list of advisors

SURVEYS
software
client relations
design
programming
offshore programming

ASP is pretty simple in terms syntax and more forgiving the Javascript. It was much easier to learn and implement. Downside is that it is IIS specific so it isn't portable to other servers. Another downside is that it can't perform any client side functions. Javascript is harder in terms of syntax, but more widely used. It does do client side process so is good for things like form validation.

Please describe a recent project you have worked on in which programming was required. I created an online project management site for another project we are working. The project mananagement site has a database that stores our data and uses ASP to read/write to the database. I did most of the work in Dreamweaver Ultradev, but hand coded most of the ASP code because the built ASP functions of Dreamweaver were to limited. The site went up pretty quick, about 3 days, and we been revising it as necessary.

What development tools do you use for writing, debugging and testing?
Mostly UltraDev, sometimes notepad for CSS. Our users are on an intranet that is 100% IE, so that is what we use for testing. We don't have to deal with browser compatibility

If a student asked you to recommend a good first language for a programmer, what would you recommend?
VBScript, because it is easy to learn. PHP is pretty easy also, and more widely used.

What operating systems and web servers should be covered in a programming curriculum?
Apache and IIS. PHP is the future of server side programming, so that is a must.

Do you have any additional advice for someone hoping to pursue a career in Web Programming? Learn C++. Learn Java. You'll need them later. Web Programming languages like JavaScript and PHP are good places to start, but you need Java and C++ will give you more options and opportunities. Learn the web server software. It is hard to code without knowing the OS.

Iris Johnson: irjohnso@cisco.com, Cisco Systems Inc.

What programming languages have you used for the Web sites you've developed?
HTML, Perl/CGI, Javscript, Actionscript (Flash), Cold Fusion, UNIX

Briefly describe what you feel are the strengths and weakness of the languages mentioned above.
HTML does the job, but throw it a curve ball and it will freak out. All I can say about HTML is test, test, test (in every environment!) Perl/CGI is a great language as long as you can utilize all of the modules you want. Corporations are picking about which modules they will allow on their servers.

Please describe a recent project you have worked on in which programming was required. Most recently we have dealt with reformating all of the permissions on the folder and files in our cgi-bin. Our entire site has moved to a higher level on the server and therefore our cgi-bin lives in a folder above htdocs (where our directory lives). What used to be poeeible through a simple SAMBA connection is now only possible through a session in UNIX.

What development tools do you use for writing, debugging and testing?
We use Ultra edit on my team and Reflection for our UNIX.

If a student asked you to recommend a good first language for a programmer, what would you recommend?
Perl

What operating systems and web servers should be covered in a programming curriculum?
Apache, IIS, UNIX, Linux, Redhat Linux, NT

Do you have any additional advice for someone hoping to pursue a career in Web Programming? Be ready to learn everyday and be patient, because each problem is diffent. After being a web developer for over 6 years, I still spend a least 2 -3 days a quarter in training.

Tomas Chadsey: tomas@pressdemo.com, The Press Democrat

What programming languages have you used for the Web sites you've developed?
Cold Fusion, Perl, Javascript, ASP, SQL.

Briefly describe what you feel are the strengths and weakness of the languages mentioned above.
I've been working with Cold Fusion for about 3 years. Our perl, asp, and javascript code was written by other developers.

Please describe a recent project you have worked on in which programming was required. The most important project was the online classifieds. At the time, a third-party company was putting our print classifieds online (AdOne). We needed to bring this in house. I built the existing online classified search with cold fusion and sql2000. I also created the search agent (Ad Hunter) which emails custom results to users. A recent smaller project was the Clip and Go maps. http://www.pressdemocrat.com/lifestyle/index.html (link on left) Users can search, print, and email outdoor maps of Sonoma County.

What development tools do you use for writing, debugging and testing?
I use Cold Fusion Studio for writing. Ultra-Edit is great for search and replace and converting text to hex mode. Sometimes, I'll get a text file that will include characters not recognized. My workstation is running Windows2000 Professional, IIS and SQL.

