To begin… the typical process by which a web page is generated is to create various graphics, combine them with the text, and place everything on an HTML coded page. This page contains the same images and text on our computers when we have finished as it will when a visitor to your site downloads it several days or months later. These pages remain easy to change, and we will certainly often change them, but our intervention is required for the content on the pages to be altered. For this reason we call them static pages.

In contrast, we can use the processing power of the server to ask the computer to make a few decisions before we hand a visitor the page he or she requested. We often utilize this technique to allow our clients, with no prior HTML knowledge, to add or modify the content on their site through a common fill-in form. All that is needed is access to the Internet and a web browser. Through a specially-designed, password-protected website, you are able to add new content to your site or change existing information. This content could be a new wine, news item, event, or product. This type of self-updateable page is called a dynamic page.

Like most things, there are positive and negative aspects to designing your website in this manner. One positive feature is that for frequently changing content or anything you feel you would like to edit within your company website, you would not need to use a web-design company to make the changes. Updating the site can be so easy that it does not require specialized training for the staff. The ability to change things instantly might inspire your staff to do so more frequently. New content is something visitors to web sites find very popular, encouraging repeat visits to your site. The downside is a higher upfront cost. The cost of setting up the dynamic section can be much greater than simply designing the page in normal, static fashion. If frequent updates are needed, however, the overall cost may be lower when compared to the cost of paying a web design company to do the updating for you.

There are many common uses for a dynamic section. A product catalog, an events calendar, and a group of recipes are examples of types of information that is often displayed dynamically. If you notice, each item mentioned is a collection of similar items. This type of information is easily adapted to dynamic sections. In addition, we often make a small section of text or several small sections on a web page 'self-updateable'. This allows quick and easy mention of recent press, awards, or news that the customer might find interesting.

When determining the cost effectiveness of dynamic sections you should consider the following questions:

• How frequently will the information
  be changed?
• Is it important for the changes to
  be made in-house?
• Does information need to be
  changed very quickly
  (ie: less than 48 hours)?
• Does the information need to be
  synchronized from another source?
• Does the visitor to the site need
  to search the information?

Yes answers to these questions all indicate the use of a dynamic section. Please contact us for any questions about when and how a self-updateable section is used.