Client Modules
A client module is the means by which a user interacts with a Creator Server based solution. It provides the look and feel of a particular solution, and defines what the user is able to do. Client modules are enormously variable. They can be as simple as a web page that just displays a document to a user, or as complex as a full ad-tracking application complete with database support, full user interface, and hooks to the Internet. The only limit is the programming effort needed to create the client itself. One Server can serve as many different Client Modules as the solution or business requires. This is a key feature that sets Creator Server solutions apart from competitive systems. With competitive systems, you’re buying a specific solution. With Creator Server, you’re buying a specific solution plus the ability to implement other (potentially entirely different) solutions as your needs change.
This is somewhat vague, so let’s look at two examples. Please remember, however, that these are only examples; it is not the only system that can be developed using Creator Server. Note that both of these (and dozens of others) could be running at the same business, using the same copy of Creator Server, even at the same time.
Example 1:
An Online Ad Building Tool
A commonly requested application is an online ad building tool. Such a system allows a user (typically a dealer or retailer for some product line) to automatically produce custom ads on the Web. The goal is to allow them enough flexibility to create the ad they need, but not so much flexibility that they can create aesthetically poor ads, or those that violate the manufacturer’s requirements for use of their art, logos, brand equity, or other trademarked information. The user experience of this system is provided by a web browser. After authentication, the user is provided with an ad template, or a selection of these from which to choose. The ad template is just an uncompleted ad, with sample graphics or placeholders available where the user is allowed to change information.
After selecting their ad, the user merely clicks on the items they wish to change, and the system provides them with the options available. For example, clicking on a product graphic would present them with a window showing all available products, from which the user may choose the particular product he or she desires. The selection is limited to product art approved by the manufacturer.
Clicking on a headline would display a list of manufacturer-approved headlines from which to choose. Again, the user would be able to choose only from pre-approved materials, limiting the possibility of mistakes. (In a less restrictive environment, the possibility of freeform headlines might also be offered.)
Finally, the user would be able to enter pricing and dealership location information, which would be integrated into the ad in the appropriate styles and locations. The user could then request that the ad be delivered directly over the Internet, mailed, or provided to a newspaper or printing service bureau in EPS or PDF form, or exported to GIF or JPEG for online use.
At all times, the user would be working directly with the actual ad on-screen; not with an HTML-based mockup. To limit bandwidth use, they could choose the size and resolution of the ad during editing, without affecting the final output at all.
From the manufacturer’s end, administration of such a system is simple. It consists merely of making the artwork and templates available to Creator Server. Manufacturers are likely to already possess the requisite product art. If not, MultiAd can provide product art and digital photography services at reasonable prices.
The templates are also easy. In some cases, there might be a desire for a separate client module to produce Ad Templates (especially if they were to be provided from remote locations via the Internet). More commonly, though, you’d just take advantage Creator Server’s relationship with other Creator Technology products, and just make the templates using the MultiAd Creator desktop application’s powerful design tools. (Creator Server’s native document format is identical to that of the desktop application).
Example 2:
Classified Display Ad Building Tool
Let’s consider a less interactive example. Many real estate companies and car dealers produce daily or weekly ads that are in a very rigid format; usually a grid of photographs with associated description and pricing information in a set format. This grid, in turn, is placed on a background image or template that does not change from day to day.
Such ads are excellent candidates for automation. Since the pictures, descriptions, and prices are, in all likelihood, stored in a database anyway, no user interaction is needed once the database data becomes available.
In this instance, the client module would not interact with the user at all; it would merely extract the information from the database, have Creator Server open the proper template, populate the ad with the database data, and have Creator Server export the output directly to EPS, PDF, or whatever other form was required. This could be done on command, or completely automated to run at a particular time every day.
If customization of the final output was desirable, the automated process could produce a native Creator document as its output, and the user could modify it as desired, using the MultiAd Creator desktop application.
Where Do Client Modules Come From?
An obvious question at this point is, “How do I get a module that does what I want?” There are several possibilities. MultiAd has developed, and continues to develop on an ongoing basis, client modules for various purposes. If the client need is simple or generic enough, we may already possess the module you need.
Alternatively, many customers will want to create (or have consultants create) their own client modules, or integrate Creator Server into existing application products (effectively making the existing product a client module). This task requires programming; see the technical sections that follow for more information on what’s necessary to build your own client module.
In the short term, however, we expect that most customers will want MultiAd to develop or customize the client module for them. We have a topnotch team of experienced programmers and integrators ready to build these systems for you at competitive prices. Such services will usually be part of the package offered when Creator Server is licensed.
