squadron website

maverik · September 12, 2008, 01:21:30 AM

My squadron has assigned me the task of making a website for them and I was wondering what would be a very good domain and if anyone could tell me how to get started on the website.

addo1 · September 12, 2008, 01:59:02 AM

The website that works for me is Homestead Site Builder. It is cheap and ad free. I, also make the website for my squadron. That is what I use.

Eclipse · September 12, 2008, 02:11:41 AM

the "standard" would be, "squadronname.wing.cap.gov", so in your case, one option might be:

rccs.inwg.cap.gov

To get a cap.gov domain will require you apply for it from the National domain administrator, and
accept some rather..."comprehensive" security checks against the hosting site.

For me, personally, I opted for a simpler domain name, which precluded the need to involve NHQ.

As far as hosting, you should be able to get tons of space, lots of bandwidth, and every content engine
known to man from any of dozens of sites for less than $5 per month if you are willing to pay in advance for
1 or 2 years.

maverik · September 12, 2008, 02:13:54 AM

okay I need a hosting site that would be approved by national, I need to know how o request something like that from national and a hosting site that will allow certain members to login to a members only page.

IceNine · September 12, 2008, 02:55:58 AM

Check out CAPR 110-1 for internet procedure's. IIRC it explains the application process for obtaining a .gov address.

Eclipse · September 12, 2008, 03:25:38 AM

This website has the info on obtaining a cap.gov domain:

http://ns1.cap.gov/

If you don't go for a .gov address, no approval from NHQ is required, though the guidelines in CAPR 110-1 would still be in effect as applicable.

stratoflyer · September 12, 2008, 04:05:10 AM

I need this info as well. Good work SgtJoker.

Didn't national give out a website kit complete with graphics and all?

How does one create a password protected zone only for members of the squadron?

Eclipse · September 12, 2008, 04:20:07 AM

It depends on what content engine you use, both Mambo and Joomla, among others, can do it fairly easily.

stratoflyer · September 12, 2008, 04:25:01 AM

What's a content engine? Did I mention I have no experience on this matter and I've got no one better qualified?

stratoflyer · September 12, 2008, 04:29:15 AM

I came across this site. Anyone know about it as far as reliability and stuff? GoDaddy is a very popular one I know that.

Eclipse · September 12, 2008, 01:14:05 PM

Quote from: stratoflyer on September 12, 2008, 04:25:01 AM
What's a content engine? Did I mention I have no experience on this matter and I've got no one better qualified?

A content engine is the backend application that runs a website and creates pages dynamically so that you don't have to edit HTML manually like the old days.

You may hear them referred to as Active Server Pages (ASP), Common Gateway Interface (CGI), Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) or other names. Cold Fusion is another backend which is more complex (and robust). And there are others as well.

Joomla an Mambo are branches of the the same tree of software for (fairly) easily creating dynamic webpages.

If the above is Greek, your best best is to find a host that provides template-based sites, or perhaps even a site like blogger or Typepad. Create some blog pages and see if you have anything to actually put there.

Remember, content is king, and unless you've got support from people providing content and guidance, the site will die after a couple of months.

In that case, a basic contact-info/marketing site is probably the way to go and be done with it.

http://www.freeforums.org/ is one of a number of sites where you can create discussion forums with password access, coincidently is is a CSS website and you can get an idea of how robust a site you can make using something like Joomla.

Capblog is good example of a robust Typepad page.

stratoflyer · September 12, 2008, 05:42:55 PM

Thanks a lot for the info. So how would Mambo be installed and used?

Let's say I buy a domain from doteasy.com of godaddy.com and I want to use Mambo or something like it to create the site. How would it be done?

JC004 · September 12, 2008, 05:46:19 PM

If you are considering a content management system (CMS), there are two things that you must keep in mind: 1. You MUST keep the software updated. You WILL get hacking attempts. 2. If you're not familiar with this type of software, consider one that is very simple like Frog CMS.

Joomla/Mambo and Drupal are two of the most popular, but they are very big and complex with probably far more options than you actually need. You could also consider WordPress, which is made for blogging, but a lot of people use to power regular ol' web sites now. Two of my favorites are SilverStripe and modx. Modx is very capable, and great overall. SilverStripe has also proven itself. In fact, their largest site is the Democratic National Convention, and it preformed well.

stratoflyer · September 12, 2008, 05:59:32 PM

Last time I did this sort of stuff I used FrontPage and the host service has a buttom for uploading the webpage created through frontpage. Here are our requirements now:

It's got to be cheap for we want a domain name.
It's got to be easy to navigate for visitors and what not.
It's gotta be visual as well, with pics of activities and CAP graphics.
We would like to have our own publications on the web so that cadets may simply download their stuff in one place.

I think it's pretty straightforward. If taught properly, I could run it myself. My thing right now is finding something easy to set-up and use asap for recruiting. We are prepearing our first squadron meeting this monday and our first class of cadet basics will begin.

Again, thanks for all your input.

Eclipse · September 12, 2008, 06:17:03 PM

Frontpage is the work of the devil.

stratoflyer · September 12, 2008, 06:24:45 PM

No...its Microsoft!!

SarDragon · September 12, 2008, 08:37:38 PM

Quote from: stratoflyer on September 12, 2008, 05:59:32 PM
Last time I did this sort of stuff I used FrontPage and the host service has a buttom for uploading the webpage created through frontpage. Here are our requirements now:

It's got to be cheap for we want a domain name.
It's got to be easy to navigate for visitors and what not.
It's gotta be visual as well, with pics of activities and CAP graphics.
We would like to have our own publications on the web so that cadets may simply download their stuff in one place.

I think it's pretty straightforward. If taught properly, I could run it myself. My thing right now is finding something easy to set-up and use asap for recruiting. We are prepearing our first squadron meeting this monday and our first class of cadet basics will begin.

Again, thanks for all your input.

Provide links to the NHQ site for pubs and forms. Why fill up your server space when the stuff is already hosted somewhere else? And you won't have to keep updating your local copies, either.

stratoflyer · September 13, 2008, 07:25:01 AM

I was mostly referring to our own stuff, such as squadron memos and what not.

RiverAux · September 13, 2008, 01:31:16 PM

I run a joomla site for a chapter that is part of a national organization's web page. I like the ability to edit the stuff, but the system is not all that intuitive. Also, the joomla pages load very slowly when you try to open them up. Not sure if that is just our site or something found in other joomla systems.

SarDragon · September 15, 2008, 05:22:58 AM

Joomla loading speed depends a lot on the server where it's installed. I work on a Jomla site, and we ended up having to change providers because toe old on couldn't provide the server "power" needed to host the site.