Heal Your Church WebSite

Month: March 2004

  • Generic ADO Connections for ASP.Net

    So you think you want to go the Microsoft Web Server route after reading a NetCraft post entitled “ASP.NET Overtakes JSP and Java Servlets” ??? Okay, I can understand that. I mean even with CPanel and WHM, managing an Apache web server can be a bit daunting. And while MySQL is free, there are some nifty tricks SQLServer has to offer, if you’re willing to pay for it.

    While personally, I feel far more secure behind a Linux-based webserver, I’m required by my day job (you know, the one that pays the bills) to do the .NET/Windows Server dance.

    One of the issues you might face in making the transition from one operating system and/or webserver to another is accessing your data. This is why APIs such as the PHP-based ADOdb and Perl DBI are popular on Linux/Apache platforms.

    Similarly, this is why most competent Microsoft programmers access databases with interfaces such as the ADO, and more recently, OLEdb, unless of course you’ve been asked to use the MSDE 2000 while your crack technical staff obtains a license to and installs THE Microsoft SQL Server.

    Wide Variety of Standards
    Yeah, I know, the above paragraph reminds me of the only joke ever told by professor Frank da Cruz in my netorking class at Columbia University, a joke who’s punchline was “a wide variety of standards.” Took me about 3 seconds to get it, but I was sure to laugh out loud when I did (yes, I know, I’m a shameless suck-up that way, but I digress.)

    In case you missed the reality that made the punch line funny, there are just too many daggoned different ‘connectivity standards’ out there for databases. Probably due to the fact that there are just too many daggoned RDBMS tools out there, many of which are rotting legacy systems that you and I are now compelled to maintain and integrate. I mean, forget deciding whether or not to use VB.Net over C#, how do I seamlessly patch together an enterprise where the the CEO’s contact database is in MS-Access, an HRD system in Oracle, and the sales and tracking system is running on an MS SQL and still have code that is reusable?

    One solution I read about this weekend comes in the form of a nifty GenericADO connection class in VB.Net, based upon a similar generic data access component in C# by the same author.

    Need connection strings?
    This generic approach works fine, once you figure out the connection string … which itself can be a black art when dealing with anything other than a Microsoft database technology. Well, that is once you download, install and then reference the ODBC .NET Data Provider (why this isn’t included in distributions of Visual Studio .NET is beyond me).

    Still, ODBC wasn’t the real show-stopper when I first took-on .Net two years ago … rather it was Sybase. The biggest problem was figuring out the whole ASE thingie, an effort hampered by the fact that Sybase released a buggy version of their Studio installer.

    Once over this hump, and once you’ve spent another half day discovering you need to first create an OLE DB connection object via the Sybase ASE OLE DB Administrator, then all you need to do is hack away until you find a connection string that works.

    At least that’s what I had to do because at that time, there wasn’t an instructive website chock full of examples for every known .NET Data Provider Connection String available to man and geek.

    Lobotomy Time
    If you haven’t figured it out, this post serves some selfish reasons, such as links to websites and tips on how to dive through the flaming hoops of database connectivity in a Microsoft-based enterprise without ‘burninating’ myself into a crisp. Hopefully, some of you guys and gals will find these links useful.

    And for you religious purists who not only know what a “Factory Pattern” is, but are so entirely snooty as to pooh-pooh such utility classes, here is a link to some rather hairy template connection classes that are sure to amaze and confuse your co-workers.

    As always, your mileage may vary.

  • Click here to enter the cool church website!

    Since last week, I’ve enjoyed several comments and even more private emails informing of various church websites in need of healing. A task made increasingly difficult now that my review of “The Coolest Church WebSite, Ever!” comes up numero uno for the Google query ‘cool church website.’ Fortunately, well actually unfortunately, there are enough self-proclaimed “cool church websites” out there to keep us all busy with reviews until Jesus returns.

    Case in point, the website for high-school age students at the Central church of Christ in Moore, Oklahoma.

    If your church doesn't have a spinning cross on its steeple, then why put one on your site?If you haven’t clicked in the hyperlink for today’s example, imagine a kelly green screen with a somewhat grainy, poorly cropped and centered picture of what looks like the side doors and facade for the church, and the parking lot … enough so to catch a glimpse of the sign. Flanking the image’s sides, spinning animated GIF crosses. Above this artwork, in lime green, the phrase that pays: “click here to enter the cool church website.”

