The PHP Framework For Web Artisans

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I really like this framework. So in order to understand it better I performed a kind of e-vivisection. Last 2-3 years I haven't used it though as I have been preoccupied with other stuff. Recently I have been doing some dusting off and catching up. But before I did abandon this framework I produced about 50-60% of code powering automated tutoring marketplace. It was not finished since startup funds dried up. It happens.

American - Polish Slang Dictionary

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In 1989 when Polish communism was sounding its final death throes I decided to visit the USA. It was supposed to be a short trip, but I ended up staying there for over 7 years. It was in America where I started collecting slang expressions. I ended up with a collection of thousands. One day I decided to publish it. BTW: it was also in America where I got bit by a coding bug.

Fractal Model-View-Controller

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Some years back I really wanted to understand that 'thing' called Object Oriented Programming, so I wrote my own framework. I never wanted to join the busy PHP framework crowd - there are more than enough of them out there, but it proved to be somewhat of a success. One live site has been working without a glitch using this framework since 2015. Last I checked it was still up. I called it fractal as it was based on an idea of semi-independent MVC modules hanging on structural scaffolding. These modules were able to pull in other MVC modules as needed. Also modules were able to pull external content from other servers, also not written in PHP (language-agnostic). As mentioned this experiment proved itself in a real live application, which was nice.

Marketplace for Content Creators and Sellers

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Some creators have a hard time getting funds abundant enough to exclusively concentrate on creating new content. Youtube creators are a good example of that. They have to rely on capricious algorithms, never knowing how much they are going to make. Plus it is so easy to get demonetized retroactively losing income on much of the content already delivered. Written content creators like bloggers and online papers are at the mercy of ad blocking software that has become extremely good lately. They try to remedy that by paywalls, which is not always the best solution. Others rely on scripts sniffing ad blocking software. YTC Mart offers another solution, especially fit for small and mid size merchants and content creators. It allows both to work together promoting and selling products or services. And since all sales go through YTC Mart which registers that and shows raw results to all interested parties, it takes natural distrust out of the equation. Both sides know how much was sold.

Vacation Rentals Platform in Sayulita, Mexico

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Some time ago I was asked to implement an on-map search utility for an existing vacation rental platform. System was powered by the 'ziggurat' framework - as some call it. This is a website that started small, usually based on vanilla PHP OOP code supported by some open source libraries. Such a framework does not scale well. This puts developers - both in house and contracted - in a bit of a fix. Coding resembles enlarging a building by gluing new rooms next to, on top of, anywhere you have space. So first I had to identify where to fetch data for my addon and then build it. It seems it has worked well these last five years.

Self-publishing and Distribution Platform

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That was a very complex project which lasted quite a long time. The biggest challenge was that the old system was written in an ancient procedural, 'spaghetti' code (code where mysql code, php code and html code shared same file). Entire system was 'zombified' - different developers implemented many different frameworks and OOP coding patterns instead of sticking to project coding pattern. As a result we got under one roof: vanilla PHP OOP, procedural code, spaghettified early osCommerce code, some frameworks implemented for a reason of comeding some functionality etc. On top of that, 'zombification' affected database as well with plenty of dead and unused data, tables and columns. I had to first identify live data and map it to a new OpenCart based database system. Then I had to design and write data harvesting scripts to allow for a quick data transfer to a new OpenCart database system without taking the site offline for too long and to preserve old system functionality in a new one. It all resulted in a quick one-hour switch from old osCommerce system to a new OpenCart based system. And owners must have liked my work as I was hired multiple times by them since that first time.

Canadian e-Commerce Store

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This is yet another ocCommerce based website salvaged. I wrote a few custom modules. Plus I designed and implemented a custom look for it. That includes banners and other graphics elements.