5 replies to this topic

[Force7]

Hi,

I am thinking there must be a better way to actually add the links to our directory.

For example here is my currrent system.

On our Links type page I have a title at the top that says Link Exchange with an email link, if a person clicks this link it is a simple mail link but it also adds the subject line to the email so I know they were actually at our website.

Now the problem is that manually I have to add thier link to the directory page which is very time consuming and with my life so busy I admit they sit in my email box for a couple of weeks until I get time.

There must be a way to write something that generates the HTML page and adds the link. I know there are some programs but seems like it would be a pricey solution since I have to set up the same thing on about 8 sites, mine as well as clients.

Just wondering what others were using as a solution. Am I missing something simple??

Thanks in advance!

[Jill]

You can use a script where someone submits and it's automatically added to your directory. However, that's a problem (potentially) because people will most likely spam you.

You can do something similar, but have to approve each submission before it gets added, however. That would probably make things easier. Just go to some free script sites and look up directory scripts to see what you can find.

[Haystack]

A link management tool like Arelis might be somewhat helpful in your situation. It wouldn't automate the inclusion of links, but it would help with tracking and communications.

The closest tool to help with what you're describing above that I know of is LinkPartners. As I understand it, people can submit their link to your site, and you can decide whether to approve it or not before it goes live.

[linux_lover]

I have a simple MySQL database that holds my links, and I use php to read the links to the page dynamically.

Database field structure is:

linkID (auto increment)
url
logo (graphic to show if empty its a text link)
name (alt/anchor text)
category
description

Then basically use a little php script to read all those fields depending on the category the user clicks and format it using a bit of CSS.

You can then have a simple form that allows you to easily enter a link (also you could let users do that but I wouldnt recomment it) or you could just use phpMyAdmin or similar to do it direct into the database.

Hope that helps

Lilo

[Force7]

All good suggestions, I think I may attempt the MySQL, and I really appreciate the fields you have listed. It seems like if I set up a system then it would be easy to duplicate for each client to help them out as well. I would definately want to approve links before it posted to the site, I just need something that is easy to do the second I get a link instead of putting in the procrastinator's official to do list!

[Randy]

To build upon Lilo's suggestion it would be a piece of cake to let people submit their own links to your site and still require admin approval. Simply add another table. Name it something like Approved.

Have your submission page that others use automatically set that to be false (0) and then build a little password protected admin panel that let's you display all of those links waiting for approval with the ability to either approve or delete them.

On your pages that display the links for visitors simply check that field for a True (1) before deciding whether to show a link or not.