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[webadict]

Hello! webadict here, and I'm looking for a little help with a project I'm undertaking.

These past two years, I hosted the Bay12 Christmas Giveaway here in the Other Games subforum. However, last year, I fell victim to lack of updating, and a lot of the slack was picked up by Metalax, who I can't thank enough. This year, I was looking to make and run a website that does a majority of the work for me, but I don't know where to start.

So, I'm asking you. I'm not sure what language I'd need to do, but I'm looking for very basic database storage and retrieval. I don't have much money, so if I need to host, it ought to be dirt cheap. I have lots of spare time to program, so if I can figure out what language would be best (PHP and MySQL?), I can get to work right away. Also, any ideas that you could have--and maybe a few people to test it--would be greatly appreciated because I know very little about web design, databases, or hosting.

I hope this goes well, so that this keeps being a yearly thing. I enjoy giving back to the community, and this would really ease a lot of the burden off me during that time.

[zombie urist]

If someone else makes it I can host it, as long as the file size isn't totally huge.

PHP/MySQL should work.

[webadict]

If someone else makes it I can host it, as long as the file size isn't totally huge.

PHP/MySQL should work.

I will make it, you don't have to worry about that. I don't believe the file sizes will be that big. The only issue is I don't know how big a database is, even one that's fairly simple (which this should be). This is really just one big learning experience for me.

[zombie urist]

I can host it but I can't give ssh or sftp access or stuff, so you'll have to test everything locally.

I might be able to help with coding during my Thanksgiving break.

[webadict]

I can host it but I can't give ssh or sftp access or stuff, so you'll have to test everything locally.

I might be able to help with coding during my Thanksgiving break.

Noted. Guess I'll have to make to count then. And any help you can offer will be great.

[Mephisto]

The database size is probably not going to be any sort of bottleneck, unless 4chan or somebody gets ahold of it.

What are you foreseeing being the main use for this? I haven't taken part in any of the various holiday giveaways, so I'm not sure how they work.

In any case, are you prepared to become proficient in security? If you don't know what you're doing right now, I would suggest offloading a lot of your work to a web framework. Just about anything would help, and it would mean you don't have to worry as much about data loss or theft.

[Anvilfolk]

Well, the system doesn't necessarily need to store the game keys or whatever. It can just store the contact information of those who won and those who are giving stuff away. The transactions themselves can be done by the forum users themselves, through PM or whatever.

That way you bypass a lot of the potential risks.

And yeah, a database like this, for Bay12 use, will have minimal data, so size definitely isn't a problem like Mephisto said.

Also, this is a wicked great project. Good luck! Consider making it open-source through GitHub or so. That way multiple people can contribute to it!

[HopFlash]

I personally started to make my websites with Python (http://www.cherrypy.org/ (CherryPy), http://www.sqlite.org/ and http://docs.python.org/3.3/library/sqlite3.html (SqLite) and https://pypi.python.org/pypi/lxml (lxml/lxsl)).

Sure PHP/MySql is hostable nearly everywhere but I had never learned PHP and so MySql was never my first choice too
Python and co is available everywhere too but it's not as usual as PHP to use it this way.
If you can program with Python or want to learn a new programming language I (personally) think that it is a nice try.

It is a somehow other approach than classical website building but it has its benefits I think and I like it.
If you want to know more details I can write some more (and provide some useful functions). Perhaps I find some time to write a HowTo or Tutorial but that would be a project for itself I think

[webadict]

The database size is probably not going to be any sort of bottleneck, unless 4chan or somebody gets ahold of it.

What are you foreseeing being the main use for this? I haven't taken part in any of the various holiday giveaways, so I'm not sure how they work.

In any case, are you prepared to become proficient in security? If you don't know what you're doing right now, I would suggest offloading a lot of your work to a web framework. Just about anything would help, and it would mean you don't have to worry as much about data loss or theft.

Basically, there are the basic goals:
The user is able to join. (Must force a link to B12 account somehow.)
The user is able to select giveaways to join that can be listed in chronological, alphabetical, or however order.
The user is able to unselect giveaways they have previously joined.
The user is allowed to create giveaways. (This is a potential source of malevolence, and needs safeguards. I might require intervention on my part, as well as limits.)
The user is able to modify how their giveaway works in basic ways (Only those who haven't won yet, giveaway makers, more than one copy, etc.)
The user will be given a list of names from their giveaway. If they so choose, a random winner will also be provided.

