For your case, subdomains seem preferable. Keep in mind you can also do 301-redirect for things like http://farmtowork.org/austin/ to http://austin.farmtowork.org/.
Someone correct me if I’m wrong, but you shouldn’t need to point any one subdomain to specific folder. Each entry can still hit the application server and serve the appropriate content based on the host. If you’re using a framework (for instance, Django supports multiple “sites” from the same admin interface), it may be trivially easy to support this. - Sent from my Surface. Develop an app for it! http://rj.cx/app_in_30_days *From:* Eric Leversen <[email protected]> *Sent:* December 6, 2012 11:56 AM *To:* [email protected] *Subject:* [Refresh Austin: 6757] Pros/cons of using subdomains vs. subdirectories I have a question about the pros/cons of using subdomains vs subdirectories. IE: http://austin.farmtowork.org/ vs. http://farmtowork.org/austin/ A google search shows a lot from an SEO point of view (which we don't care about) but not much from a technical standpoint. One good post I did find is: http://stackoverflow.com/questions/1965609/subdomain-vs-subdirectory-in-web-programming Our site will use the same code base for all cities with some customization added for each like contact info, icons, etc. The customization info will be stored in a database. We're not sure if there will be one database for the entire project, or individual ones for each city. We are leaning towards the former for keeping maintenance, backups, etc. simple. One reason we're considering using subdomains is that within each city there will be organizations and locations that are subdirectories. It seems to me that using subdomains would make it simpler/clearer. IE: http://austin.farmtowork.org/UTexas/north_campus/ http://austin.farmtowork.org/UTexas/south_campus/ and http://houston.farmtowork.org/Rice/main_campus/ http://houston.farmtowork.org/Rice/downtown_campus/ >From reading the stackoverflow post, our first thought is to create subdomains and have them point to specific folder in the web root. This would allow us to use one host server and database (a benefit of subdirectories) while giving customers the appearance of their own special site. QUESTIONS: -Any general thoughts on what I've written above? -What URL/references on the topic do you suggest? -What types of things should I consider when choosing between the two options? -Do SSL certificates cover subdomains? -I'm guessing that it depends on web host to a certain degree, but do subdomains share the same web root and database? Or are they separate? -The stackoverflow post suggests that people will type in www in front of a URL even if there's a subdomain, which would cause confusion. Any thoughts? Thanks in advance. Regards, Eric Leversen [email protected] -- Our Web site: http://www.RefreshAustin.org/ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Refresh Austin" group. [ Posting ] To post to this group, send email to [email protected] Job-related postings should follow http://tr.im/refreshaustinjobspolicy We do not accept job posts from recruiters. [ Unsubscribe ] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] [ More Info ] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/Refresh-Austin -- Our Web site: http://www.RefreshAustin.org/ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Refresh Austin" group. [ Posting ] To post to this group, send email to [email protected] Job-related postings should follow http://tr.im/refreshaustinjobspolicy We do not accept job posts from recruiters. [ Unsubscribe ] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] [ More Info ] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/Refresh-Austin
