NYCPHP Meetup

[David Krings]

Rick Retzko wrote:
> Hi All –
> 
> I’ve developed a web-based audition registration application for musical 
> organizations (All-State Chorus, Regional Band, etc).  The application 
> has been well received, but some organizations are too small to benefit 
> from the web orientation and have asked if the application could be 
> provided in a single-user version without hosting.
> 
>  
> 
> I’m exploring how to rewrite the app in PHP5 using sqlite as the backend 
> database, but haven’t figured out how to package the code so that it can 
> be loaded onto another PC without the need to install and configure an 
> Apache server for each user.  My prospective clients will not be 
> PC-literate beyond medium-weight spreadsheet usage.
> 
>  
> 
> Any and all thoughts are most appreciated!
> 

There are several stand-alone web servers available for free that are 
optimized to run with PHP. WebSrv from Luckasoft comes to mind, which 
has a nice installer that loads the latest PHP distribution and installs 
it. I am sure that you could package this up or at least create some 
simple documentation for installing the server and your code. If the 
users leave the defaults in place you can create a self-extracting ZIP 
that writes the files to the right place.
You can get the EnginSite WebSrv from here:
http://luckasoft.com/download/websrv.exe

I always use Apachefriend's XAMPP, which installs nicely, but not in a 
way I think a novice can deal with it, but it does not need any 
configuration.

Or, you can make a 'real' desktop application using PHP and GTK (see 
http://gtk.php.net/).

You could also use a real installer such as INNO Setup or the one from 
NullSoft (both freeware IIRC). That puts the burden on you and you need 
to make sure that everything installs right. Or you can make a video / 
simulation showing how to install everything.

HTH,

	David