Payment Policy:

For projects with a value of less than $300.00 full payment is due in advance of work commencing. Projects with a value of $300.00 or more may be paid in two amounts; half in aldvance of work commencing and half when the project is substantially complete.

All prices are in U.S. dollars. Payment by PayPal (account: thewiz@ourhutch.com) is preferred. Personal or business checks drawn on a U.S. bank are acceptable as are U.S. postal and other money orders.

Projects on behalf of foreign clients are gladly accepted, however please contact me first regarding suitable payment methods.

Payments are non-refundable, so be sure you understand the nature of the project before you send funds.

back to top

Delivery Process:

Unless otherwise specified, delivery of the completed work is via the Internet, usually by copying and/or downloading the finished work from my computer to yours.

In some cases, as with a website for example, the finished work will be installed on the server where it will be used. If this is what you expect, please be sure you have clearly discussed and resolved this with me as there may be an additional charge for installation.

I do not guarantee to maintain a copy of the work beyond 30 days but I do typically maintain backup or display copies for much longer periods of time. If I have a copy, a replacement in case of loss can be provided at a nominal charge, and sometimes for free.

A copy of the completed work can also be obtained on CD, delivered by first class mail, for an extra cost, usually $10.00. Please let me know in advance that you will want a CD copy and include the funds with the initial payment

back to top

Contact and Communication:

Communication is of the utmost importance to the success of any project. I always attempt to reply to all emails not later than twenty-four hours after they are received. I do receive hundreds of emails daily, a large portion of them SPAM, and it is very possible for your email to go astray. If I don't get back to you in a reasonable time, say, twenty-four hours, then please resend your original email or otherwise contact me again. It's best if you put WIZ, in capital letters, in the subject line. Emails with no subject are almost certainly to get missed.

I do work on more than one project at a time. When I reach a point in your project where I need you to validate content, or provide more information, I will contact you by email and, while waiting for your reply I will work on another project. You may respond before I come to a natural break point in this other project and so there may be a delay before I get back to you. Referencing the old adage, "the squeeky wheel gets the oil", it is helpful for you to contact me again if you feel there has been too long of a delay.

Please contact me any time by email at: thewiz@ourhutch.com. I will gladly discuss proposals or on-going projects by telephone. My phone number is available on request or send me yours and I call you and pay for the call.

I do try to communicate openly and often, but I am quite busy and my work is in demand so I leave it up to you to drive communication between us for the most part. By all means, contact me at any point to "nudge" your project along. I don't see this as "bothersome" at all.

back to top

Design Concept:

All of my projects, with the exception of some graphics (see graphics section) and some stock function coding modules, are original hand-coded or otherwise hand-designed work. I do not use WYSIWYG HTML creation programs that provide stock, bulk and often redundant code. I am aware of, and understand, the specific coding requirements of the various sites for which I produce pages. All of my original coding is guaranteed for the purpose for which it was created. (see guarantee section)

All template and other page designs and layouts are origianl creations worked out for your project. Although there are a limited number of possible effective layouts and/or suitable page dimentions, and although some functions are modular in nature, the bulk of the design and assembly of your project is my original work done for you at the time of the project.

Your input into the design process at the earliest point is important. The more you can tell me about what you want your finished page(s) or graphic(s) to look like the more I can create the look and feel you desire. Although I will gladly make any minor changes along the process of the project as required in working towards your desired result, major redesigns towards a completely different look, after considerable time and effort has spent on the original, may increase the project cost beyond the original quote.

Good, original work, takes time to produce. For the most part I don't just bang out code in assembly line fashion. I create each project individually as per the discussions we have and the input you provide and I treat your project with care and concern for quality, design and function. Sometimes this means I cannot just turn out your work in the next several hours, whether I am busy or not. Sometimes it depends on the muse. If you need your work for a specific deadline, be sure to let me know and feel free to "nudge" me whenever you feel the time line is extending unreasonably. See the "contact" section, also.

back to top

Graphics and Backgrounds:

Graphics, including backgrounds, used in my projects can come from any of five sources,

1. You can provide the graphics you wish me to use. You are responsible for copyright.
2. I can locate stock (public domain) graphics for direct use and/or manipulation.
3. I can create unique graphics specifically for your project.
4. Graphics can be selected from a number of licensed collections I maintain.
5. Graphics can be created by, or licensed from, a variety of outside sources.

I am not a professionally trained graphic artist, but I do reasonable work. I will gladly tackle any graphic project you might have. Please speak to me about specific needs. If I feel your project exceeds my ability I will refer you to someone else I feel can handle the job.

