which is suitable/better?

[francesca]

hi all, iwould wana ask
i'm intendgin to have this expanding project whereby the websute will exoand

it will include html pages, some flash, shopping cart etc.
which script lang u guys rec? php? asp? asp.net? or any others?
it will all be customized then gettiing free applications etc.

thx!!!

[NeonHQ]

Personally, I prefer php.

Reason:

- You can easily get many different php scripts.
- Some people say php is faster than asp, but it actually depend on the scripter's preference.
- Coding wise, Simple and Cleaner than ASP(my preference).
- ASP is not open source, so need to host on a proprietory platform which means most cost/expense incurred.
- There are many communities which have php discussions, resources.
- Linux, Apache, MySQL, Php are all open source, in Australia, most government agencies going to switch over to open source platform.

Furthermore, there are already many free popular e-commerce applications, forum board, support scripts that are using php/mysql, such as osCommerce. phpBB, etc.

Just my own opinion.

[francesca]

but the thing is
it is all gona be customized
so even if have free open source ones it may not be applicable

hence asking ard if what is better

[userguy]

I would say a scripting language that you are familiar with unless you are willing to take the time to pick up something new that you have to familiarize yourself with so as to able to do your own coding and debugging. It would also slightly depend on which platform your site is going to be based on. PHP is native to *nix systems while ASP is based on Windows systems.

[francesca]

heard window sys's are rather unstable
so far the most stable is freeBSD
ot sth lidat
but very few ppl know tt
security wise it's the best als

[dax-ii2]

Personally, I would go for PHP because it is easy to learn and use and powerful enough for most needs. Also, there are many websites with tutorials and guides on PHP, as well as PHP forums where you can get help.

[alien]

I think you should ask yourself which language you are better at. If you don't know anything about programming, I would suggest go C/C++ first.

I would usually go for PHP, as I'm more comfortable with it as compared to Perl, ASP and JSP, although its not too hard to convert the source to the other (unless its only available to that particular language/system).

[michaelfoo]

I agree with Alien. Don't ask us which language is good. Ask yourself, which language are you good at. If you think your knowledge in the language will be able to handle this project, go ahead, just use that language.

[theITguy]

At the end of the day, budget is a big contraint. If budget is a constraint, php is the only way to go (ASP pay for Win2K/2003 and quite heavy on resource as you scale up, JSP is resource heavy and limited in the free Apache server, PHP is free and I believe is less resource demanding).


If budget not a constraint, JSP + MySQL is a good combo. Else it will be PHP + MySQL + good hardware (redundancy with raid) + better DC

[icelava]

francesca, if you are asking this question I will take it you're not the one developing/implementing this project. You do realise what you are scoping here is not surmountable by a lone person, right? More so when not even focused on a development/application platform to begin with.

I suggest you get in contact with professional development companies and seek their opinions on achieving your vision. Note that development firms vary greatly in experience, experitise, and price. What platform they use is quite secondary to what they can achieve - anybody with enough skill can achieve this same effect on a given platform. Of course, you don't wanna stake on obsolete technologies either.

I am a Microsoft .NET developer (by choice), so I'd naturally say "Go with .NET!" ;) There're already existing a number of portal and site frameworks built on ASP.NET, allowing developers to quickly build and customise on them.

http://dotnetnuke.com/
http://rainbowportal.net/
http://asp.net/Default.aspx?tabindex=9&tabid=47

There're similar J2EE and PHP implementations of course(which I won't say are lousier). Remember it all boils down to what your development team is good at employing.

[francesca]

hey thanks!!!
im not the one doing the programmine
hehehehe

its the person who is doing the thing asking me which i prefer
=p

[userguy]

Originally posted by francesca
hey thanks!!!
im not the one doing the programmine
hehehehe

its the person who is doing the thing asking me which i prefer
=p
I think you should ask the programmer/coder which language is he more familiar with. What if you preferred something that he is totally clueless about? Wouldn't he be trapped in a sticky situation? As a programmer/coder, I think he should be able to choose what's best for this type of sites.

[fred]

Originally posted by francesca
hey thanks!!!
im not the one doing the programmine
hehehehe

its the person who is doing the thing asking me which i prefer
=p


May be he knows all the scripting?? Just ask him to choose the most comfortable one, if he doesnt know which one better, you better look for someone else.

[shawnho]

Yes, and before getting the hosting plan, discuss with your programmer if the specs of the server fit the site that is going to be hosted there, so as to prevent any future problems

[icelava]

Originally posted by francesca
its the person who is doing the thing asking me which i prefer
=p Hmmm, i really don't feel comfortable with such a proposition. It appears he is equally(?) proficient in all major application development platforms and servers and it's not a problem for him to depend on your choice of platform when you don't know what's optimal for your project scope/vision?

Does it almost sound like the chief engineer asking you what materials you'd want to use to build your new car with? I'm sorry but I'd feel worried with a development team that doesn't specialise and have dedicated expertise.

I believe you as the project visionary should lay down the vision and project scope, plus functional specifications WITHOUT consideration for the actual implementation platform. That layer is a concern by the developement team - based on the requirements gathered from you, they should be able to plot and plan the most cost effective platform to deliver your goal.

Have a read through the Microsoft Solutions Framework for guidance on project and solutions delivery.
http://microsoft.com/msf/
http://www.microsoft.com/technet/treeview/default.asp?url=/technet/itsolutions/tandp/innsol/msfrl/default.asp

[nivlek78]

I agree with icelava

.NET is the way to go...

My last 2 proposals to clients were for enterprise systems and I would not consider anything else than .NET as it is more scalable, enterprise ready and the database. site managment is far better.

PHP/ MySql I propose only for non-enterprise level systems

[userguy]

icelava also mentioned this in another thread:
Pre-built Commerce starter kit by the ASP.NET team to get you going
http://asp.net/CommerceStarterKit/
That should help you get started with your E-Commerce site.