Despite the apparent advancement of HTML-driven websites and old-school methodology of designing Dreamweaver or NetObjects-based websites, programming, designing and editorial preference has shifted almost entirely to content management systems (CMS).
Since frameworks such as cascading style sheets (CSS), Java and other rich PHP classes are designed for easier navigation and compliance with language standards, content management systems have become the epitome of all that is and is to come in the future of the Internet.
Unlike shopping for design software, choosing the appropriate content management system with which to build feature-rich applications, is not about picking the easiest program ? it?s about choosing the best program.
We now explore the seven tips for picking content management systems for design needs:
Scalable Architecture
For full support of futuristic marketing, developmental growth and adherence to W3C standards, the architecture of the CMS framework needs scalability without close-loop scripting sequences. Whether platforms use Java or .Net frameworks to build content management systems is secondary to the fact that scalability needs to have impending changes in mind.
If CSS classes, plugin containers and other necessary implementations change, the architecture must support these changes or face certain demise. Our initial investigation has revealed that Joomla should definitely be last on your list if architectural scalability is high on your list of needs.
The Top 5 which offer the most mountable architecture (in any order):
? Frog
? Drupal
? WordPress
? Concrete5
? Radiant
Open Source
The necessity for open source software or Web applications has become critical from the programming perspective because one programmer can simply piggyback off the coding of another. Simply look at the YUI monstrosity that continuously adds CSS framework updates to reapply toward content management systems, plugins and other cloud-based necessities. If your CMS platform is closed, innovating closes with it ? it also makes the programmer?s job nightmarish because he or she will have to strip the CSS and PHP apart to propagate the correct sequence of calls, file complements and style sheets. Therefore, without deploying an open-source content management system that is built by all, and works cross-browser, you?ll have little room for growth when future implementations are necessary.
Here are the Top 5 open source platforms currently on the market today (no particular order):
? Drupal
? WordPress
? Concrete5
? DotNetNuke
? Joomla
Mobility
Although currently speculation, it?s likely our future will be reliant on complete mobility, even on the content management services platform. With clear navigation, easy to scale front-end CSS templates and properly-interwoven PHP, mobile content management will dominate the blogosphere, business world and, therefore, will be an inevitable need in both the entrepreneurial and programming sectors. With this in mind, and the necessity to have easily accessible SQL scripts, we looked closely at the most technically-sound content management systems for mobile-friendly browsers that won?t snowball the end-user with errors:
? Radiant CMS ? Built on ROR (Ruby on Rails) with logical CSS integration.
? WordPress ? Already the leader in mobile content development of their open-source CMS.
? Contao (formerly know as TYPOlight) ? Integrates Ajax and PHP5, which makes static pages and general blog layouts easier to manipulate.
? Frog ? Similar to Radiant except uses solely PHP5, offering cleaner coding.
Security
Security on both front- and back-end portions of CMS sites is an important programming feature. Code protection prevents hacks and sandbox testing prevents publishing CSS that doesn?t fly with security standards your clients want. To survive the CMS decision-making cut, we disseminated the major content management systems and verified whether they?ve updated, or planned program updates to enhance coding security within CMS frameworks and database programming relevant to end-user needs. Running test suites, updating patches and code reviewing are instrumental in any CMS developmental stage or later enhancement.
Here are the picks of the litter when security is obligatory:
? WordPress ? although presently open source, programming contributors continually make security updates to PHP code and offer easy-to-implement plugin API?s to enhance SSL.
? Joomla ? Continually updates program patches and potential coding loopholes to tighten security.
? DotNetNuke ? A very large community of active developers assure that current security trends
remain free of security attrition.
? Orchard ? Microsoft gets its hands dirty in this New BSD License CMS which, backed by a corporation built on secure platforms, should make this an excellent choice for programmers.
? Umbraco ? Released in 2004, this relatively new CMS is written in C# which is historically an expandable and secure programming script language.
Database Servers
Why would the authenticity of database servers be important when choosing a CMS? Simple: MySQL and Oracle seem to be arm wrestling for speed, reliability and framework compatibility ? a fight that seems to favor MySQL considering Google, YouTube, Yahoo and Facebook are all on-board with SQL, leaving many of the non-conforming server-side scripts fighting for crumbs. Since the big dogs rely on SQL, it will be shaping the future of our current Internet as we know it. The decision of which database script will connect your completed CMS to databases, tables and the like, will fall under your choosing, although the top current CMS platforms are using Linux or Unix servers for SQL speed.
Packaged Size
When working with content management files, grid sheets, PHP scripts and plugin containers, your final package needs to be small enough to adhere to speed requirements of browsers, end-users and even your clients. The final packaged size needs to be portable enough to install quickly yet be equally powerful, meaning the code integrity needs to be outstanding. These are the best final package CMS platforms guaranteed to be smaller than competition platforms:
? Drupal
? WordPress
? Concrete5
? Joomla
? Orchard
Development Costs Versus Final Value
Although more compulsory for those who develop the actual platform, keep in mind, programmers are vital in all phases of development, open source additions and CSS template creation. Bear in mind, customers want something for nothing. Your programming hours need to be considered, however, because, obviously, you will not spend hours on framing plugins or nifty CSS snippets to make $15,000 on your finished product, unless extremely customized. Considering most CMS platforms are Commons Licensed, these are perhaps the CMS platforms that offer easy and quick scripting updates so both you and your potential clients can come out winners:
? WordPress ? Since many nifty themes can be programmed to perform balancing acts, this CMS is the long-standing champion of quick updates, integrations and CSS.
? Joomla ? Packaged nicely and offers quick PHP, CSS and plugin integrations.
? Drupal ? Building impressive websites quickly using gridded CSS sheets makes this CMS programming choice for database-savvy designers.
? DotNetNuke ? ASP.Net programmers love this CMS since the scripting is small, meaning the time necessary to update front-end scripts is much quicker.
? Kentico ? A newer CMS built on ASP.Net framework and perhaps the newest CMS to integrate quick coding scripts. DevNet gives this CMS a high rating. Kentico has had an impressive 550 percent growth in three short years.
Summary
Choose your CMS based on the information above, although it would appear the overall champion is WordPress. You should focus on mobility, security and cost because the perfect culmination of the three from both a programmer and customer standpoint will be key in the future.
Tim Wilson works as content manager at HostPapa, a website hosting company serving more than 100,000 customers around the world. Since launching in 2006, HostPapa has offered reliable, budget-friendly, easy-to-use web hosting solutions for small- to medium-sized businesses.
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