5.9
With 5.5, everything was there but it had no order. I decided to pretty much rewrite all of the code and organize it. Just about every dynamic element was accessed by a function. This made it easier for me when it came to changing things around. All I had to do was modify one function and the changes would take effect on every page. I also made sure the site was XHTML 1.0 compliant. Basically making sure it would display correctly on all browsers. Originally I had planned to wait until I had a new design with version 6, but I started making changes and decided to use them on this version.

  5.5
I was getting tired of the same old thing with 5.0 but I liked the overall design that I had. Since I was basically writing a blog I decided to go in that direction. I moved some elements around and added some more blog-like functions. I had also learned some new stuff since 5.0 came on-line in February and wanted to use my knowledge. This lead to more cross referencing of the data I was storing in my databases and, of course, more efficient code.

  5.0
This version of sermolux.com was the most solid in terms of PHP efficiency. I used the skills I learned from version 4 and rewrote most of the code. I wanted to go for a more professional look. I improved the photo album and journal code. I also introduced the calendar view on the home page, which took a while to get working correctly. Overall this look was probably the most satisfying to me. I was able to get all the functionality I needed and arrange it in a logical (and hopefully pleasing) way.

• 5.9
• Completly new php code
• Function driven back end
• W3C XHTML 1.0 Compliance
• W3C CSS compliance
• Redesigned photo album
• More improvements on the way
• 5.5
• Option to comment on a specific journal entry
• Expanded calendar functions
• Restructured journal directory
• 5.0
• Restructured PHP code
• History section added
• New photo album structure
• Calendar added to home page
• More professional appearance

Sermolux 4 introduced PHP. Originally I was using plain HTML and JavaScript. The menu system was an idea that I still like. There was a small "button" at the top left of the page and when it was clicked the menu appeared. The menu floated above the page and could be dragged around or closed again (you can see my ideas in the concept drawing #8). I received too many complaints that the button to show the menu was too hard to locate so I changed it back to the standard method. I also wanted to allow more guests than just IE users to view my site. This encouraged me to look into PHP. I also was getting tired of continuously editing my HTML pages each time I had an update. Because of this I started learning about databases, specifically MySQL. Not soon after I discovered PHP and MySQL, sermolux 4 was completely renovated. This allowed me to write more journals and have a tag board. I also started experimenting with cookies and had a short-lived "user log in". One of my favorite features was the different color schemes. I removed the videos and 3D-art sections and added a PHP driven photo album. I think I probably experimented the most on this version.

• Introduction of PHP and MySQL
• Videos and 3D-Art removed
• Photo album added
• New Update structure
• Tag board added
• Multiple color schemes
• User log in with saved preferences
• Customizable layout
• Guest book removed
• Domain name and server space purchased

This is one of my favorite versions. I went all out with the DHTML. I also started using style sheets to get better control over the layout. Unfortunately I went a bit too far and by the time I was finished, the code was too complex to be updated regularly. I don't think that I ever got the web cam up and running on this one. This version was also not cross browser compatible. If you are not using IE then you won't get the full effect. I had this one pop up in a separate window with a fixed height and width. The "loading" page also acted at a browser detector, if the visitor was not using IE then it directed them to an error page. Not the best way to handle the problem. I just really like the menu and hidden features.

• Introduction of Cascading Style Sheets
• Complete use of DHTML
• Browser Detection
• Drop down menus
• Hidden features
• Nice slick look

Yikes! I don't know what I was thinking with this one. I guess I wanted to be a bit more creative. This version had a lot of problems. I was beginning to experiment with Dynamic HTML and tried to incorporate it into this version. Most of the sections were the same, and the "feature" window never took off. I used the visible properties in Internet Explorer to hide some elements of the page. When you clicked on the words "version 2.0" a window appeared with the latest news. This made sermolux.com incompatible with any browser other than IE. I didn't keep this version very long.

• First use of iframe tag
• Attempt at using DHTML
• Ugly colors

This was the first site to brand the name "Sermolux". I geared this one more towards a personal home page than a "Failure Productions" site. This was my first attempt with using tables and JavaScript. I had a 3D-art section with some images I made with 3D Studio Max. Instead of sending CD's I encoded the Failure videos in windows media format. I also set up a shot lived sermolux.com newsletter and never actually sent one out. My dad let me use space on his server at work so I didn't have any pop-ups. Overall this was a big improvement form the previous version.

• New Server (No pop-up ads)
• Guestbook
• A lame webCam
• Downloadable videos
• Newsletter
• A new archive from sermolux BETA

This was the very first incarnation of sermolux.com. Actually the name "Sermolux" had not been thought of yet. I initially created this site to showcase a few videos that I created with my high school friends. We had a "production company" called Failure Productions. The production link went to a page where a person could order a CD-ROM of our videos; I think one person actually requested a CD. At the time I did not have a domain name and I was using some free service with pop-up ads. I was just learning the basics of HTML and didn't really know what I was doing. Apparently I had another site before this one but I have no memory of it. But according to my records I had something... I wonder what it was.

• Everything