Server Technology’s Custom Ruby CMS Gets A Makeover

TAI Launches Another Custom Ruby CMS Website for Server Technology

Time to toot our own horn, again! We are excited to announce we’ve finished another version of Server Technology’s custom-built Ruby on Rails content management system, complete with a sharp and professional front-end redesign. The new website features a Product Selector application designed for sales, a simple but powerful back-end admin area designed for marketing, and a comprehensive products database that stores everything from datasheets to engineering schematics, designed for a global manufacturer on the forefront of their industry. Trinity Applied Internet has been Server Technology’s applications solutions provider going on five years now, and we are proud to say their website’s next generation is built to last for many more.

In other news, we have moved into our new space and have some other interesting changes on the horizon, so stay tuned in the next week or two for more on that!

What Do You Think is the Most Important Thing to Know Going Into a Website Redesign?

This week, we’d like to pose a question, or two. We are working on our own website redesign, and it’s fun to be on the other side of the design process for a change. We’re wondering, for those of you who have built or redesigned your site lately, what hints, tips or tricks did you take away from the experience?

What is the most important thing you have learned about your website? What piece of detail ended up worth it’s virtual weight in gold? What would you recommend to someone embarking on their own website redesign.

We know there are at least a few of you out there. Leave a comment! Be chatty! Or, if you aren’t the social type, take this as a recommendation to talk to some experienced friends or peers and get their thoughts while you are considering a project of your own…

(Editor’s note: If you are reading this from the main blog page, be sure and click through to the post to read the comments!)

TAI Extends Client Websites With Both Third-Party and Custom WordPress Plug-ins

Last week saw the launch of another Trinity Applied Internet custom WordPress website for northern Nevada short sale and foreclosure experts GreenStreet Realty. It features the new custom sidebars plug-in Patrick is getting ready to release to the WordPress open source code base, allowing for each section, or even each individual page, to carry a completely separate set of widgets in the sidebar. This allows the template to be infinitely more flexible and takes WordPress one step further towards being able to handle content like big brothers Joomla! and Drupal.

We also got the opportunity to play around with the IDX integration piece offered by GreenStreet’s MLS listings vendor, and are happy to report it was smooth sailing. The listings appear in various places throughout the site, and can be searched from the sidebar widget. Clicking a property listing brings the user to GreenStreet’s results page which is actually external to the website, an integration that looks seamless to the user.

Our content department (Erin, Nicole, and for layout, Rachel) contributed extensively to this project as well, with support including social media set-up, research and copywriting. And, there’s more to come! Stay posted for more exciting project updates…

Investing Time and Experience Before We’ve Even Started

Working with Trinity Applied Internet Part B: Investing Time and Experience Before We’ve Even Started

You know the staff. Now, what is the process? How do we approach your project?

The term “applied” in the name of the company is no accident. A cumulative thirty years experience in software and web development speaks volumes on behalf of the partners, and is directly applied to every project we produce, problem we approach, and product we deliver. The process behind your website or web application development is not piecemeal or made up as we go along.

Consult, research, facilitate, plan (and plan and plan some more), design, develop, test, adjust. Rinse and repeat. Every time, for every project. It doesn’t matter the size or the complexity of the project at hand, we spend the time at the beginning on analysis of your company, research, and planning. In fact, if you have already been through an estimating and proposal process with us, you know we spend a considerable amount of time getting to know you before we’ve ever even won you as a client.

Think every shop that advertises their easy and cheap WordPress package, or their hosted solution you dial right into, does that on your behalf? They don’t. Believe us, because we hear time and again from clients who tried out the competition first because of a really attractive price point, and since have realized they didn’t need a cookie-cutter approach. Or they went with a big media and advertising agency and were shoehorned into marketing decisions based on what the agency was “really good at,” and how it wanted to promote themselves as a full interactive shop.

Well, that strayed from the topic a bit, but the point is, at Trinity Applied Internet you get specialized, considerate, and tailored service that addresses your needs specifically. If you are a marketing department working with some IT constraints, we plan for that. If you are a small organization with one paid staff member and no time for teaching yourself website administration, we plan for that when we design your project, rather than discovering it at the end (or not at all.)

The adage about “prior planning prevents…” at best catastrophe and at worse any number of irritating little hassles. We take it to heart, to the extent that we are researching, discussing, and planning your project before you have even officially engaged us.

Hack4Reno Is Coming!

Calling all developers and designers! We are super excited to be a part of the fun happening in 5 short days.

If you haven’t heard yet, The City of Reno and Reno Collective are organizing the first ever Hack4Reno – a 24-hour ‘hackathon‘ which is a team competition where apps are to be built to benefit the community. Apps can be anything from serious and potentially life changing to something fun and light hearted.

Why are we participating?

We want to help get the community involved in giving back with their mad designer and developer skills to the city (and region) and to promote the openness of platforms and data.

We are not only forming a team (Go Trinity!) but we are also sponsoring the kick off luncheon for participating teams on Saturday at noon, and coffee for participants later in the evening.

Perhaps it is not for the faint of heart: let’s remember that this is October in Reno and the competition is being held outside (out in the open – like the open public data), but it will be 24 hours of having a great time with fellow developers and giving back to the community.

Come root on the Hack4Reno teams this Saturday, October 15th at noon at the Pioneer Center for the kick off and if you are really excited you can join us and stay all night! Or come back on Sunday, October 16th at 2:30pm for the announcement of the winning team!