Dynamic vs. Static Websites

[dropcap color=blue cap=W]hen a Web page is requested, the server where the page is stored returns the HTML document to the user's computer and the browser displays it. On a static Web page, this is all that happens. The user may interact with the document through clicking available links, or a small program (an applet) may be activated, but the document has no capacity to return information that is not pre-formatted. On a dynamic Web page, the user can make requests (often through a form) for data contained in a database on the server that will be assembled on the fly according to what is requested. For example the user might want to find out information about a theatrical performance, such as theater locations and ticket availability for particular dates. When the user selects these options, the request is relayed to the server using an intermediary, such as an Active Server Page (ASP) script embedded in the page's HTML. The intermediary tells the server what information to return. Such a Web page is said to be dynamic.[/dropcap]

Dynamic means energetic, capable of action and/or change, or forceful, while static means stationary or fixed. In computer terminology, dynamic usually means capable of action and/or change, while static means fixed. Both terms can be applied to a number of different types of things, such as programming languages (or components of programming languages), Web pages, and application programs.

Static Website

A static website is a website that always comprises the same information in response to all download requests from all users. It displays the same information for all users, from all contexts, providing the classical hypertext, where navigation is performed through "static" documents. The advantages to static is quick and easy to put together, ideal for demonstrating how a site will look and cache friendly, and one copy can be shown to many people. The disadvantages is difficult to maintain when a site gets large, difficult to keep consistent and up to date, and offers little visitor personalization unless client side.

In a static publishing system, HTML pages are pre-generated by the publishing software and stored as flat files on the web server, ready to be served. This approach is less flexible than dynamic generation in many ways and is often ignored as an option as a result, but in fact the vast majority of content websites consists of primarily static pages and could be powered by static content generation without any loss of functionality to the end user. The most widespread example of a static publishing system is D2S, which rebuilds static files for a site each time a page is added or modified - although it can be configured to serve content dynamically instead. A static site is stored at the web server file system and is distributed directly, as a file transfer. In a dynamic site, pages are assembled "on the fly" as and when they are requested. Most server side sites do this technology by actively encourages dynamic content creation. Generating pages dynamically allows for all sorts of clever applications, from e-commerce, random quote generators to full on web applications such as Hotmail.

At first glance, the benefits of dynamic publishing are obvious. What is frequently ignored are the benefits of static publishing, at least for content-driven sites which don't have any heavy need for dynamic features. The most obvious benefit is performance; serving static files is what web servers such as Apache are optimized to do, and they can do it fast. A big part is that it takes the pressure off of going live. You can be sure before going live that the published website is correct. The actual CMS may explode in flames, but the site will be fine. Going live with a web application is always a stressful process, and anything that reduces the stress of that is a great benefit. As time goes on, static publishing is also a big stress reduction for the system administrator, since a simple Apache configuration is a lot more reliable under different loads and configurations than any dynamic site will be. Static site will increase the performance of any website or online application. Static pages will have a ‘circular’ effect on speed: static pages will take up less load time; less load time will allow for better performance under stress, and better performance will reduce the server stress and give the user faster downloads. Note, though, that accessibility should always have a higher priority than performance. Not everything needs to be dynamically created. If there are pieces of information that have quite a long dynamic cycle, embed them statically, but perhaps allow for new items to be re-embedded easily, through a pseudo-dynamic process.

Dynamic Website

Dynamic sites are those where the content and design live separately. The content lives in a database that is placed on a webpage only when needed or asked. The benefit of this is that it allows for quicker page loading and it allows just about anyone, with limited or no web design experience, to update their own website via an administrative back-end. This set up is ideal for those who wish to make frequent changes to their websites including text and image updates. Dynamic sites are also great for image galleries, online calendars or e-commerce, etc.

A set of HTML capabilities are provided that help a designer create dynamic Web pages. This set of capabilities is generally known as dynamic HTML. When a Web page is requested, the server where the page is stored returns the HTML document to the user's computer and the browser displays it. On a static Web page, this is all that happens. The user may interact with the document through clicking available links, or a small program (an applet) may be activated, but the document has no capacity to return information that is not pre-formatted. On a dynamic Web page, the user can make requests (often through a form) for data contained in a database on the server that will be assembled on the fly according to what is requested. For example the user might want to find out information about a theatrical performance, such as theater locations and ticket availability for particular dates. When the user selects these options, the request is relayed to the server using an intermediary, such as an Active Server Page (ASP) script embedded in the page's HTML. The intermediary tells the server what information to return. Such a Web page is said to be dynamic.

Dynamic web pages are more complex and usually give the website visitors easier access to the information that they need. Setting cookies, creating member login areas, pulling product data from a database that is easily updated, maintaining a web site visitors session data to remember products that they have selected. Visitors find dynamically generated web pages to be useful because they are provided instant access to highly relevant information. Dynamic sites are also much easier to update and maintain. Adding new products and editing products in your online searchable catalog is as easy as filling out a form. This saves countless hours (and dollars) to update multiple static pages. Dynamic web pages are created using technologies like PHP, CGI, ASP, Cold Fusion, JSP,  etc.

Classical hypertext navigation occurs among "static" documents, and, for "web users," this experience is reproduced using static web pages. However, web navigation can also provide an "interactive experience" that is termed "dynamic." Content (text, images, form fields, etc.) on a web page can change, in response to different contexts or conditions. There are two ways to create this kind of interactivity: One is using client-side scripting to change interface behaviors within a specific web page, in response to mouse or keyboard actions. Second, using server-side scripting to change the supplied page source between pages, adjusting the sequence or reload of the web pages or web content supplied to the browser. Server responses may be determined by such conditions as data in a posted HTML form, parameters in the URL, the type of browser being used, the passage of time, or a database or server state. The result of either technique is described as a dynamic web page, and both may be used simultaneously.

To adhere to the first definition, web pages must use presentation technology called, in a broader sense, rich interfaced pages. Client-side scripting languages like JavaScript or ActionScript, used for Dynamic HTML (DHTML) and Flash technologies respectively, are frequently used to orchestrate media types (sound, animations, changing text, etc.) of the presentation. The scripting also allows use of remote scripting, a technique by which the DHTML page requests additional information from a server, using a hidden Frame, XML Http Requests, or a Web service. Web pages that adhere to the second definition are often created with the help of server-side languages such as PHP, Perl, ASP or ASP.NET, JSP, and other languages. These server-side languages typically use the Common Gateway Interface (CGI) to produce dynamic web pages. These kinds of pages can also use, on client-side, the first kind.

Dynamic vs Static

Dynamic websites are ideal if you are in need of a high-user interface and information that had to be updated regularly on a website. Dynamic programming creates a well versed site for multiple entry points on a page. It also allows the client to update the information themselves. Static websites are easier to create if your information is rarely changes. These type of sites require html programming knowledge for frequent updating. And not updating your website content is not good, content should be updated on a  regular basis or at least pages added to the site. This will help with your Google  page ranking. This is why DMD delivers a dynamic website for your business, one that you can manage and make changes as needed after your site is complete. Consulting with our experienced team will help you decide which is the right type of website for your needs.