webform route, are their any php scripts for this that people
> > would recommend (esp ones that could convert RTF text might be nice.)- Hide quoted text -
>
Take a look at Joomla, a CMS package that should do the job nicely,
you will just need to add your code in as a template.
--
Regards Chad. http://freewebdesignonline.org

On 13 Mar 2009 18:27:01 GMT, Marty Fremen <Marty@fremen.invalid> wrote:

>I knocked together a small site for someone in bog standard html/css on the 
>assumption that it would have static content but now they want the ability 
>to be able to upload news items to the homepage themselves. I'm wondering 
>what is the best way of doing this without risking breaking the site. The 
>site is hosted on Apache with the usual SSI, php and mysql available.
>
>I would rather they just emailed me the stuff to be uploaded but they are 
>very keen to do it themselves to streamline the process and minimise costs 
>(ie. my time!).
>
>One possibility I've considered is to give them access to a password 
>protected wiki/bbs style webform into which they paste or type their 
>articles, which is then converted into a html file by a php script on the 
>server. The resultant text would then be injected into the homepage using 
>PHP or SSI. 
>
>However, I suspect they are not familiar with bbcode or wiki code and are 
>probably thinking in terms of preparing their text in Word (which might 
>suggest something like RTF -> HTML conversion might be better), or MS 
>Publisher, which they are already using to make printed newsletters etc but 
>which I know produces horrendous looking HTML.
>
>Any suggestions?
>
>If I go the webform route, are their any php scripts for this that people 
>would recommend (esp ones that could convert RTF text might be nice.)


I needed to do this and found Edit-Point to be easy to set up and simple to use.

dorayme  wrote:

>
>Let's step back from the particulars of the OP's case and look at this 
>business of some information being *just* this or that.

[snip]

>Picking over raw information to display the microfinest details in it 
>might be ok, it might not be ok. It is a matter of context and 
>convenience to all overall. You cannot judge these things in advance. 
>There is no given structured information. It is we who give info 
>structure in a context.

When you post in alt.html you are in the HTML/CSS department. Your
only task is to decide if the people in the authoring and editing
department _intended_ to present the information as, say, a table or a
list of lists. In addition, you should ensure that your CSS conforms
to the presentation that was decided in the art and layout department.

When you post in web.authoring you are a document author and you can
choose to present the information as a table, a list or a diagram. The
HTML/CSS department should mark it up according to your semantics.
They are not entitled to tell the author how the information should be
presented. They must not join a couple of paragraphs or remove some
italics from the text because they think it improves the presentation.

You are allowed to move between the authoring department, the art
department and the technicians in the mark up department but you cause
great confusion among your readers when you try to be in all of them
at once.

In article ,
 David Segall <david@address.invalid> wrote:

> dorayme  wrote:
> 
> >
> >Let's step back from the particulars of the OP's case and look at this 
> >business of some information being *just* this or that.
> 
> [snip]
> 
> >Picking over raw information to display the microfinest details in it 
> >might be ok, it might not be ok. It is a matter of context and 
> >convenience to all overall. You cannot judge these things in advance. 
> >There is no given structured information. It is we who give info 
> >structure in a context.
> 
> When you post in alt.html you are in the HTML/CSS department. Your
> only task is to decide if the people in the authoring and editing
> department _intended_ to present the information as, say, a table or a
> list of lists. In addition, you should ensure that your CSS conforms
> to the presentation that was decided in the art and layout department.
> 
> When you post in web.authoring you are a document author and you can
> choose to present the information as a table, a list or a diagram. The
> HTML/CSS department should mark it up according to your semantics.
> They are not entitled to tell the author how the information should be
> presented. They must not join a couple of paragraphs or remove some
> italics from the text because they think it improves the presentation.
> 
> You are allowed to move between the authoring department, the art
> department and the technicians in the mark up department but you cause
> great confusion among your readers when you try to be in all of them
> at once.

There is a suggestion that I condone a view of matters HTML/CSS that 
could cause great confusion to readers. If so, I would like to remove it 
even at the cost of altering my expressed views. My views are nothing to 
me, I would gladly ditch them for any better ones at any time.

You know by now that I am a fan of semantic mark up and am a fan also of 
making sure that if author styles are off, there is no confusion.

So somewhere up there /\ in your paragraphs, is some warning about the 
danger of my view. Not sure quite what it is, it sounds interesting  and 
suggestive.

-- 
dorayme