Update

Haven't posted in ages! A summary of what's happened since the last post:

Tags

I've dropped tags. Tags are useful if they are used properly, but if plans are named in a logical manner (i.e. where the plan title gives a good indication as to what it contains) then tagging is superfluous - a text search will suffice.

So I have stuck to a contextualised text search. Text searches can be carried out for all plans in the project or for all plans supplied by a specific partner. Text search searches on title and description.

Escaping using u()

Rewriting whole thing on mac osx.

Validating ajax form for tags

N/A (see "Tags" above)

Create index page

Done.

I've gotten really far on the project. I'm in the process of transfering the whole thing to UNIX (on Mac OSX) from Windows on my lovely new Macbook. I've set up subversion (not sure if I really need it now but hopefully in the future when my site proves to be extremely successful ;)). Using three great plugins (act_as_authenticated, account_location and localization) for authorisation and translation. Using textmate (and writing everyting in utf8 instead of latin which I mistakenly used with SciTe, meaning localization strings in german wouldn't display properly).

I'm really happy with my big queries - they run far quicker than I'd hoped (approx 15- 20 a second for displaying the main overview and search results).

All in all it's looking good. However I still have a few hurdles which, in my darkest moments, make me think I'm destined to fail:

• Payment processing
  I'm looking at paypal still but wondering whether I should go for authorize.net. The cons? Setup fee and monthly payments.


• Company form
  I'm thinking maybe I should set up a ltd in the UK. I could maybe just register as self employed initially in the UK, and change to a ltd at a later date, but this could be problematic with subscription payments started before the transition. Also, a ltd just appears more serious. I'd need a PO Box though.


• Legal stuff
  Need to get a Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy drawn up, in accordance with UK/European Law.


• Launch!
  The most difficult step. I't a real mental hurdle for me. What if it fails? what if there are bugs? What if a rival prduces a better product? Maybe I should buy Getting Real.