Fish Selector Wizard?

[FMJnaX]

Before I kick anything off, I revert you to this thread:
Original

I'm not the originator of the concept, but I have been dabbling in my free time with my own version. I'm pleased to announce that I have finally set up a small (and old) server in preperations of the initial release. I still have a lot to do so it may end up being a Christmas (or "year end" for those of you that may not celebrate) present from me to you. Let me give you a bit of a background on what the application will be able to do:

The applications works on a client/server framework, meaning that data is stored/retrieved from a local database (my server). It is NOT a web-site, rather a downloaded application. As a result, the application is 90% network (internet) dependent. Why 90% and not 100%? Well...

The application will allow you to save a viewed profile (not automatic, must be selected by the user) for offline retrieval. There will also be an option to "download" the entire database to work off-line. Do note, however, that in "off-line" mode, you will not be able to see profile changes or new additions. This could mean that your information is not up to date. If I get time, there will be an option to synch up all data to bring it all up to date. As noted above, though, this is designed as a client/server application.

The profiles are added/updated by the general user pool. This means YOU! When a profile (or change) is submitted, it is voted on by the administrator pool (undetermined at this time). In addition to profiles, users may submit photos (up to 5 per submission).

The general user pool will be able to vote on the quality of each profile. If the quality is lower than a certain number (with enough votes), then it will be pulled for administrator verification.

Users will be able to run compatibility charts on selected profiles. This is still in progress so detailed information is unknown (taking suggestions!!!!).

The system will include Freshwater, Brackish, and Marine. Not only will fish be included, but things like Coral, Live Rock, Plants, Crustaceans, and Inverts will eventually be built in (initial stage will be fish only).

The system is 100% FREE, but donations will be accepted. There are not monthly fees for me, aside from my electricity bill and broadband bill so my costs are minimal. Also, the general information is run by the users and not by myself. As a result, I'm able to provide the services free of charge.

Now that you have a general idea of the application, I present a few screenshots (end of the post). They're not pretty nor is the design set in stone, but just about everything you see you can expect to see in the released version.

I am taking open suggestions for ANYTHING. Don't like what you see? Let me know! Want to see something new? Let me know! I need/want your input!!!! Please remember that I am doing this in my free time. I have a full time job, a family to support, and an addiction to feed (World of Warcraft). No release date is known. It could be tomorrow (yeah right!) or it could be next year. Do know, however, that it will be the best product I can possibly deliver (it's what I do for a living after all)!!!!

Thanks for looking and for the support!!!

 

[FMJnaX]

Gotta subscribe to my own thread.

 

[Guest]

cute.. don't put your hand in the tank or you may never see it again..lmao... made up fishy?

 

[Jchillin]

Sounds terrific...I like the format already.

If you recall in the thread you linked, I was the first to naysay the project. I had the notion that the database itself would be overwhelming.

Kudos to you...can't wait to see the launch.

 

[FMJnaX]

cute.. don't put your hand in the tank or you may never see it again..lmao... made up fishy?

Very much so a made up fishy he is. Just look at the size of him (92")!!!!!! lol. Did you notice the wonderfully drawn Cichlid too? 8)

And JC, the format has already changed. I took all the data off the same page and put it in a tabbed control. This way those with bad eyesight or old hardware will be able to see everything (resolution 800x600... anybody still using it? lol). It makes it appear less cluttered as well. I'm really pushing for a very basic release here in the near future (couple of weeks) just so that I can really start to get some suggestions. I'll just have to see how it goes. As for the database, because it's virtually user driven, there's no overwhelming factor on my part. I'll take it offline for scheduled maintanence every week or so, but other than that, it'll be no sweat. I've got 250gb of storage available for it (over multiple drives in case of failure) and will pull a scheduled backup every night (automated). With whatever donations I get in, I'll put it towards the server hardware. It's currently only running a P4 1.5GHz and 128mb RAM.

Thanks for the support!!!!

 

[Psyhampster]

I'll definitely use it when you release it! Sounds like it'll be nifty!

 

[Zagz]

All I can say is WOW!

