Custom Web Development in Erie, Colorado

Cat Scratch Web Services develops custom websites, database applications, administration systems, and practical business tools from Erie, Colorado.

Some businesses need more than ordinary web pages or an off-the-shelf content-management system. Their work may involve specialized forms, structured data, customer records, scheduling, reporting, image management, or administrative processes that generic website software does not handle well.

We build focused solutions around those requirements.

What Is a CMS?

CMS stands for Content Management System. Most well-known website applications include some form of content management. You may not recognize the term, but you are probably familiar with the idea: authorized users sign in to an administration area where they can update web pages, upload images, manage menus, and maintain other website information.

More Than Ordinary Website Design

A standard website may be sufficient when a business only needs a few informational pages and a contact form. We can do that. Other projects require software that supports the way the business actually operates.

Custom development may include:

PHP/MySQL and Laravel applications
Custom databases and administrative dashboards
Data-collection and business-process forms
Customer, project, and service records
Scheduling and notification tools
Search, filtering, and reporting
Image, document, and media management
Import and export utilities
Payment-processing integration
User accounts and controlled access
Documentation and administrative training

The objective is not to add complexity. It is to replace scattered, repetitive, or difficult processes with a system that is organized and understandable.

Vision CMS

Vision CMS is our customizable content-management platform.

Unlike a generic CMS that gives every client the same large collection of themes, plugins, and configuration screens, Vision CMS can be assembled around the requirements of a specific business. Clients receive both the public website and the administration tools needed to manage their content, images, forms, menus, and business information.

Features are selected because the project needs them—not because they happened to come bundled with the software.

Transitioning from Other Website Software

Older websites frequently depend on abandoned plugins, unsupported versions of PHP, outdated content-management systems, or custom code that has become difficult to maintain.

We do not promise to patch every failing system indefinitely. Instead, we can examine the existing website, identify what remains useful, and determine whether its content and essential functions can be moved into a cleaner and more manageable platform.

A transition may involve:

Preserving important text, images, and documents
Reorganizing confusing content and navigation
Rebuilding necessary forms and administration tools
Replacing outdated CMS features
Improving mobile presentation
Moving business data into a more useful structure
Redirecting retired URLs to appropriate new pages
Documenting the replacement system

The result should be easier to understand and manage than the system it replaces.

Custom Media and Image Technology

Some projects depend heavily on visual information. Our media work includes image galleries, annotation, EXIF data, image optimization, video presentation, and high-resolution imagery using OpenSeadragon and Deep Zoom.

These tools can serve artists, photographers, museums, archives, scientists, product businesses, inspectors, researchers, and organizations whose visitors need to examine visual details.

Most content-management systems allow users to upload images through a web browser by selecting files or using drag and drop. We can also configure mobile-friendly uploading so authorized users can take a photograph with a phone or tablet and add it directly to the system.

Imagine being a doggie day care business with some clients who would like to see pics of their companions. Rather than going thorough multiple steps of taking their picture, browsing for the image somewhere in your filesystem, and selecting it to display all you have to do is select Take a Picture, click, approve and you're off to the races.

Experience Behind the Work

Bob Meetin has lived in Erie since 1998 and has operated Dotted i Web Design & Solutions since 2002. His earlier work at Sun Microsystems included technical support, business analysis, reporting, documentation, training, program management, and the development of internal business tools.

That background continues to shape the work at Cat Scratch Web Services: understand the people using the system, organize the information carefully, and build software around a practical purpose.

Serving Erie and the Front Range

Cat Scratch Web Services is based in Erie and works with businesses throughout nearby Front Range communities, including Lafayette, Louisville, Longmont, Broomfield, Brighton, Thornton, and surrounding areas.

We also work remotely with clients and projects outside Colorado. Custom development does not require the client and developer to be in the same room, but being nearby can make local collaboration easier when it matters.

Do You Need Custom Development?

Custom development may be appropriate when:

Generic website software does not fit the business
Important work is being managed through disconnected spreadsheets or forms
Employees repeatedly enter the same information
An older CMS is difficult or risky to maintain
The business needs specialized administration tools
Images, documents, or structured data are central to the project
The existing process works, but the software supporting it does not
Not every business needs custom software. The first step is understanding the problem and determining whether a focused custom solution is justified.

To discuss a website, CMS transition, or business application, call 303-926-0167 or use the contact form.