The Web Page Setup: Content Management

Last time I left you with a huge list of text editors and probably more questions than answers. In this second installment of “The Webpage Setup” I’m going to touch on the wide world of File Transfer Protocol Clients (FTP Clients) and Content Management Systems (CMS).

I’ll first touch on choosing a CMS that works for you. There are many different CMS systems out there and they can be a great tool to help you or your client organize all of their online files. There are five things that I consider when choosing whether or not a certain CMS will work for the project I’m working on.

1. Cost – I first look at the cost of a CMS. As a web developer I look for the cheapest/best product out there. Don’t get me wrong, there are many CMS solutions out there with 24 hour support and the like, but I tend to try to keep things on the cheap for myself and my clients. There are many products out there that are open source and free.
2. Usability – This entails many things. There are a lot of systems out there that provide you with many tools and no easy way to use them. I look for an easy to use system with a variety of tools, and is easy enough for clients with virtually no web experience.
3. Permissions – You need to be able to set a client up with the ability to add new users and set their permissions. Look for a CMS which enables administrator accounts, and content creating accounts. There are some systems which allow the administrator to set which directories a user can access.
4. Versatility – Once you start feeling out which types of tools you like using with various systems, you can start looking into the versatility of the product. Will it let you change the layout of the tools? Will it allow you to create plug-ins, or add widgets? Versatility and usability go hand in hand when you’re trying to add new features to your CMS. If it’s too hard to add a new tool it can become very frustrating.
5. Design/Customization – This feature is last on the list but certainly not least. When you or a client want to add content to their website it should be an enjoyable experience. You also want to be able to customize the design to make it coincide with the design of the website you’re using it for. The design is the first thing that many people will notice and if they can’t find their way around, then the system features are lost on them.

With that list we can now look at a list of CMS’s that are widely used and offer users a variety of functions and versatility. When choosing a CMS you should also research to see if it is widely used. If it is, there will be plenty of documentation regarding how to use the product or troubleshooting. Remember a CMS runs on the server that hosts your website, so it doesn’t matter which operating system you create the content with. My list of content management systems are very versatile and have ample documentation.

CushyCMS

• Cost – Free for basic account and $28/month for Pro account.
• Usability – Very simple to use. Everything is up front and available to use. They have a “how-to get started” video on their homepage.
• Permissions – You have the ability to add editors. You can’t differentiate what kind of permissions they have.
• Versatility – Limited ability to add your own tools or customize the user interface.
• Design – Clean and fun design. If you sign up for the Pro account you can customize the user interface.

Get Simple CMS

• Cost – Free
• Usability – Very simple. They have quite a bit of technical documentation for troubleshooting.
• Permissions – No ability to create permissions.
• Versatility – Somewhat limited. This CMS is devoted to people who need a lightweight system so they don’t offer too many frills.
• Design – Designed with the user in mind. A simple design that is easy to customize.

Wordpress

• Cost – Free
• Usability – More complicated than the top three because there are so many tools. Typically you have to install Wordpress yourself, but BlueHost(my website hosting company) has a Wordpress tool that installs it instantly to your domain.
• Permissions – You can add admin and editor permissions.
• Versatility – Supports many plugins and widgets.
• Design – Fully customizable. The default design is a simple and professional.

Drupal

• Cost – Free
• Usability – Installing Drupal is complex and not for people new to website hosting.
• Permissions – You can add admin and editor permissions.
• Versatility – Supports many different tools.
• Design – Fully customizable. The default design is lacking, but it’s encouraged that you improve upon it.

Joomla

• Cost – Free
• Usability – Installing Joomla is complex and not for people new to website hosting.
• Permissions – You can add admin and editor permissions.
• Versatility – Supports many different tools.
• Design – Fully customizable. The default design is also lacking, and begs to be improved upon.

After overwhelming you with all that information about the different content management systems, I can tell you there is a simpler way to get your website from your computer to the internet in a click of the mouse. Using a File Transfer Protocol (FTP) client is the way to do this. There are two major types of FTP, FTP and SFTP. SFTP is a secure version of FTP and encrypts your data as it is sent between your computer and the hosting servers. There are many clients out there that offer a great file transferring solution. Here are a few.

I don’t have any particular bias, but I do use FileZilla for my own website because it is cross platform so there is more user documentation regarding troubleshooting and tutorials.

I hope you enjoyed this lengthy installment of “The Webpage Setup”. Have a great day and get outside every once in awhile.