07/01/2019
About time for another update I think.
We have essentially finished the redevelopment and testing processes. There are a few more bits and pieces to do but all but two of our existing customers have now migrated over to the new version allong with a number of new ones.
The system is working better than we could have hoped for with the AI Database management returning complex pages in well under a second.
07/11/2017
Another period of hard development leaves us with seventeen sites now live in the new system. This includes two web appllications with thousands of objects.
We have been developing the Email system, data import, PDF and Excel output, easy image uploading for end users, database diagrams for developers, data transfer from the old version and many other features.
We are now finishing off a few of the finer details before transferring more systems and redeveloping BusiPro in UDB
04/09/2017
We have been very busy over the last month transferring more sites to the new version including some office back-end sites . We have added Excel file output and a number of features to speedup and improve the development process. I have also moved to Bootstrap 4. A process that took the majority of a weekend as they have made a number of significant changes and improvements since version 3.
We have also been working on documenting the system by adding a lot of content to the new help pages.
26/07/2017
We now have three sites live on the new version and a fourth, and far more complex system, is well under way and development has been very rapid. I demonstrated the progress to the new customer yesterday and he was very impressed and excited to see the end product.
We have also been completing lots of the finer details on the new system such as Development Wizards, SSL Certificate maintenance and PDF generation.
20/06/2017
Second site now live on the new version. I have transferred over http://www.davecelectrical.co.uk/. Everything went well and the new upload tool mad things a lot easier by allowing multiple files to be dragged from my PC.
11/06/2017
Our first site is now live in the new version of UDB.
It was only right that our own site was tested on the new system before any others so this is it. All seems to be running well and everything is loading faster than on the previous version which is encouraging as we are currently hosting this on a single core low memory server at the moment. The new documentation area is also underway as we are intending to write the majority of it is we develop.
We are holding off on bringing any more sites live for a little while longer until the tools to do so are properly complete. This will make the transfer to the new system easier and quicker.
The WYSIWYG editor has now been properly integrated into the system along with a number of plugins we have written to access particular UDB functions such as the Upload Tool, Glossary Items and the UDB Help pages.
Doesn't seem like much to report on this month but a lot of progress has been made on some of the back end system such as the Forgotten Password and Registration processes, Object Editing and System Maintenance Task Management.
Many Thanks,
Ian
04/05/2017
The redevelopment of the Ultimate Database is now well underway.
php and PostgreSQL have been chosen over the previous ASP Classic and MS SQL. This has increased the availability of third party tools, reduced licencing and hosting costs and improved performance.
Redeveloping the system from scratch has enabled the introduction of many new technologies. One of the most advanced is a systems we have created that gives the database the ability to learn what queries will be required for particular situations. This allows it to send back multiple query results to the server in one go. The php server will then see that the data is already there and wont need to make the request to the database. This results in faster page loads and less resource hungry software.
Another significant improvement we have made is the introduction of Dynamically Updated Draft Objects. This means that whenever you edit an item, the system creates a temporary copy of it on the database. This draft copy is then adjusted live as you change the information. When you then hit Save, the changes are moved to the live object. This means that if web connection is lost during editing, you wont't lose any work as when you come back to the site and start editing the object again, you will be returned back to the same draft object where all your changes will be held. It also allows you to preview the draft copy of the page at any point without affecting the live version.
Some other improvements we have made include:
- A more flexible email system allowing emails to be sent to the bulk mail sender using some very simple UDB code
- An advanced code editor for site developers
- Improved User login and security technology
- Improved Wizards for creating Lists and Templates
- Function definition objects
- Improved dynamic component loading
- Automatic form validation JavaScript
- Ajax Site Menus
- More comprehensive Bootstrap integration and mobile friendly sites
- The ability to share applications across organisations
- Greater administrator powers allowing adjustment of almost every aspect of the system
- Vastly improved asset manager with user folders, image editing and drag and drop file uploads
Regarding progress. We were planing to get the first few simple sites running in April but have found that a lot more of the overall development is needed before we can create multiple sites. This is because the first application needs to be the UDB system itself which is obviously quite a complex system. So although we haven't met our first goal, we are actually well ahead of schedule on our second which was to complete some of the more advanced functionality.
Next update in June.
Many thanks,
Ian