    Now a caveat here, today’s example webpage was designed back in 2001 two 16 year old kids. I’m sure now they look at it and roll their eyes, slapping their right hand to their forehead and whispering under their breath “what was I thinking?” It is also for this reason, I’m not going to say anything else about about the design elements … especially in light of the youth websites I first created … mercifully, all evidence of the latter has long since been rendered to the bit-bucket.

    Instead, I want to use this page to talk about some misconceptions we have about youth ministry and what we do online. As someone who for the past 10 years has been involved with youth ministry and teaches a high-school aged Sunday school class, I know one or two things for certain.

    1. If you have to tell people it’s cool, then it probably isn’t. This is why I tell incoming classes that the only time I use their vernacular is when I’m making a parody of them. Let’s face it, nothing is more pathetic than a 40-some year old poop misusing the phrase “word-up.” This means when you write content, write it as you would speak it to them or anyone else. They’ll appreciate it much more than you’re lame, ‘Wonder Bread™’ rendition of hip-hop.
    2. This leads me to my second point: don’t confuse the Internet for television, MTV, movies or other forms of youth-targeted media. Unless you’re as awesomely talented and playfully demented as Mike and Matt Chapman, kids aren’t going to visit your youth website for entertainment. If they want movies, they’re going to go to the movies, if they want music videos, they’re going sneak a peek at MTV (unless you’re like me and are cable-free).

    This isn’t to say your youth website should look and feel like the rest of your church’s website. But if your objective is to bring them in by being cool, then all you’re going to really do is look like some old fool. Instead:

    • make the site informative;
    • make it a place where they can contribute content and feedback;
    • make it relevant with continual posts about things they’re facing, things they like, or upcoming events.

    The bottom line is incredibly simple, if your youth website is informative, moreover it if ministers to the needs of your youth, they’ll think it cool, and they’ll come back for more.

  • w3c Link Checker

    We’ve discussed linkrot way back in July of 2002 in context of never, ever, EVER deleting a well-indexed link on your own site. But what about links to other sites?

    Let’s face it, the one thing we know for sure about the Internet is the uncertainty of hyperlinks. Servers go down. People change careers. Hackers destroy things.

    One nice and free tool to check the links on your site is w3C’s Link Checker. You merely enter the URL and presto, it offers you a variety of ways you can view the status of your links.

    I personally found it very sturdy … slammed it with this site about a day or two before I left for Jordan.

  • You need to explain the difference

    An interesting thing happened to me while sitting poolside here at Aqaba, Jordan. I was talking to an individual who works for one of the larger Christian marketing firms. He wants to develop a lay-ministry website for a neighborhood prayer ministry. Like many people I run into via Heal Your Church Website, he’s brilliant within his chosen vocation, and knows which end of the mouse of the computer to speak into, he’s no geek.

    Its for these reasons he’s registered a domain and has subscribed to the web-development services offered by Register.com.

    I mentioned that perhaps a blog-driven format might suit him better since his site is more current events oriented. Just type the post, no HTML in involved. He shrugged his shoulder and replied “well, I can do that with register.com.”

    I didn’t reply. Instead, I just looked out over the beautiful blue waters of the Red Sea and thought that when I get back, I need to think of a way of describing the differences between a turnkey static website management system such as those offered by Register.com and the services one might get from a dynamic publishing system such as TypePad.

    And more than explain the differences, explain why one would be better than another depending on the user’s context. Oh yes, and be able to explain it in non-techical geek terms.

    How about you, un in to this much? If so, how have you explained it. Leave comments.

  • ‘Pelase’ Proof Read

    They say a picture is worth 1000 words.
    ‘Pelase’ don’t say something like this on your web church’s site
    (the sign is bad enough):

    Don't let worries kill you - Let the church help.

    • Always test your new code.
    • Mistakes like can really detract from your site’s content …
    • I always get the help of a third partly before going live.

    NOTE – Sorry guys, but I’m recycling an old article for new commentary. First, because it was published almost two years ago, second because I’m very tired, and though I have some geek things to say … I’m falling asleep on the keyboard.