Supercharging your Website with a Database
Supercharging Your Website with a Database
by Bill Mee
A database is usually a large single file filled with elements called tables. A table contains information organized in columns and rows in much the same a way as a spreadsheet. Tables are often related or linked with other tables. We use them to manage all aspects of our business and our life, whether we realize it or not. In fact two very common examples of databases are accounting systems and address books.
Typically a database will have a support program that allows the database owner to create tables and add, edit and delete data.
Databases can be used to enhance the functionality of a website in many ways. A database can be used to store names and email addresses of prospects and customers. The email addresses from this same database can be used again and again in various types of email promotional campaigns and the emailing can occur directly from the server where your website is located.
Information on products, properties, portfolio items, documents, articles, photos and lead information are all things that many people are storing in databases on their website. With a database and it's associated administrative software you can manage your data all in one place rather than having it strewn all over your website in individual HTML pages.
The really good news is that almost all internet hosts running Windows based servers will allow you to maintain your database on your site for no additional charge. If you have an Access database you can copy it to a directory on your server with a free FTP (File Transfer Protocol) program. Many free scripts are available that handle all aspects of managing data in a database such as adding, updating and deleting data records. In fact the Microsoft Active Server Pages language has powerful functions for data access and will run on any website hosted on a server running Windows NT or 2000.
