Welcome to my website. My name is Mark and I'm a freelance Web Designer based in West London.
I design tailor-made websites for individuals and small businesses. Anything from a simple static site to a database-driven large
back-end monster. I can also write bespoke script for smart mirrors and IoT devices.
Your new website could be...
A simple website like this, to tell the world about yourself. This might be suitable for a business such as a hairdressers
or a Web Designer where information doesn't change too regularly.
A single-page smart mirror (see picture below for example)
A more complex site with relational database functionality, e-commerce and secure logins.
Or anything in between!
I can also improve or maintain your current website.
Feel free to
Email me for a free, no-obligation consultation.
Smart Mirror at Ealing Brewing.
This one is powered by a Raspberry Pi Zero connected to an old PC monitor. Attached to
the screen is a two-way mirror, allowing the screen to be seen through.
Anything can be displayed but, as here, the best ones have information around the outside, allowing the centre to be used
as a normal mirror. You can see the live page here. Click anywhere
to see how it is displayed.
Raspberry Pi Zero uses so little energy that it can be left on, just the monitor needs switching off.
My Skills
Like many programmers, I am constantly learning. How I design a website now is very different to ten years ago. My current favourite
languages are
HTML. For content
CSS. For style
Javascript. For interaction
PHP. For server-side communication
MySQL. For database queries
Python. For reading IoT sensors
Within Javascript, I am very familar with JQuery, AJAX and many graphics libraries.
About Me
I have been designing websites for over twenty years. I started as a hobbyist whilst a Mathematics teacher but soon realised
the value of a good website as a revision tool for A-level students.
When I became Head of Mathematics, I developed a one-stop website for all of the department's resources, schemes of work
and assessments. One website replaced countless folders and spreadsheets, making finding, storing and querying information much more
efficient.
As Data Manager, I then began to write code to automate much of the work required to produce reports to parents. During this time
I learned a lot about back-end programming and linking with external data sources - things that would become invaluable in my next project.
Currently I run a brewery. Vital to the day-to-day running of this, and many other small businesses, are things such as stock-control,
e-commerce and a public website presence. At the brewery taproom, you can see examples of my work:
an automated menu display
A Smart Mirror showing local bus information from TfL, news headlines and local weather
A RetroPie arcade machine, powered by a Raspberry Pi 4. Cabinet built by myself
The Internet of Things
Also at the brewery are IoT devices to make our lives easier. To give you an idea of what is possible we have...
iSpindel electronic hydrometers which send real time information about fermenting beer to ealingbrewing.com to be displayed on the web.
Temperature probes in the beer lines so we can monitor, from the internet, the temperature of the beers we serve.
Weight Cells for each beer. These act like weighing scales to determine how empty each cask is. Again, this information is web-based.
I can set up buzzers, buttons, motion detectors, cameras, ... and many more exciting IoT sensors
Arcade Machine at Ealing Brewing.
This one is powered by a Raspberry Pi 4 and can play all sorts of arcade video games. I designed
and built the cabinet myself.
Graph showing live information for brewers.
An iSpindel is an electronic hydrometer. It floats in beer at different angles depending on the amount of sugar in the liquid.
Using the same sensor as a mobile phone, the device detects the angle and sends it to ealingbrewing.com, where I process the data into
a graph for brewers to see live information - anywhere in the world!
Recent Projects
Two of my recent projects show the diversity of what I offer. The first is a plain, simple website with a few pages. It serves to
inform who Marko Paulo is and explain a bit about the company.
At the other end of the spectrum is Ealing Brewing, a massive project. What you see
is just the tip of the iceberg. Behind the scenes is a comprehensive database which contains all the information that a brewery needs, including
e-commerce nuts and bolts. All linked to Stripe, the site takes orders, redirects for payment and then informs staff to deliver the goods
All the recipes used by the brewery are stored. This make pricing a doddle and things such as allergens on labels are never forgotten
Comprehensive stock inventory, linked to the popular Zettle payment system
Automatic individual beer label generator at the click of a button
Up to the minute price list pdf generator for clients
...and much more!
Prices
Just like physical building work, website design costing is very difficult without knowing all that is required. Yet, understanderbly, it
is the most common question.
I will attempt to give an indication, depending on the level of features required.
Feature
Est
Initial Design
- 5 pages, static
£200
- Small business, bespoke features
£500
- ecommerce
£1200
- Database driven
from £2000
Ongoing Costs
- Web Hosting
£25+ per year
- Domain Registration
£5+ per year
- Content Update
£40 per hour
You could, of course, arrange your own hosting and domain registration and perform your own maintainance, but for
those who have neither the time nor the inclination to do this, I offer these services. You can see that costs can be anything
from £200 + £30 per year up to £3000+ for a complex site with frequent time-demanding bespoke requests.
