Lythoweb - Inexpensive contract services for web design and programming

Christopher Cantley
3004 Sanders Dr
Knoxville TN, 37918
(865) 688-1199

While Excel is not recommended for use in full blown website applications, I have had a growing number of requests for dynamic websites to produce reports and data lists into an Excel format file. I have also used it to as a simple sketch pad for drafting out database table ideas on the fly. While it is not a key component for website development, it is invaluable for working with data where you need more flexibility than a standard database program can provide.

I have long used Access to create and maintain database structures for small to medium size websites. My previous version experience includes Access 95, 98, 2000 and now 2002 (XP). Creating forms, reports, queries, and relational database structures comes second nature to creating dynamic websites.

The first Database system I used was in Visual FoxPro. Similar to Access, it allows a user to create database structures, query for specific data and output it to a report. My first few years of ColdFusion website programming interfaced with a large inventory system completely stored in a Visual FoxPro Database system.

For a 15 month period I worked exclusively with Oracle 8i on a Unix server using a virtual terminal program to access and create database structures using only SQL and limited forms of PLSQL. During this time I also worked with stored procedures where the logic and data querying was too extensive to process web-server side.

I have used Microsoft’s SQL Server in a few of my projects whose traffic demanded a database that could handle multiple requests at the same time. While the concept of creating and maintaining the Database systems is the same, Microsoft’s SQL Server has proven to be very stable and comparable to Oracle Database systems. For sites that require this sturdy database framework for either high traffic, or access to thousands if not millions of records in short time, I design my database systems in Access XP and export them to a Microsoft SQL Server format on the website’s hosting server. I also have some experience in working with MS SQL database tables using the MS SQL utilities including Enterprise Manager and the Import and Export data application.

I have been using Adobe Photoshop since before I was designing websites. Its ease of use, efficient image compression and wide arrange of third party tools has made it an invaluable tool for creating website graphics. In fact, almost all of my website graphics come out of Photoshop.

While my experience with Illustrator is light, I have had some experience in creating vector based graphics and have used it to work with other graphic designers who use vector based graphics as their creative medium. I have found this to be one of the best programs for creating images that are completely original and don’t involve actual photographic images.

Flash is most likely the next step in the evolution of the internet. Its ability to add a video-like media along with the interaction we are familiar with on the internet will make this at least the platform for what is to come. However, due to the fact that DSL and Cable high speed internet services are just now starting to get a foot hold in the ISP market, wide spread use of Flash is still limited to high-speed use. The majority of my clients have a need to reach everyone at the lowest cost possible which puts Flash just outside the range of projects I have worked on. I expect to be using Flash more often and think that it will be the next medium for internet marketing.

I have been programming in ColdFusion for 5 years and having experience with other scripting languages like ASP, I have found CFML to be easier to code, easier to debug and generally faster than its competitors. While I continue to learn more about the language, ColdFusion has given me unbelievable flexibility in designing dynamic websites.

While HTML is not a hard language to learn and use, the way browsers interpret HTML can differ. I have spent several years refining my HTML coding skills to make my sites compatible with both Netscape and IE. That means I can take your vision of a website and make happen without limitation.

Every dynamic website that I have programmed has required some interaction with tables. One of my more recent applications required statements joining over 10 tables and spanned over 300 lines long. Although most website don't require any SQL statements that extensive, my experience has prepared me for any request regardless of how complicated. And for applications that are processor intensive I have experience in programming stored procedures. My experience with SQL ranges across database systems such as Oracle 8i, Access, Visual FoxPro and Microsoft SQL Server.

I almost always use some form of JavaScript in my website development projects either for popup information or for creating mouse-over effects, dynamic menus or proofing a form. While this is the most common using my projects, there are far more complicated and detailed uses for JavaScript that fill in the gaps where server-side programming is lacking.

In learning ASP and ASP.NET you can’t help but to learn VBScript. I have used client side VBScript on a very limited basis because not all browsers interpret VBScript however, when used server-side through ASP, it has allowed me to use VBScript to create dynamic websites that interact with forms, databases, calculations and a wide array of objects.

Although my first love is CFML, I have fast grown to enjoy ASP and its style of coding. The programming structure is not too far removed from the processes that I have had years of experience with so there is little I cannot do in ASP that I can do in my more familiar languages

ASP.NET is part of the recent .NET family of software. ASP.NET reaches the next level above ASP by encapsulating some of the more wordy but common processes used in ASP. This is similar to what ColdFusion has been doing since 1993. While my on-job experience is very limited, it is not a far cry from ASP and would not be difficult to incorporate into a site.

HomeSite was my first HTML/CFML editor. I learned to code without using WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) Editors. This has gained me the experience to create websites with exact precision, literally “Read” code as it would be viewed without actually seeing it and make quick edits or designs using HomeSites’ wide arrange of coding tools. This is an excellent software package for learning how to create websites at the code level.

Originally I used HomeSite for website design and editing however this most recent version of dreamweaver has taken the best attributes of HomeSite and wrapped it into a package that allows me to develop faster and easier than ever before.

Adobe is one of the best WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) website design editor on the market. I used this program for about a year and while I became quite proficient, I didn’t scratch the surface in all of the features it can handle. My only complaint was that it re-wrote and re-formatted custom created code which made it difficult to switch back and forth between HomeSite and GoLive. While Dreamweaver MX is now my preferred tool of choice, I have solid experience in this software.

This has been a handy tool for getting started with ASP.NET and since it is community supported I hope to see more third party add-ons. This, in conjunction with the .NET framework and MS SQL Server create a powerful tool for creating websites in ASP.NET.

I have years of experience using IIS for NT/200 as well as two personal servers both using Windows XP version of IIS. While it is not a complicated process to set up, it is key for linking websites on a server to be served to the internet.

My experience with ColdFusion server ranges from complete installation and upgrades to performance tweaking for faster or more secure operations. I am intimately familiar with how ColdFusion interacts with system memory so as to accurately identify and resolve performance issues such as memory leaks, memory handling and data handling. The end result being a powerful and fast running server.

I have used every version of Windows on the market and have years experiencing in maintaining, monitoring and troubleshooting Windows NT, 2000 and XP as a website server. This includes familiarity with all of the critical administration tools including IIS, Performance Monitor, Services, ODBC setup and more.