If a student asked you to recommend a good first language for a programmer, what would you recommend?
I would recommend having a good understanding of Perl or C. The web applications (CF, ASP, JS) are built on these foundation languages.

What operating systems and web servers should be covered in a programming curriculum?
My experience is with NT and IIS. ASP, of course, is built into Microsoft's OS. Cold Fusion can run in other environments but other developers I know use IIS. SQL is a must for any curriculum.

Do you have any additional advice for someone hoping to pursue a career in Web Programming? I would recommend focusing on one web programming language. ASP, CF, PHP, for example, are very simliar in behavior. The syntax changes but the logic carries throughout all of them. We had an intern who was an expert at perl. He picked up Cold Fusion in a few weeks. Try to keep up with the latest industry trends. We'll see Cold Fusion integrating Flash, and Java technology in the next version, Neo.

Le Nguyen: srjc@datasail.com, AFC

What programming languages have you used for the Web sites you've developed?
VBScript, JavaScript, SQL.

Briefly describe what you feel are the strengths and weakness of the languages mentioned above.
Since all of our web development is based on the Windows platform, the natural technology choice is Active Server Pages. ASP is script language independent, but VBScript is the most popular language for ASP developement. It is an easy language to learn and use, and provides all the functionality needed to generate dynamic web pages. SQL is the defacto language for database development. We use SQL to leverage the capability of different enterprise databases. Client side JavaScript is occasionally used to facilitate client side interactions, navigation, and some cursory form validation. As it is somewhat prone to client side dependencies (i.e. different browser makes and versions), we use it sparingly and never for mission critical functionality.

Please describe a recent project you have worked on in which programming was required. Applications involving programming can be something as simple as an expandable menu rotating style sheets. Many server based programming applications are designed to incorporate database functionality. This might include common applications such as customer registration and login, online forms and surveys, job listings and resume submissions, online order status and product tracking.

What development tools do you use for writing, debugging and testing?
A plain text editor is used for ASP and JavaScript development. SQL Development tools are specific to the database vendors.

If a student asked you to recommend a good first language for a programmer, what would you recommend?
If you will be doing web application development on a Windows platform, Visual Basic would be a good place to start. If you will be doing web application development on a Unix platform, then one of the following might be a better starting point, Java, C/C++, Perl. For database development, basic SQL is a must.

What operating systems and web servers should be covered in a programming curriculum?
Windows NT/2000 and IIS. Some flavor of Unix and Apache.

Do you have any additional advice for someone hoping to pursue a career in Web Programming? Technologies and programming languages come and go. The more languages you have under your belt, the more options you have to solve a given problem. But the most important skill is being able to understand and break down complex problems into manageable, practical, and codeable segments. The programming language is just a tool to implementing the solution. You first have to come up with A solution. Learn to do more than just program. Successful application developers need to be able to ineract with people, to gather specifications, to understand and empathize with user needs.

Jay Field: jay.field@sonoma.edu, Sonoma State University

What programming languages have you used for the Web sites you've developed?
perl sql shell scripting

Briefly describe what you feel are the strengths and weakness of the languages mentioned above.
Perl is very portable and very flexible. CATE has been developed on the model of a mod_perl apache server and the mysql database. The new Linux web server at SSU was also developed using mod_perl so that we could write our own handlers to customize the server.

Please describe a recent project you have worked on in which programming was required. At SSU we ported our web environment from the mac to to Linux. We wrote some perl to handle certain functions that were previously handled by mac binaries.

What development tools do you use for writing, debugging and testing?
text editor perl and unix system debugging tools, nothing fancy hopefully, a development machine for testing

If a student asked you to recommend a good first language for a programmer, what would you recommend?
perl php C++

What operating systems and web servers should be covered in a programming curriculum?
Linux or Solaris and apache win32 and apache win32 and IIS mac os x and apache - though I would favor solaris or linux before that one.

