Website Databases?

[jockdisvdude]

I know this will take forever to explain, but I'm not looking for a super detailed answer. I was wondering what and how a database is for a website and the advantages and disadvantes. also a cost to hire someone to do it?

 

[dowxp]

im not sure any anything, but my friend is designing a website for "our" company, very ghetto. but hes a CS major and he knows whathes doing. hes using microsoft access and asp. thats all i can say

 

[jockdisvdude]

Thats great, good look on your company.

 

[dowxp]

haha. thanks. if it ever gets started... =) right dennis?

 

[dowxp]

a database would be used for a web site in any situation where structured data is either stored or manipulated, for example a calendar with events, an estore, etc. hiring someone would usually mean a full scale website design with either WinNT/ASP or Linux/PHP hosting. design can be pretty expensive depending on content, and hosting can cost anywhere from $30/month to $400/month.


from my friend dennis

goodluck

 

[Ben50]

I run my own web design company and we use PHP/MySQL with Linux. It's great because its open source (free) and is extremely powerful and quick to develop.

Basically databases are used to store large amounts data that can often be divided into tables and fields. They are used for mailing lists, business directories, ecommerce, and basically anything else where you would need to be able to manage huge amounts of data.

The disadvantages are that it can be complex and time-consuming to setup initially and because of this it is often very expensive. Even the database programs themselves can be very expensive for commercial solutions (i.e. Oracle, DB2, Sybase). These can all cost over a million dollars for high end systems.

Many Internet hosts allow some form of database, usually MySQL on linux or Microsoft SQL on NT. Of course, this doesn't include developing the application which is where the bulk of the time/cost is.

If you are good with HTML, javascript, or any other programming, it is not a huge stretch to learn how to develop these databases. There are many good tutorials, but some of the best I have found are:

An Introduction to MySQL

AND

Building a Database-Driven Web Site Using PHP and MySQL

These will definitely get you started in the right direction.

 

[jockdisvdude]

How much does a site like anandtech.com cost to build ? if it's just the design, without all the content submitted yet.

 

[dowxp]

it depends on the developer. if you are your own developer, the design costs as much asthe time spent on it.

-- dennis.

 

[jockdisvdude]

What if I hired someone. A professional or maybe a college student who is interested. How much am I looking at on spending ?

 

[Adul]

several hundred for something simple at least(very simple). Look at 4 figures if you want anything decent.

 

[Ben50]

Most places I know of including myself charge over $100/hour for database programming. And it usually takes a few weeks to develop anything of substance.

 

[TunaBoo]

Yah. My site has a sweet database but it isnt finished enough yet. I know a programmer in singaport and all he programs (mainly) is databases. It is php and MySQL. Real nice for me, and I think its his first shipping cart he ever made