About Open Objects

Open Objects v2.5.0

Over the past few years, we have been concentrating on building components that are common to our builds at Open Agency. Based on our past experience with clients these include functions such as login actions, uploading images, users etc. The aim is to be able to use these for any upcoming and future websites with an eye to upgrade/update them in the future as easily as possible.

Along the build we have researched best methods for maximum security and accuracy (preventing bugs) while implementing the most modern and up-to-date build techniques, basing the build against a framework similar to the "Zend Framework" but unique to Open. Building from scratch is to ensure that we at Open know exactly what is going on in our code. By removing unwanted code, actions, methods and functions we have aimed to speed up and optimise the site from both a user and server perspective.

This framework is called "Open Objects".

With sites coming up in quick succession, building each of these using this framework (and future sites) should help with initial implementation as some of the common tasks are already completed for us, speeding up the build process. Maintenance over the course of the sites life should be improved as the developers will be alerted of any bugs from multiple sites and can action updates to all sites if needed, when needed. Should a re-skin be required it will be a relatively smooth process in the future as layout is separated from content following the ideals of the "Zend Framework" and the MVC (Model-View-Controller), sounds technical but really what we are doing is separating the content of the page from how it looks on screen.

Using Frameworks

As we have mentioned, we have developed our own framework here at Open called "Open Objects". It's not to say that existing frameworks are good/bad, better/worse than Open Objects but not everything is required that these frameworks offer and these frameworks cannot offer erverything we've needed in the past.

Larry Ullman best sumed up frameworks in his book "PHP 5 Advanced", a good source of information during our research for this application.

"Frameworks are libraries of established code meant to facilitate development. There are many well-conceived frameworks available for PHP, well over 40 at last count. Zend, the company behind the PHP engine, has recently entered the framework discussion with its very own version (http://framework.zend.com).
Frameworks usually use a modular system but on a much more elaborate scale. "

"Developing Web Applications", Page 72, Chapter 2
"PHP 5 Advanced, Visual Quickpro Guide, 2nd Edition", By Larry Ullman, Peachpit Press, published February 2007

With so many to choose from, who know which one is the best to use!

" The arguments for using frameworks are the same as those for using OOP or PEAR: they allow you to quickly build applications with (hopefully) better features and security. The arguments against using frameworks are also comparable to OOP and PEAR: they require time and effort to learn, let alone master, and may be difficult to customise. It's also probable that framework-driven sites will run more slowly (due to extra processing required)."

"Developing Web Applications", Page 72, Chapter 2
"PHP 5 Advanced, Visual Quickpro Guide, 2nd Edition", By Larry Ullman, Peachpit Press, published February 2007

Our main concern with frameworks are the difficulty to customise, Open are known for their bespoke approach towards web development, creating unique sites for unique clients. A further concern is the extra processing load on our servers that come with using frameworks as they accomodate for the unknown which in many cases are not needed. By removing unwanted code, actions, methods and functions we have aimed to speed up and optimise the site from both a user and server perspective.

" Personally, I'm not a framework person, as I like to get my hands dirty with code, but you may like them. For a good discussion and comparison of ten popular frameworks, see www.phpit.net/article/ten-different-php-frameworks/ "

"Developing Web Applications", Page 72, Chapter 2
"PHP 5 Advanced, Visual Quickpro Guide, 2nd Edition", By Larry Ullman, Peachpit Press, published February 2007

From our own personal relationship with Frameworks, they do indeed facilitate rapid development of applications. But they do also slow your site down becuase there's so much extra going on that you don't need becuase it accomodates for things that must applications never need! That's why our framework only deals with what we have a history with.

Existing CMSystems

Just like frameworks, there are many different CMS' out there that facilitate the maintenance of your website. But just like frameworks, they too accomodate for every scenario, often leaving the users baffled with it's complexity and lost in a system they don't recognise becuase you've had to stick with an unbranded, default template.

Our Open Objects Admin system aims to simplify the admin experience in order to help you get on with what's important - maintaining your website. With as little learn time as possible. Most of the arguments for and against using bespoke admin systems are similar to frameworks, so read more about that above. We're just confident that our admin system is easy to use and can be tailored to meet your exact requirements (including how it looks) without having to sacrifice on anything.