In this section, we'll cover the basic tasks that need to be accomplished for the initial setup of the directory/search engine, as well as discuss some of the ongoing maintenance items. Each of these tasks is covered in greater detail in the pages that follow.
Create your category / browsing structure.
The heart of your directory is the category navigation. Designing the hierarchy of categories is an essential part of a well organized web directory. This takes careful planning, and some quality time spent in order to get it properly laid out, mapped out, and setup. Note, that if you are using the system as a search engine only (ie: just a search box, and no categories), you can basically skip this step of the setup. However, we do recommend that you create at least 2 or 3 Main categories just for internal organization (more on this later)
Add Listings to the database.
Nothing worse than a search engine with no listings in it ..... You'll want to take some time during setup to add some links, either by hand, or by importing them in. You can add links, of course, at any time, but definitely take the extra time at the outset to populate your database before you open for business.
Design the HTML for the front end.
Once you have you category structure completed, and some listings in the database, the next step in preparing your engine is to design the Look and Feel, by editing the templates that drive the pages your visitors will see when visiting. There are 2 types of templates: full page templates, and detail templates.
Approving Listings.
As part of the day to day operations of your system, your visitors will suggest listings for you to add to the database. You'll need to manually review, and approve (or deny) these, and have your database updated with the new submissions.