Michael Burke

Download it here:

/downloads/code/snap-affiliates/SnapAffiliates.1.0.zip

Please post all comments, questions, and problems in the comments. I’m looking forward to reading them!

Everything is on track for the release next week. The new database structure is implemented and everything appears to work as intended. All the hackish, hardcoded stuff has been moved somewhere more sensible.

Now it’s just polish, polish, polish until Monday. Got any ideas for little features? Leave them in the comments and I’ll take them under consideration!

This weekend I put the finishing touches on the Snap Affiliates package and was getting ready to push it out the door. Late last night I had a change of heart, though. The short story is I’ve been struggling with the database layout. Ask any developer and they’ll tell you that it’s something you need to get right the first time out. If you don’t and need to patch it later, you’re in for an ugly fight.

For weeks I had been convincing myself that the database structure was alright. I came up with lots of excuses why it should stay the way it is. None of them were good. The big secret one I wasn’t owning up to was that I didn’t want to have to rip the guts out of every SQL statement and make sure they’re still correct. This being a database-driven application, that means gutting and re-testing the entire module.

Obviously, I want this project to succeed. If I want it to succeed, it needs to be done right at every step of the way. In this instance, that means fixing the database layout, gutting every SQL statement, and re-testing the whole module. With the kids and the day job keeping me busy, I figure I can have it done by the end of the week. Keep your eyes peeled for the package next Monday.

I’m looking for ten or so beta testers for Snap Affiliates. I’m willing to offer limited free support and site integration to participants.

If you’d like to participate, drop me an email or leave a comment. I’ll send you more details.

Well, I don’t know if really can be called a “feature,” since it should have been in the 1.0 release to begin with. A gracious person would call it an oversight, but really it’s a bug.

Regardless, it’s fixed and implemented now. Anyone with more than 50 affiliates on their team no longer has to look at page after page of team members on one request. The admin affiliate list is now split up into manageable chunks, with navigation links on the bottom right. It’s a little thing, but I don’t know anyone that would consider the software complete without it.