Trying to setup mailing list and annual email or text message reminder
 

Hello,

I currently have a web server that is setup with Ubuntu 6.06. I have got the web server up and running with apache and it has ftp setup. I also installed PHP and MySQL but didn't complete the configuration on these, as I was a bit lost. I was just glad to have the website up and running, although I am fairly sure this isn't secure as I expect there are gaping holes in the security of the web server, due to my inexperience.

I now need to add functionality for it to accept user email addresses, postal addresses and or mobile telephone numbers, with the aim being to remind all users at 28days, 7 days and 1 day before an anniversary date, they specify. I asked a friend of mine, some time ago about what I would need to achieve this and he said that cron would come into the equation somewhere and that was all!!!

I don't have a clue where to start to get this running. I have setup a basic website but it doesn't have the functionality to take email addresses or details yet. I guess I would need to setup a web page with a form on it and that this would maybe link to a database and then cron would run and then send the emails when the time was right?

Can anyone help me set this up or just point me in the right direction to start reading to get this started?

I hope someone can help with this.

re: Trying to setup mailing list and annual email or text message reminder
 

i'm going to start with the very obvious. please, please, PLEASE do some major googling and find some information on setting up AND securing your apache install. you will be saving yourself A LOT OF TROUBLES.

Secondly, php and mysql are almost required to do web development. you could get around that by using ruby as your scripting language and any other database but those 2 are almost universal (for site development). a big plus is that IF you got them configured (AND SECURED!) then you could use something like ZOOPS (http://www.xoops.org/) to set up professional websites in minutes instead of monthes.

ZOOPS has a build-in calander module (amoung many) that would do everything you are asking and more.

good luck (AND KEEP IT SECURE)
--iggy