Source: eoddata.com
This very unique solution could not have been found among the 60,000+ WordPress plugins. So there was nothing to do but start developing the application.
The doubt remained about the type of architecture, the language, the method of integration, and the framework in which to develop the application.
In this case the obvious solution seemed to be to use a LAMP architecture (Linux, Apache, Mysql, PHP) to integrate it into the website made in WordPress..
However, the database was quite consistent and gradually growing and this did not bode well for PHP/WordPress applications because the response had to be immediate.
We had to reduce maintenance costs. Usually the versioning of web applications (PHP, WordPress, Woocommerce, Elementor etc.) is very dynamic and this increases maintenance costs.
As soon as we started writing the requirements and the user experience, we realized that the application would have to be extremely optimized to counter the great international competition. We had to invent something “off the shelf”.
Among the various possible integration methods, we chose the one that had the lowest cost, not only for version 1.0 but also for subsequent versions, up to covering the entire life cycle of the application. We should have taken into account that this was the first “experiment” of a new development method. Changing method involves increasing the risk on time and costs.
So they had to choose a method that was not very risky but still very convenient compared to all the other alternatives.
When a new road is opened, one must always be very wary, suspicious and act with great caution.
For all these reasons we have adopted a basic low-risk solution.
Develop a dot net application that communicates with WordPress via web services that is embedded in a low cost available plug-in.
In fact, we immediately found a plugin that has been downloaded over 50,000 times so it can be considered reliable.
The webpage design and UX were done by a front-end WordPress developer who configured the page via the plugin. On this page the web user enters his requests. The plug-in sends this information via web service to the DotNet application. The DotNet application provides the responses to the plug-in through the web service and the web developer is able to populate the web page as he pleases to satisfy the web user’s request, always using the same plug-in.
So all the actors work in their own “comfort zone”!
Last Updated on June 5, 2024
