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Choosing an Open Source CMS
How can you get the best open source Content Management System (CMS) for your needs? Before getting into uncertain territory lets validate a few things: - A Content Management System manages website content, including linking pages and controlling how the pages look. CMS makes it easier for users to create, edit, and upload content on a website;
- CMS can be acquired with commercial and Open Source licenses. It can be written using languages such as PHP, Perl, ASP, JSP, etc. Let us focus on open source CMS written in PHP; and
- Content can denote news, articles, blogs, wikis, forum posts, picture galleries, source codes, file for downloading, product for e-commerce, etc.
There is no single simple answer to choosing the appropriate Open Source CMS for your needs. The following criteria can be your yardstick in open source CMS selection: - Define your content and its purpose.
- Determine your entry format/s: text, images, video, audio, XML, PDF, HTML, spreadsheets, etc.
- Decide on how content should be stored
- For open source projects, community support is vital.
- Have limitless options for CMS add-ons.
- Ensure security for your site.
With the above criteria start experimenting with CMS while you do a lot of research. Use any search engine to get to CMS open source sites. Each CMS package has its strengths and weaknesses. It is imperative to choose a CMS package that will fit how you want to present your content and how secure you want your site to be. Customizing your open source CMS will be an adventure trip of rapid discoveries at the pace you can do. Surf and read as much as you can on the CMS you choose. Make comparisons on the features of different CMS packages that you want to try and see for yourself. Check out CMS ratings, including top hits. Now you must decide which features and functions you need. This list can help you to decide on what you can possibly want or need: - Content storage (flat files or databases)
- Event calendar
- upload/download area
- image gallery
- poll or survey tool
- multi-language support and translation function
- WYSIWYG content editor
- Security features
Other components and modules called plug-ins provide add-ons to the core system. Some of the features you want may not be available as part of the core or add-ons. This may lead to buying a commercial add-on product via a third party developer. Once you decide on the base system and the add-on features, the website look is now up for determination. The internet is loaded with thousands of free or commercial templates that you can use and innovate according to your needs. Some of the CMS even have template selections to look into. The room for exploration, improvement and ingenuity is endless. Once get a CMS that you like, read all the literature you can get on it and do experimentation until you get what you exactly want.
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