Do you have any additional advice for someone hoping to pursue a career in Web Programming? learn an sql database such as oracle, mysql, postgres learn the target operating system as well as you can

Jamie Spooner: jspoon@planeteria.com, Planeteria

What programming languages have you used for the Web sites you've developed?
HTML, Dynamic HTML, Active Server Pages, JavaScript, VBScript, T-SQL.

Briefly describe what you feel are the strengths and weakness of the languages mentioned above.
HTML - broad-based standard that is easy to learn. Difficulty can arise because browsers interpret HTML differently. Dynamic HTML - one can achieve many great effect with DTHML, including multimedia-like effects without the bandwidth cost of multimedia tecnologies. Mostly an Internet Explorer technology, so support by other browsers is limited. Active Server Pages - Allows you to build dynamically- generated content on the fly. You can interface your pages with a database using ASP to store/retrieve information for the user (e.g. returning search results) or use it to personalize content. Drawbacks: ASP is an interpreted language, which means that before the page can be loaded, all of the server-side ASP code must be interpreted and processed by the server. This can lead to performance issues if code is not planned/developed properly. JavaScript - a client-side language loosely based on the C programming language. Is a richer and more in-depth client- side programming language than VBScript, but has a steeper learning curve. VBScript - client-side derivative of the Visual Basic programming language. Easy to learn, but limited in scope. T-SQL - Transact-SQL is the language that allows you to store/retrieve data in a database via SQL stored procedures. Using stored procedures offers better performance and scalability than does coding your SQL calls right into your ASP pages.

Please describe a recent project you have worked on in which programming was required. Sebastopol Fine Wine (www.sebastopolfinewine.com). This is an online interface for a wine merchant located in Sebastopol, CA. The web site allows customers to browse through the available wine inventory and submit purchase orders, as well as get information about wine tasting and musical events sponsored by the winery.

What development tools do you use for writing, debugging and testing?
Microsoft Visual Interdev and Visual Studio.Net, Microsoft SourceSafe for code versioning. SR32 for search and replace functionality. Internet Explorer and Netscape Navigator for testing. CuteFTP for FTPing developed files to the appropriate server.

If a student asked you to recommend a good first language for a programmer, what would you recommend?
Definitely HTML. It is easy to learn and will be required knowledge no matter which platform or browser they plan to develop for.

What operating systems and web servers should be covered in a programming curriculum?
Operating Systems: Windows 2000 Server, RedHat Linux, UNIX, Mac OS. Web Servers: Microsoft Internet Information Server, Linux Web Server

Do you have any additional advice for someone hoping to pursue a career in Web Programming? The best advice is to start out by volunteering to make sites for your friends or family. This will give you a great way to learn on the job, add a few small sites to your resume, and discover if this type of work is something you have fun doing. The best programmers are the ones who find the work creatively stimulating and challenging intellectually.

Pat Louvau: pat.louvau@serra.com, Serra Systems

What programming languages have you used for the Web sites you've developed?
I program with Active Server Pages, using VBScript and Javascript. I'm currently training on the use of ASP.Net.

Briefly describe what you feel are the strengths and weakness of the languages mentioned above.

Please describe a recent project you have worked on in which programming was required. I have created several e-commerce applications, the last of which includes online credit card authorization. I have created many general data tracking applications for such areas as sales leads, sales quotes, employee contact information, website usage statistics, training class evaluations, etc. Each one provides a general, filterable, sortable display of all entries, new entry screens, edit screens and the creation of automatic e-mails when needed.

What development tools do you use for writing, debugging and testing?
I use FrontPage 2002.

If a student asked you to recommend a good first language for a programmer, what would you recommend?
I think a new programmer should have a good foundation in C and C++ and a good understanding of Object Oriented programming. From there I would introduce Visual Basic, VBScript and Javascript.

