ASP - Build form scratch or copy and paste?

[lowfaresmaster]

Hi all,
I am in the process of developing a portal which when finished over time will be quite large. Would I be as well to simply edit existing source code from freeware sites which allow you to download full database driven sites such as in asp.net. Is it a case where you spend so much time editing that your as well to start from scratch yourself?

Opinions appreciated.

[DaveAtIFG]

If you're fluent in ASP, either way works fine. When learning, I find having code examples to work from is always helpful.

when finished over time will be quite large

It's most important to have this structure detailed first, THEN begin coding and/or plugging in scripts. This helps avoid much recoding as the project grows.

[rogerd]

Lowfares, I tend to work better in the modification mode rather than coding from scratch. If your programming skills are strong, though, the latter approach may yield a cleaner result. I'd say a lot depends on how close your starting code is to what you'll end up with, and how much functionality is built in. The more feature-rich the code is, the more time you are likely to save by starting with someone else's code.

One additional factor is the possibility that a well-developed starting point will include features that you didn't anticipate but which might be useful later.

[lowfaresmaster]

thanks folks!