As for security... Well, I'll try my best, but honestly, I don't know anything about web security. If you have any other suggestions, I'd be glad to hear them.

Well, the system doesn't necessarily need to store the game keys or whatever. It can just store the contact information of those who won and those who are giving stuff away. The transactions themselves can be done by the forum users themselves, through PM or whatever.

That way you bypass a lot of the potential risks.

And yeah, a database like this, for Bay12 use, will have minimal data, so size definitely isn't a problem like Mephisto said.

Also, this is a wicked great project. Good luck! Consider making it open-source through GitHub or so. That way multiple people can contribute to it!

The system doesn't need to store game keys, and it will provide a direct link to the Bay12 account. I don't wish to involve myself in how they choose a winner unless they wish for random winners. That's all I'm willing to do. If they provide me with a game to distribute, I will attempt to, but that is not something I'd want from the system.

Also, I've never used GitHub. I tried to once, but I got a bit stuck, and then I was lost. I suppose I can try again

Thanks for the advice!

I personally started to make my websites with Python (http://www.cherrypy.org/ (CherryPy), http://www.sqlite.org/ and http://docs.python.org/3.3/library/sqlite3.html (SqLite) and https://pypi.python.org/pypi/lxml (lxml/lxsl)).

Sure PHP/MySql is hostable nearly everywhere but I had never learned PHP and so MySql was never my first choice too
Python and co is available everywhere too but it's not as usual as PHP to use it this way.
If you can program with Python or want to learn a new programming language I (personally) think that it is a nice try.

It is a somehow other approach than classical website building but it has its benefits I think and I like it.
If you want to know more details I can write some more (and provide some useful functions). Perhaps I find some time to write a HowTo or Tutorial but that would be a project for itself I think

Well, I know about as much of Python as I do of PHP and MySql, which is a lot more than I realized, so it isn't a problem with me to do either. The real issue was I wasn't sure of the host, and I know some hosts can't do Python, whereas PHP is universally accepted. I was looking into that, and while it did offer some impressive benefits, I don't think they're all that needed for this particular project. Everything I need to do is mostly database manipulation with a little bit of PHP.

But, if I were planning on making a bigger website with more features, I'd definitely consider it. Heck, I might even switch to it next year, since I'll probably look at my website and think it's junk by then

[Anvilfolk]

You might actually be able to host it at come. You can get some really nifty packs that install all you need on your computer (like Apache, PHP, MySQL, phpMyAdmin). All you need is to configure port forwarding in your router and you're good to go. All you need is a stable home connection, and a computer that stays online!

I assume HopFlash's solution also works on your home computer

[webadict]

You might actually be able to host it at come. You can get some really nifty packs that install all you need on your computer (like Apache, PHP, MySQL, phpMyAdmin). All you need is to configure port forwarding in your router and you're good to go. All you need is a stable home connection, and a computer that stays online!

I assume HopFlash's solution also works on your home computer

Unfortunately, my computer is not one of those. It's a dinky little laptop that's prone to lots of problems.

Also... I have spent so much time trying to install those things... And here comes the easiest solution ever... OMG, thank you.

[HopFlash]

I assume HopFlash's solution also works on your home computer

sure

I builded up two "festival" games with a friend in the Kingdom of Loathing Community and there was much more interaction needed and as we both were way more capable to program in Python than in PHP it was perfect

So I hope you get this nice idea up. I can't help with programming but I try to watch this topic as it's a nice thing you do

[webadict]

I do like Python, so I'll definitely consider it for next time.

Also, woo! That saved me several more hours of trying to get everything to work properly. I can't believe I never thought of that... But, this should allow me to test the design from my computer, even if only for a bit.

Hopefully, I can get some of these things crossed off my list.

Thanks for the help so far, guys! I really do enjoy the Christmas Giveaway, and this just makes everything smoother, faster, and hopefully more enjoyable.

[webadict]

I'm getting somewhere! I've gotten a few barebones operations going so far. You can now create a giveaway with various options, which has to be approved by an admin, which is basically a good start.

List of basic things to do:
Display available giveaways
Join a giveaway
Unjoin a giveaway
Give a list of participants to the giveaway owner
Admin commands

After that, I'll be creating more advanced options.