What operating systems and web servers should be covered in a programming curriculum?
I'm partial to Windows NT and 2K and Windows IIS.

Do you have any additional advice for someone hoping to pursue a career in Web Programming? I recommend learning to use ASP and/or ASP.Net. They are very powerful, especially with Internet Explorer.

Heidi Jorgensen: hjorgensen@hjorgensen.com, AFC as an intern

What programming languages have you used for the Web sites you've developed?
ASP, VBScript, JavaScript, HTML, Perl

Briefly describe what you feel are the strengths and weakness of the languages mentioned above.
I like the way ASP using VBScript interacts with HTML to make dynamic websites. On one system I am working on now, a single ASP file is being used to get information from a database and then it displays different sorts as the user clicks on different links. Perl is used mainly as a parser and works well for transporting form information.

Please describe a recent project you have worked on in which programming was required. I developed a website for a family member and used JavaScript to do form checking and rollovers. I used ASP to produce several pages and tranmit the data.

What development tools do you use for writing, debugging and testing?
I've started using Edit Plus for writing ASP pages. It color codes the file for you. It numbers the lines of the file for you and subsequent error messages print out that number. You can get a trial copy at their website. I have found that building a site one element at a time works best. This way the error is isolated to one section of code (usually). Typical debugging techniques are writing out variables as you go through the building process like printing out database queries before you actually execute them.

If a student asked you to recommend a good first language for a programmer, what would you recommend?
C++, then you will appreciate the ease of other languages!

What operating systems and web servers should be covered in a programming curriculum?
ASP and UNIX.

Do you have any additional advice for someone hoping to pursue a career in Web Programming? Take as many courses as you can. Don't restrict yourself to the programming end. Photoshop is a great tool to learn. When it comes time for job hunting, you never know if an 8 week course might be the edge you need. Learn something about both platforms too.

Jeremy Wyman: tao_te_ching@hotmail.com, WA Interactive

What programming languages have you used for the Web sites you've developed?
JavaScript, JScript, VBScript, ASP, Java, ActionScript, JSP, VisualBasic, C++, and SQL. Note: HTML and XML are not programming languages perse but I do use those too :)

Briefly describe what you feel are the strengths and weakness of the languages mentioned above.
OK, JavaScript is useful everywhere (even Pocket PC) but has less features and less power than JScript which is an IE only version. VBScript allows IE (admit it, IE has won) to integrate with ActiveX components and Flash. ASP is a server side development psudo-language that allows developers to develop for MS IIS 5+ using VBScript, JScript, and/or PERL. In my opinion is faster to develop and execute than PERL or JSP. Java is a niffty little language (that really wants to be cross-platform but isn't) that allows individual components to be built for JSP and can be used to compile Java Applets to be run in a browser (see JavaScript for a better alternative). VisualBasic is a necissary evil in the world of Windows (I prefer C++ as a compiled language). C++, well it allows you to create and/or extend just about everything in the world of computing... it's just not designed to run directly in a browser so think server-side and/or ActiveX components. SQL is simply the best way to access database stored information, no matter MYSQL or MS SQL Server 2000. HTML is foundation of the Web (not the Internet) and XML is becomming the defacto standard for data sharing.

Please describe a recent project you have worked on in which programming was required. Well, I built a store-like Wine Club for J Wine using ASP, Visual Basic, JavaScript, and SQL. ASP was used on the server to generate JavaScript enriched HTML pages (DHTML) and used a few custome built server-side components (using VB). SQL was used to enter, retrieve, and parse the database stored data.

What development tools do you use for writing, debugging and testing?
I use HomeSite 4.5 for HTML, JavaScript, VBScript, SQL, and ASP authoring, with the annoying 'design' tab turned off. I use Visual Studio 6 for C++ and VB programming. I'm still looking for a good JSP and Java compiler (let me know). Of course I just use the IDE that is built into Flash 5 for ActionScript authoring.