 

[virus]

just a small suggestion, instead of a picture or info being put in the user pull directly THEN let it be in the database, i say that it should need a certain amount of Votes or quality of votes to get in the Database, like (3 votes Average Vote rate 75%) APROVED or (4 votes, Average Vote Rate 45%) DENIED, this will filter out stuff people think is unessesary or false, this will in-turn need lest administrative Assitance, since it is automated



just a thought, this is if i understand this correctly

 

[FMJnaX]

just a small suggestion, instead of a picture or info being put in the user pull directly THEN let it be in the database, i say that it should need a certain amount of Votes or quality of votes to get in the Database, like (3 votes Average Vote rate 75%) APROVED or (4 votes, Average Vote Rate 45%) DENIED, this will filter out stuff people think is unessesary or false, this will in-turn need lest administrative Assitance, since it is automated



just a thought, this is if i understand this correctly

The way that I have the submission process set up is as follows:

1) User completes the forms, uploads a picture (if any: not required)
2) The profile goes to the admin table (not the available table)
3) The admins can 'queue' up profiles for voting, or they can search for specific values (i.e. if an admin is a freshie admin, they don't have to look at the marine profiles)
4) The admin will review the profile/image and give it a "star" rating. That admin will be able to edit their vote while still in the admin table, but will not see the profile in the "queue" (more to this process, but this is the majority of it)
5) If the vote count > x (x = number of admin votes. Undecided on the number right now) AND the vote rating > y (y = "star" rating. Again, undecided) AND the admin user level = "APPROVER" (able to actually submit profiles: like a super-administrator or something), then that admin can move the profile from the admin table to the actual available table.
6) Once the profile is in place, the "star" rating is reset. General users can now see the profile and give their own "star" rating to it (in addition to submitting requests to edit, delete, add picture, etc).

You make a very good suggestion, and one that has been in the planning stages since day 1 (nobody wants bogus data going in without a review). Obviously you can tell/see, but I've got a notepad with about 20 or 30 pages of notes, functions, sketches, etc. It will be a well thought out application for sure.

 

[fishfreek]

Since this is going to be a client/server application where the bulk of the data is on the server and is requested how much do you expect an average profile to be in size. In this day in age there is still a fairly large modem userbase that I hope your consitering. It sounds like the bulk of this profile is going to be text so that shouldnt be to big of a download burdern but if you also plan on hosting this on your home connection have you consitered upload speeds?

 

[FMJnaX]

Profile size is still undetermined. I'm still not even sure on the table layout. You are correct that it is (100%) text. Luckily, my parents still live in the dial-up days. Even worse, they're in a small town that only gets up to 35k, 42k if they're lucky. They are my main transfer testers. I have a server-side app to monitor upload/download on the server and it's usually <1 kb per query (loading the 25 test profiles).

Also, the image side is a seperate process. This will save time because the client doesn't have to load the image with each profile, rather it loads the image pointer (name). The client then does the physical load of the image when the user clicks on the image. This will prove to be the bottleneck on low-speed internet, but I think I'm handling it the best way I can.

As far as my download/upload, I'm on a Comcast 6Mbit download with a 768Kbit upload. I'm not sure on monthly bandwidth, however. I'm not worried about it at this point in time though. I currently run an FTP server for a bunch of my buddies and they are downloading between 20 and 50 GB of data a month. I'd imagine this app to only pull a max of 10 GB a month; and that's very generous. The FTP server will go down to make way for this app.

What else to consider technically? #1 is the machine itself. I'm running a fresh install of Windows 2000 Advanced Server. It's strictly a barebone install with securities. It has a 1.5GHz Pentium 4 and 128MB RAM . I won't be able to buff the RAM for quite some time so this will prove to be a server bottleneck for sure. #2 is the connectivity. Like I said, I've got a server monitor running and when I finally start to get numbers that test my hardware or broadband, I will look for external hosting. Obviously I don't want to do that because it would mean passing the costs along to the users (my ultimate goal is NOT to have to).

I think I've thought of just about everything, but I'm always open to suggestions.