Template - Military

[OWhatAThrill]

Am VERY new to PHP. Have someone who will help me on the server side but I need some graphics help. I need to get a website up within the next week or so. My son's National Guard unit is activated and they will be home end of October for 12 days before they deploy to Iraq in November. :-( I really would like the website up before they come home so I can encourage them to look at it before they deploy. Plus they get all excited when they see themselves in pictures and I've got a lot of training pics already.

We've looked around at templates that would be army colors but haven't had any luck. A forum yes, but not the main website.

I have a sister who is a graphic artist but she hasn't done any web work. From a template standpoint, I pick which "layout" I like, then just create the graphics to go in the blocks?

I've looked around at other unit sites and they have been pretty antiquated at best with one exception. The one I've found I like best is:

MILITARY SITE

I'd really like a nice looking one and have been wanting to learn php for a couple years now...hoping now is the time. Any quick tips really really appreciated.

[stenk]

Best thing is to draw up as much as possible. Maybe speak to a Web designer to get some ideas of what you want, look wise.

Content has to come from you and how you want to show of that content is where the gurus here might be able to help.

What sort of idea do you have for a web site. I understand your need for haste.

Do you want users to be able to post to the web site? Newletter updates etc...

The ways and means are endless.

All the very best to you and you Family.

Kindest regards,

[stenk]

Just an idea you could check hotscripts.com for a portal\news script. Then all you need to worry about is the content and getting your friend to help out server side.

Again all the best.

[OWhatAThrill]

Thank you for the suggestions. I will check out that hotsripts.com.

I work in conjunction with web sites every day but have only dabbled in a site here or there over the last couple years and you lose touch with technology. It's kind of fun to work with an outside vendor and just tell them what you want but it does nothing for your skills. So kinda jack of all trades here, master of none. And the company where I work has put no money behind our websites (5) until recently so we are in a major, major redesign and they will be build in the dot.net platform. The sites too intensive to do anything but keep updated in Dreamweaver, which is what I've done for the last year and a half.

So back to letting your skills fall by the wayside is where I'm sitting.

Our plan is for two websites. One that we will publish to help with support and for people to leave messages for our guys, and one more private, more for family members, with user forums where we can support each other.

There will be lots and lots of pictures and on one hand I wanted anyone to be able to upload, then realizing most people know nothing about optimizing photo's, then decided against that. My son does, and will have photoshop on his laptop, if he's allowed to have it there, and he should, so it's possible he might can do it from the pictures they take in Iraq.

Other than that, press articles (public/private), official Army memo's (private), links of important support avenues (public/private), our soldiers profiles (public/private), our soldier of the week (a block on the homepage), etc., etc.

I meant to do a site map last night and another child's needs dictated otherwise. Will work on that today.

Plus there is the father of another soldier who wants to help, he knows basic html and has never heard of php, so I told him I hoped it would be a learning experience together, but I think php is the way we need to go, and that way, he can update some areas, and I can do the others.

Thanks again and especially the wishes. Getting harder every day as the time approaches, and doing web searches trying to plot this thing out has brought me to some websites I don't think I need to view at the current time. With all due respect, some examples...

Caution: Music on load.

Final Roll Call
Last Letter Home

Thanks again. Hoping this will prove a much needed distraction during their 18 month tour and I understand the soldiers really, REALLY enjoy these sites!!