Fexible Gallery (or CMS?) Software?

Hells_Belle

So I have a client who needs me to build an ASP site hosted on a Windows server, based on galleries. Basically, it should work like this:

1. Home page with 9 thumbnails of nine different people.

2. Click thumbnail, go to that person's details page. Page has large version of the homepage thumbnail, text about the person, plus nine smaller thumbnails. Click each thumbnail, pops up large version of the image.

3. On the back end, I need a reasonably idiot-proof admin panel with auto-uploading and preferably auto-thumbnailing, although the client could do the tumbnails manually. I also need client to be able to edit the text for three additional pages.

I am open to any and all suggestions, but cheap or free is where I need to be. If the back end is everything I need (and that's not much), I am totally OK with ripping out the front end and re-building it from scratch. An access DB would be fine for this, and I could build the DB and the admin interface, but I can't code the upload... so that's no good, and I need a base product to start from.

Bonus points to anyone who can figure out "What kind of site is Hells_Belle building?"

mneylon

Why does it have to be in ASP?

There are plenty of software solutions for LAMP that would do this.

Hells_Belle

blacknight wrote:

Why does it have to be in ASP?

Well, because it's a Windows server...

Anyway, I bought this and whilst the interface is kludgy, I just ripped out the front end and rolled my own, and you could do worse for $20.

Seth Brundle

Hells_Belle wrote:

Well, because it's a Windows server...

...and what?
PHP for example works on loads of different servers including windows.

kstanl

Hells_Belle wrote:

cheap or free is where I need to be.

Hehe. On a similar note, I'm on the market for a house at the moment. Does anyone know where I can get one for cheap... or free?

rsynnott

kstanl wrote:

Hehe. On a similar note, I'm on the market for a house at the moment. Does anyone know where I can get one for cheap... or free?

No, no, this is exactly the sort of software that IS available free...

PhantomBeaker

Just on the note of running php on windows systems - check this out: http://www.php.net/manual/en/install.windows.php

Then you could just yoink from gallery.sourceforge.net - which is what I think you're basing your software on anyway.

Hells_Belle

OK, play along with me here:

1. This is not my server; it is the client's webspace on a shared server.
2. I cannot install PHP on it. (See item #1)
3. Had I been able to install PHP on it, I would have asked about LAMP products.
4. I specified ASP because hey! guess what! I needed an ASP product.
5. I am totally willing to pay for products, and in this instance, did.
6. I did not have a big budget in this particular instance, but there are plenty of good ASP products that are free or inexpensive, and that's what I was asking about.

On reflection, I may have posted this question in the wrong forum. Regardless, there is no need to be snarky or patronising. Miraculously, some of you managed to be both.

Serbian

Hells_Belle wrote:

Well, because it's a Windows server

This is the comment people are picking up on, and in fairness, it comes across as quite 'snarky' as you put it. You hadn't specified that you were on shared hosting before this, so the comment seemed naive at best.

Anyway, it's good that you have managed to find something to fit your needs, I was going to suggest ImageMagik as a useful extension for ASP to manipulate images.

rsynnott

I think most people were letting you know of the existence of PHP on Windows, rather than trying to annoy you for fun.

Cake Fiend

I'd say the first thing that popped into every single person who read this thread's head was 'why ASP?', so I don't think it's too surprising that so many people recommended a L/WAMP solution. No need to feel so put upon.

legalimmigrant

Hells_Belle wrote:

Well, because it's a Windows server...

Serbian wrote:

This is the comment people are picking up on, and in fairness, it comes across as quite 'snarky' as you put it. You hadn't specified that you were on shared hosting before this, so the comment seemed naive at best.

Maybe she hasn't specified shared in the original post, but she's definitely specified that the client had Windows hosting. So "why not LAMP?", with all due respect to Michelle, really had me muttering "RTFP" as well.

In any case, installing PHP on Windows is rather like slapping a booster rocket on a Trabant, imho. GD has stuff missing, header() doesn't work half the time, the ISAPI module leaks memory... been there, tried it, ran away.

DJB

I've learned that no matter what you say or how you say it on boards, someone will pick you up wrong and post something you don't really like. Take it that it comes with the post!

Anyway, I build these types of systems on a regular basis and never really liked the off the shelf packages out there. Best thing is to build your own but since you have aspphotogallery to get you started, it shouldn't be too bad. I would advise ripping out the frontend... personally, I don't like their templates.

Anyway, as my suggestion goes... build the db and the admin yourself. To handle image uploads, renaming, resizing, optimisation and thumbnail creation - try out this neat little extension for dreamweaver:

http://www.dmxzone.com/showDetail.asp?TypeId=3&NewsId=1622

It does it all for you. I know you probably are moving ahead with another option but no harm in having the info and sharing it with others.

Best regards,

David

p.s. I think you're building an escort agencies website, e.g. 9 girls/boys, click into 1, see more photos of that person, organise a date!!

p.p.s. Please don't slate me for that, it's only a joke suggestion!

rsynnott

DJB wrote:

p.s. I think you're building an escort agencies website, e.g. 9 girls/boys, click into 1, see more photos of that person, organise a date!!

What is it about the word "prostitution" that makes people want to hide it behind silly euphemisms?