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Yes a Db can be used to store the "blog" info
- but it will require custom server side coding to display it and mange it

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SBR @ ENJOY (-: [ Microsoft MVP - FrontPage ]
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| Does anybody know: Is it possible to use Access in order to create a psuedo
| blog?
 
Dear Keith,

Please forgive the posts here that are supposed to be funny, but really end
up being mean-spirited. Just listen to the MVP's and ignore the clowns. Your
question is a good and valid one.

A "blog" is just a series of entries - usually sorted by date, like a diary.
They're either written directly to a page (bad form - big page), or using a
form, submitted to a database. When you stick them in a database (like
Access), you have the ability to control what is rendered on the final page.
You can sort by date (the standard), by author, size, whatever. The good
blogs make it easy for the visitor to search by a number of criteria;
calendars (click a date - read an entry), look for a keyword, or topic, etc.
The trick in a good blog is not the writing, as is obvious if you read most
of them, but the presentation. Blogger, Yahoo, MSN, AOL, Bloglines, etc., are
popular because they let the author focus on his thoughts, and not on the
back-end (the database/code/rendering part). But they all are basically a
form-to-database, database query-to-webpage idea, just like you guessed.

A few issues have to be addressed: you have to set permissions on who can
write to your blog (limiting access to the input form), making the entries
editable (or removable altogether), and formatting the output so it is easy
to read, and easy to search. If you have been writing every day for three
years, wonderful; if I am exposed to your page with all 1000+ entries on the
same page; I'm probably going to leave. Give me a few interesting posts to
digest, and I may be interested in seeing more. Give me the ability to search
by date or keyword, and I might bookmark it and come back later.

You can make a form in FrontPage with items like author, topic, and e-mail,
all in text-box fields, and under that a text-area (memo-style) field for the
body of your entry, and then right-click inside the form, select 'Form
Properties' and tell FrontPage you want to save it to a new database;
Frontpage will magically create the Access database for you, tell you what
connection to use to get to it, and so on; then you create a new page, select
Insert... Database... Results..., and choose the new connection - whammo!
Instant blog. But then you have to protect the original form page from the
public, format the Database Results page to your liking, add the search
fields, etc. etc. etc., or you can give yourself a big headstart and go
download a ready-made app like Andrew Murray gave you, or go try the Free Web
Wiz Journal (very easy set-up, calendar, admin area, database editor,
blablabla) from the good folks at Web Wiz Guide:

http://www.webwizguide.info/asp/sample_scripts/journal_application.asp

I quote from their page: "The Free Web Wiz Journal (Blog) application is
commented on each line of code to make it easier for a beginner to follow or
to customize. Share your thoughts with the rest of the world or keep your
site visitors informed of site happenings, events, or updates with this Site
Journal (Blog)".

Once you download it, look at the code, see how it is done with a couple of
pages and an Access database, you will see how easy a blog is to make, and
you'll be a coding wizard in no time.

Good luck, Keith. I expect great things from you. Keep me posted.

Nicholas Savalas - http://savalas.tv
 
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