• From: 127.0.0.1
  • Registered: 2001-11-02
  • Posts: 9,167

Topic: Help me find a CMS

I've been hired to produce the backend for the new university website (where I used to study). We have a design that is pretty much done (similar to http://www.lu.se/), but now we need to find a CMS so that we can add new stuff to the website without manually adding new HTML pages and all that. We have the following requirements:

- It must work with IIS (Microsoft's webserver).
- It must have some sort of versioning support so that you can go back to a previous version of a document. Diff support would be nice as well.
- There must be some way of constructing a multi-level menu that is used for the main navigation (like the one on the left here).
- It must be possible include PHP code or to call PHP scripts from individual documents (some pages will contain dynamic content).
- It would be preferable if the same install could be used to power more than one website (some departments will have their own website).
- It must be possible to setup users so that certain users have acces to only certain parts of the site. I.e. a department "web person" must not be able to edit the frontpage or the other departments pages etc.

I've looked around all day and I'm getting fed up with it. Any tips? I've installed Typo3 and Mambo which appear to be some of the most advanced CMS's out there. Mambo is quite nice, but I'm not sure it supports everything we need (e.g. the multi-level menu). Typo3 on the other hand is HUGE and probably supports what we need, but the learning curve is extremely steep. I don't even know where to start. I can think of more constructive things to do than to spend two weeks learning Typo3 before we I get to work.

"Programming is like sex: one mistake and you have to support it for the rest of your life."

Rickard's Website

  • Connorhd
  • Connorhd
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Re: Help me find a CMS

finding the CMS you want is sorta like finding a needle in a haystack with the number of them around

FluxBB.
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  • Registered: 2004-08-08
  • Posts: 508

Re: Help me find a CMS

There is a report here, but it's not free and I don't know if they are willing to pay for it. Just trying to help wink


Also check this out -> http://drupal.org/features

  • From: Deutschland
  • Registered: 2004-12-12
  • Posts: 22

Re: Help me find a CMS

MAMBO!
there is hack. I do not remember the name. It does sublevels. It works on PHP, so everywhere...

but...
- It must have some sort of versioning support so that you can go back to a previous version of a document. Diff support would be nice as well.
I do not know as it is possible to make

5 Reply by hcgtv

  • hcgtv
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Re: Help me find a CMS

If they are willing to pay then go with Expression Engine, it has all the features you are looking for.

CMS land is feast or famine smile

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6 Reply by GUI

  • GUI
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Re: Help me find a CMS

Versioning is the real killer. Especially if you want something free. This past summer, I had to implement something similar using Plone. We eventually found a way to version content with plone, and I can dig around if you'd like, but I can't say I recommend Plone. A summer spent wrangling with Plone and Zope made me a non-fan.

I'm actually working on my own PHP/MySQL CMS right now, and I've implemented a full blown versioning and permissions system, but finishing things out is taking forever. This has been an ongoing personal project, almost reaching year 3. As soon as I get things to an almost usable state, I end up tearing it all down and rebuilding. I'm bad about that. wink I've actually been quite happy with the current direction of the CMS for quite some time now, it's just finding time to finish things out, and build some basic modules for content.

I'd like to say I could finish things up sometime soon, but I just know that won't happen. I think your best bet is a pay-for CMS. Free CMSes generally suck. That's why I'm having my go at it, because, you know, I'll solve everything. wink

Hard work may not kill you, but why take chances?

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7 Reply by Jacq (edited by Jacq 2005-01-04 16:40)

  • Jacq
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Re: Help me find a CMS

I once tried to find a cms suitable for me and I ended up coding one myself and it took less than a day. It did most of the stuff you need except diffs, php code in page and site based permissions. And it had no admin interface ... had to do anything with phpmyadmin lol. The only problem so far is that I have to support it now.

On Mambo's case I think you can get around the multi level menu thing by creating for example css menus. And if it can do php you could create a template code to use when creating menus.

Anyway. Stay as far away from Wikis as humanly possible. They can't be converted to what you need. And before you do anything else take a look at the PunBB 1.2 wink.

8 Reply by aaron

  • From: somewhere in the ozone
  • Registered: 2004-04-19
  • Posts: 22

Re: Help me find a CMS

I have had good luck with Geeklog has lots built in, lots of mods and addons to accomplish most anything.

Sometimes I roll my own, but base it around Absolute Engine which is a cms / news posting script.  I use this alot becuase it is easily integrated into any site design, I can mod it easily etc.  It also lets you have three levels of users, admins, editors, and contributers.  Very handy.

