Server Requirements
Big Medium is software that runs on your web server (including
hosted web accounts). It supports servers running Windows and
Unix-based operating systems including Linux, OSX, Solaris, etc.
Your server should support:
Perl 5.6.1 or higher.
Big Medium is written in Perl. Most web
servers have Perl installed, but check to make sure before
installing Big Medium. Big Medium requires Perl 5.6.1 or higher and
will not run with previous versions. Perl 5.8.5 or higher is
recommended.
(If your server has a version of Perl older than 5.6.1, that means your
hosting company hasn’t updated the system since at least 2002; you
might gently suggest that they upgrade.)
CGI access.
Gotta be able to run custom CGI scripts on your web
server.
Server-side includes.
Your web server should support server-side
includes for files with the .shtml extension.
Strongly recommended: ImageMagick, GD, Imager or NetPBM.
Not required, but any of these image libraries will enable Big Medium to
size and manage your images for you automatically. Ideally, your
server has one of these Perl modules installed:
Installation is straightforward: You upload the files to your
server, run the setup wizard in your browser, and you’re done.
Looking for a hosting company where you can install Big Medium?
Check out the checklist below for auditioning hosting
companies.
Browser Requirements
Once installed on your server, you communicate with Big Medium via
your web browser. Any computer with a modern web browser can be used
to edit sites with Big Medium. Whether you use Windows, Mac or
Linux, you’re covered. The following browsers and minimum version
numbers are recommended:
- Internet Explorer 6
- Firefox 1.5
- Safari
- Camino 1.0
Big Medium’s WYSIWYG text editor is not available for Safari,
OmniWeb or other Apple WebKit browsers. Mac users can instead use
Firefox or Camino for this feature, or enter text using the Markdown
formatting syntax.
What About the Database?
Nope, don’t need one. Big Medium is designed to run in even the most
basic web hosting environments and uses text files to store your
data. This makes installation easy and data backups a snap.
Even without a database, the system scales extremely well for sites
with thousands of pages and millions of monthly page views. Unlike
database-driven systems that build a new page every time a page is
requested, Big Medium generates static web pages and builds these
pages only when you edit them. This makes for a fast site with low
server load.
Managing multiple websites
A single installation of Big Medium can manage hundreds of sites on
the same server, each with its own distinct design. However, Big
Medium can manage a website’s pages only if it has permission to
read/write files in the site’s web directory. In a nutshell: scripts
in the domain where you install Big Medium must be allowed to have
access to the files in the web directories of the sites that you
would like Big Medium to manage.
Are you planning to use Big Medium to manage only one site, or
multiple sites within the same domain? No problem, you’re all set.
But if you want to use a single installation of Big Medium to manage
sites in different domains and those domains are in rented web
space, those domains must be located under the same web account as
the domain where Big Medium is installed. Hosting companies often
offer reseller accounts or other methods of setting up domains
inside other web accounts. Pair Networks
and DreamHost are two well regarded
hosting companies that allow you to do this.
For more information about server requirements for managing sites in
multiple domains, see this support
topic.
Auditioning hosting companies
The above describes the minimum requirements. The following is a
checklist of ideal server conditions for Big Medium 2. If you’re in
the process of looking for a hosting company for your site, look for
hosting accounts that offer the following:
The latest version of Perl (as of December 2007, that's Perl 5.8.8). At the very least, go with someone offering Perl 5.8.
ImageMagick and PerlMagick version 6 or higher, along with the
Perl::Magick module for that version.
CGI access
Server-side includes
Possibility to configure domains so that Perl scripts in one “master”
domain can read/write files in another domain in the same account.
As noted above, Pair Networks and
DreamHost are two well regarded hosting
companies that meet these requirements.
Tags:
bigmedium,
hosting