If a student asked you to recommend a good first language for a programmer, what would you recommend?
JavaScript!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It's the EMCA standard, it has a 'C' like style and therefore a 'C++' and 'Java' like style. It is machine independant, and all of the new psudo-languages like ASP and ActionScript use it as a basis. As a beginner anything else is waste of your time. Oh and now that I'm living in Asia I realize that Linux and PERL are not so poular as they are in the bay area. They have their place but MS software dominates and what isn't windows is IBM LotusNotes.

What operating systems and web servers should be covered in a programming curriculum?
Windows 2000, Windows .NET, IIS 5, MS SQL Server, and the other Microsoft Server systems. Not because they're the best but because they're what businesses are using and what is really out there. Since moving to Asia I haven't seen a non-MS box (OK I saw a new iMac for sale once).

Do you have any additional advice for someone hoping to pursue a career in Web Programming? Focus on JavaScript for now but look towards the future. By the time you enter the field it will be different and of course you'll need to leave the Bay Area if you want to find a job now. If you can wait it out things should pick up there again.

Genny Engel: genny@webhabitat.com, Web Habitat, Inc.

What programming languages have you used for the Web sites you've developed?
Primarily VBScript for ASP(Active Server Pages) with JavaScript for client-side processing. Small amount of VB for ASP components. Small amount of perl, php, and Java (JSP) for specific projects.

Briefly describe what you feel are the strengths and weakness of the languages mentioned above.
VBScript, php, and JavaScript are all scripting languages. They are not as fast as compiled languages (such as components or CGIs written in VB or C++), but they are quick and easy to change because they don't require recompiling. Client-side programming should always be done in JavaScript because it is well supported across various browsers. Server-side programming can be done in a variety of languages. ASP and php are easier to learn than perl and Java, but for overall capability for running a web application, any of them is really fine.

Please describe a recent project you have worked on in which programming was required. Job board -- tasks include setting up the database itself, scripts to accept user input and put it in the database, and search scripts to get information back out of the database and display it on the page. This is typical of server-side programming jobs -- they almost always involve some kind of database handling.

What development tools do you use for writing, debugging and testing?
Some use of Visual Interdev and Visual SourceSafe -- but mainly a text editor and a browser!

If a student asked you to recommend a good first language for a programmer, what would you recommend?
php or VBScript/ASP

What operating systems and web servers should be covered in a programming curriculum?
It would be good to get a taste of all three: 1) Open source (such as php or perl on Apache) 2) Server-side Java (EJB/JSP) 3) ASP/VBScript on IIS

Do you have any additional advice for someone hoping to pursue a career in Web Programming? Learn the SQL language and learn some web server administration and general networking concepts. You will probably need to program a website to interact with a database, and it's helpful to have an understanding of how the server and the networks operate. But mainly, never forget all websites are for their USERS.

Evelyn Eyer: eeyer@allerderm.com, Allerderm Labs

What programming languages have you used for the Web sites you've developed?
HTML, ASP, visual basic, java script, java

Briefly describe what you feel are the strengths and weakness of the languages mentioned above.

Please describe a recent project you have worked on in which programming was required. Our AllerOUTLET...ASP header with a pop up window everytime an order is placed

What development tools do you use for writing, debugging and testing?
Front Page 2002 for writing web pages and for QC testing we do it ourselved internally

If a student asked you to recommend a good first language for a programmer, what would you recommend?
HTML...this is the basics

What operating systems and web servers should be covered in a programming curriculum?
UNIX, LINUX, DOS, pc/mac environment

Do you have any additional advice for someone hoping to pursue a career in Web Programming? if you like being creative, like to hand code and like working on a computer...web programming is for you.

