Where does time go!? We first discussed this topic back in 2008. And, of course, I'm still a keen DNNCreative subscriber. Great work from you guys. My DNN 4.8 site (www.exemplaronline.com.au) has been running well from the start but my conscience has kicked in and I am about to do a complete, start-from-scratch rebuild using 6.2. I thought it prudent to check to see if our early conclusions still hold true. A dominant aim is to have an architecture that gives SEO the greatest chance of success. Background Physically, I am hosting the site (and it’s related booking-program databases) on my premises. I use a one-site approach that caters for all roles. Logged in as admin/host, you see 23 tabs on a horizontal menu bar (using Flex 2 skin by DrNuke). I have broken the pages/tabs into three ‘sites’ by using roles and page permissions and no more than a few tabs appear on each ‘site’. The ‘sites’ are for Unregistered users (eg brochure style pages, booking form), Registered users (eg filtered, user-specific booking information (using Indoogrid as the data access layer - great product, but in death throws, aagh!)), and our Staff (eg global views of all users and their data, day-to-day management tasks). There are pages common to both (eg Our Services, Our Fleet etc), and there are others that only administrators see (eg Admin, Host , PayPal Management) Conclusions DNS, URL, Aliases, IIS configuration/maintenance is easy. Everything is pointing in the one direction. Logging In. Not ideal. With the standard DNN login you get to only have one destination/landing page. My staff have to put up with an error message and then go to their correct home page. I haven’t dug deeply but I understand new login modules can redirect logins based on specific roles. Correct? Any recommendations? Privacy/Commercial Sensitivity. All registered (ie contracted) users have to access their corporate site via the home page of the public site. I therefore dare not display ‘specials’ that they are not part of. General Configuration/maintenance. A bit messy because I am working across 23 tabs, constantly scrolling left and right. It was even very difficult to find a skin that would span so many tabs. DrNuke were terrific and modified theirs to suit my purpose (they build a ‘wide’ view). Flex 2 is excellent but I am a bit uneasy about being limited in the skin(s) that I may be able to use. (PS a blinding flash! I could go vertical! Or a combination of the two.) Page Maintenance. Very easy. Many pages are accessed by more than one role but, since there is only one instance of these common pages, maintenance is minimised. (However, I believe it is now much easier to develop and maintain dispersed data by using portal and module templates, and by sharing data and users across portals.) Search Engine Optimisation. A large percentage of the use of the site is by registered users. I have a feeling that the back-end of the site is increasing the popularity of the front end (via number of visits etc); where I need it. New Considerations Mobile Site Redirection. I haven’t researched this yet, but I know I have to! Is it a factor here? For instance, if redirections have to go to other portals (rather than to other pages within the portal), that will be a clear architectural consideration. Social Media. Again there may be similar, governing considerations. Way Ahead - Options One. Status Quo. It would be much easier for me to stick with the current architecture, and use the latest modules to streamline a number of areas (eg login). However .... probably still limited by skin choice. SEO: is it hindered/clouded by having such a diverse set of pages? ... and with the back-end not actually requiring any SEO. Or is it improved by, as I mentioned above, the back-end assisting the front-end?? Two. Or should I build each of my ‘sites’ as a Portal (probably all parents)? (With either separate URLs or as sub-domains?) I would use templates, and data and user sharing across portals. No more messy 23-wide menu. I would have unlimited access to skins (eg the public site could be fancy, the office site could be plain). Perhaps, if the public site were to be small and specific, then SEO may be more concentrated and effective. Is that how it works? (PS it’s probably worth mentioning here that we have an SEO challenge in that we have a diverse product range that doesn’t sit neatly under a few key words (ie airport transfers, weddings, conferences, charters, tours, etc ... across five geographic regions). People are searching for ‘airport transfers Cairns’, or ‘weddings Port Douglas’ etc etc etc PPS Should I have one portal for each product grouping, say by region? ... and still sharing pages etc across the portals. Decisions!? )) However ....... DNS configuration etc would be more involved, but certainly not complicated. Even with modern modules, maintenance of data across portals would be increased. (again, no problems). My understanding is that I would have to hand out more than one URL: one for the public site and then others for the other ‘sites’. That’s not ideal; it would be cleaner to talk/advertise in terms of one URL. But then again, users would each come in via their own dedicated home page and be presented with a skin that best fits. Three. Any other/better ways?? Conclusion I am tending to think Option 2. But, then again, I sure ain’t no expert! As you can see, I am confused by the possibilities! I know that it is a big ask but I would certainly welcome any advice that anyone could give me, and no doubt others with a similar headache. Regards, Gordon |