See copyright section for details regarding ownership. If any stock graphic I use turns out not to be public domain and requires removal from the project at any future time, I will find a suitable replacement at no additional charge.

back to top

Project Duration:

One of the more frequent questions I am asked is, "how long will it take?" and there is no simple answer to that question. Some of the work involved is structured and repetitive and could even be called "assembly line" and so a rough estimate of project duration can be offered. However, a large component of most projects is creative in nature and cannot be turned out by the clock. Other factors impact the time line as well. (see Contact and Design sections) Although this is my primary business and I work long hours each day, family and health issues can sometimes be a factor too.

I try to provide a reasonable estimate of the total project but sometimes projects run over by as much as two or three times -- on rare occasions even more. If things seem to be running long and/or if you have a deadline to meet, you are welcome to stay in regular contact and "nudge" the project along. I do respond well to well intentioned reminders and friendly discussion.

If your project is extremely important to you, or if you have a critical deadline to meet, you may find my hourly rate preferrable to a flat rate quotation. I charge a "shop rate" of $40.00 per hour, with a minimum billing of ten hours paid in advance, applied to your project in a minimum of five-hour daily blocks. You will be guaranteed my singular commitment and attention to your project for a minimum of that amount of time each day until your project is completed. Due to the nature of the work, application of more than five hours per day to a single project is often counter-productive but I will be glad to contract up to twelve hours daily if your project requires it.

back to top

Project Extras:

Minor changes and additions may be requested throughout the project and up to 30 days after substantial completion. These will be made without charge. Changes, updates or additions made after this period will be billed at my standard rate: $40.00 per hour, billed by the half hour with a minimum billing of $25.00.

Template filler forms (whether used with a custom template provided by me or with a template of your own) require hosting on my server. This is due to proprietary functions in the coding of the "engine" that drives the form. This hosting currently costs $18 for each six month period. The first six months is included in the purchase price.

Hosting and maintenance is extra for websites, though usually quoted for the first year in the original project price. Prices will vary with site size, expected transfer rate, number of scheduled changes/updates, etc. Please ask for a quote.

I now operate my own professional Internet server with complete support for web hosting, file storage and transfer, email, webmail, statistics and more. I can offer individual control panel access to web hosting accounts or provide full management and support. I will gladly quote on any and all project needs.

back to top

©

Copyright Status: All work produced is covered under the copyright laws of the United States of America and all other signatory countries to the international copyright convention. When payment in full is received for your project you are granted an exclusive license to use my work for your personal or business needs as per the design of the work and the terms of the project. My work may not be resold or otherwise distributed without permission. Stock graphics remain in the public domain and can, therefore, be used in any manner whatsoever. The copyright for licensed graphics remains with the originator and these graphics may not be used elsewhere. The copyright on all original coding and design components of the project is retained by me, Stephen B. Henry.

My "design by" graphic (see bottom of this page) and/or any other copyright notice must be retained on the work for as long as you continue to use it. You may not change or modify my work without permission, nor may you use my work as a design pattern for work you intend to produce and sell. Although my clients have found me to be very easy going and generally agreeing to any changes or other requests, I will take legal action to protect my proprietary property and other rights.

You may provide graphics and other content for use in your project or even a complete template for inclusion in a template filler form. It is up to you to assure that use of such material is permitted. Copyright of such material remains with you or any other copyright holder. You are solely responsible for any claim that arises against any such material provided.

back to top

The Wizard's Guarantee:

I guarantees that all HTML and other coding used in your project will work correctly on the auction site or website for which it was made, and that it complies with all host site rules and regulations at the time it was created. Should any problems arise relating to these issues I will make suitable changes free of charge.

If the host site makes changes to their site coding which causes your template, website or other pages to no longer work correctly, I will update any coding required to make the work compatible with the host site changes for as long as you use the material provided in this project, and without charge.

Note: user-provided content (ie: description text, images, terms and link destinations, etc.) and user-specified or provided coding are not covered under this guarantee. Should required services such as PHP or MySQL no longer be available at your chosen website host, you may be required to change hosts in order to use features reliant on these services.

I also guarantee my original HTML coding to be free from defect for as long as you use your template, website or other pages. Should any problems arise related to coding errors, I will fixed or recode the work free of charge.

If you have questions about this guarantee, or any other statements made on this page, please contact me by email for clarification: thewiz@ourhutch.com

back to top

This page designed, implemented and copyright © 2003, 2005 by Stephen B. Henry
Background Graphic Copyright © Pat's Web Graphics© 1997-2003 - Used Under License