Brian Petro: srjc@bpwebdesign.com, Bright Productions Website Design

What programming languages have you used for the Web sites you've developed?
Perl PHP (scripting language) JavaScript (scripting language) SQL Lingo (for CD-Roms) C Java HTML (isn't really a language, but what the heck)

Briefly describe what you feel are the strengths and weakness of the languages mentioned above.
Perl Strength- flexible, easy to find programmers weakness- applications are commonly not scalable PHP (scripting language) Strength- server side, flexible, easy to find programmers, easy to do database work weakness - ??? JavaScript (scripting language) Strength - great solution for very small applications Weakness - it's client side, so it's possible that it won't work for some of the audience. SQL Strengths - robust database language weaknesses - ???? Lingo (for CD-Roms) Strength - allows more interactive presentations Weakness - harder to find a programmer than some other languages C We don't use this real often. Java Didn't really stand up to hype. We've only used Java a time or two. Portability (Java's supposed great strength) is rarely an issue for our applications. HTML No comment needed

Please describe a recent project you have worked on in which programming was required. We recently built the online portion of a contest for KJZY. The application was written primarily with PHP and Perl. Contestants can sign up or withdraw online via a form. There are multiple layers of data verification before the entry is accepted. All data is written to a text database. We would have used MySQL, but the site is hosted at ATG (they don't support MySQL). KJZY staff can use an online administrative area to: *send HTML e-mail automatically to all contestants. *Sign up contestants manually who fail the automated signup data verification *Observe real-time data analysis of the database such as percentages of users in a given age range or from a given city. *Take the contest on or offline with the click of a button *manually edit the database or add notes regarding a particular entrant via an online tool.

What development tools do you use for writing, debugging and testing?
Development was done for the most part with a text editor. Debugging and testing was conducted manually. This was a pretty simple project.

If a student asked you to recommend a good first language for a programmer, what would you recommend?
C Although we don't actually use C much, almost all of the languages that we do use are based on C. It is my understanding that pretty much all beginning programming classes are taught in C or C++.

What operating systems and web servers should be covered in a programming curriculum?
Almost all of our work is hosted on Linux boxes that run Apache. However.... there are a significant percentage of websites (I'm guessing 30% of the Internet) that are hosted on machines running a Windows NT or 2000 server. Usually a web developer fairly early on starts filling their "tool box" with Unix-based or Windows-based tools and they generally stick with that. Although some have a religious zeal about one system over the other, I have a more pragmatic view: I already know now to ski, so why would I want to learn how to snow-board? I enjoy skiing and am fairly good at it. I know I'll just flop around looking stupid and possibly injure myself if I try to snowboard. Certainly one could argue the advantages of one sport over the other, but at the end of the day they will both get you to the bottom of the hill.

Do you have any additional advice for someone hoping to pursue a career in Web Programming? If you plan on freelancing- 1. Get some business skills: writing, verbal communication, accounting, marketing, estimating etc.. When you run your own business, you have to do everything, not just programming. You can be a great programmer, but I you can't take care of the business end, you'll never make it. 2. Don't bid on a job that is over your head. In a perfect world, when I hire a programmer, I want to hire someone who has done exactly what I need a million times.

Christalene Loren: lorenwolf@hotmail.com, LorenVision

What programming languages have you used for the Web sites you've developed?
JavaScript and Perl for creating or modifying CGI scripts.

Briefly describe what you feel are the strengths and weakness of the languages mentioned above.
Unfortunatley JavaScript is not compatable in both Netscape and Explorer. Using Javascript extensively for interactivity requires writing two sites one for each browser. Bummer. My experience at Perl is limited to modifying alaready existing CGI scripts so I can not say what its weaknesses are except to say that using the server to create interactivity is slower than using the browser with JavaScript applications written directly on the page document.

Please describe a recent project you have worked on in which programming was required. I have not worked on any recent projects but this summer I am involved on an internet animation project using Flash and some Javascript.

What development tools do you use for writing, debugging and testing?
Dreamweaver, Homesite, Edit Plus,

If a student asked you to recommend a good first language for a programmer, what would you recommend?
JavaScript, which is not really a complete language and XML which is the wave of the future.