Aaron

  • From: 127.0.0.1
  • Registered: 2001-11-02
  • Posts: 9,167

Re: Help me find a CMS

hcgtv wrote:

If they are willing to pay then go with Expression Engine, it has all the features you are looking for.

I can't seem to find anything regarding versioning other than the fact that it support versioning of the templates. It's the actual content I'm interested in versioning smile

"Programming is like sex: one mistake and you have to support it for the rest of your life."

Rickard's Website

10 Reply by hcgtv

  • hcgtv
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Re: Help me find a CMS

Rickard wrote:

It's the actual content I'm interested in versioning smile

Then you're looking at a more robust CMS like typo3 or extend an exisiting one to handle content versioning.

I've tried every CMS or Blog in open source land, ran each one for a couple of weeks then went on to the next one.

I did this for over two years, looking for the right one. My conclusion, start with one that can be easily extended for the task at hand.

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  • From: 127.0.0.1
  • Registered: 2001-11-02
  • Posts: 9,167

Re: Help me find a CMS

I guess I am. However, versioning is kind of a "from the ground up" feature that I think extending a CMS that lacks it will be quite difficult. I'll keep searching. I'm gonna try Expression Engine tomorrow anyway. If that doesn't cut it, I'll go with Typo3 or Mambo. I do prefer the interface in Mambo, but having a look at the template for the frontpage kind of scared me.

"Programming is like sex: one mistake and you have to support it for the rest of your life."

Rickard's Website

12 Reply by Jacq

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Re: Help me find a CMS

Funny that there's no versioning support ... that is the easiest thing to do if you have database backend.

13 Reply by hcgtv

  • hcgtv
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Re: Help me find a CMS

Rickard wrote:

I do prefer the interface in Mambo, but having a look at the template for the frontpage kind of scared me.

Ah, the mixing of html and php:

<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; <?php echo _ISO; ?>" />

I wonder how newbies deal with skinning their Mambo sites?

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  • Registered: 2005-01-04
  • Posts: 13

Re: Help me find a CMS

e107 hands down

go here, opensourcecms.com

you will find all the different cms's to use, and wat do you know, punbb is there smile

15 Reply by abclf

  • abclf
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  • Registered: 2004-07-30
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Re: Help me find a CMS

Hello all,

maybe have a look at etomite ? http://www.etomite.org/ ?
(I like it)

abclf.

abclf's Website

16 Reply by zc923

  • zc923
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  • Registered: 2003-12-15
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Re: Help me find a CMS

No offence or anything, but current cms's suck. Thet either have all the bells and whistles, but don't work efficently, or they work well, but are really simple.

Do, or do not.
  • From: Melbourne, Australia
  • Registered: 2004-05-19
  • Posts: 220

Re: Help me find a CMS

zc923 - I tend to agree with you - no one CMS seems to have all the features I need out of the box.  Most need third party add ons to make them usable.  Two of the most popular I've tried - Mambo and Drupal fall into this category.

Mambo seems the most flexible, but is quite tedious to administer.

Drupal is very well suited to building a community type site (e.g. slashdot) but doesn't handle articles too well.  No multipage support, and a simple thing like inserting images into articles takes a few hoops to jump through.


Limbo looks promising... (lite version of mambo) but currently doesn't have any community/portal features.

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18 Reply by cuteseal (edited by cuteseal 2005-01-05 02:06)

  • From: Melbourne, Australia
  • Registered: 2004-05-19
  • Posts: 220

Re: Help me find a CMS

hcgtv wrote:
Rickard wrote:

I do prefer the interface in Mambo, but having a look at the template for the frontpage kind of scared me.

Ah, the mixing of html and php:

<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; <?php echo _ISO; ?>" />

I wonder how newbies deal with skinning their Mambo sites?

It was surprisingly simple hcgtv once you got over the inital shock! big_smile

There's a tutorial available on the mambo site, and basically you need to copy the basic template (which has all the <?php echo _ISP; ?> stuff) and then insert your existing template around it.  Or the other way round.

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19 Reply by hcgtv

  • hcgtv
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Re: Help me find a CMS

cuteseal wrote:

It was surprisingly simple hcgtv once you got over the inital shock! big_smile

Do you use mambo at shuttertalk?

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20 Reply by zc923

  • zc923
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Re: Help me find a CMS

Hey, Rickard, maybe this means you should develope a full CMS to work with PUNBB! big_smile

/dosen't keep hopes up.

Do, or do not.

21 Reply by cuteseal (edited by cuteseal 2005-01-05 04:09)

  • From: Melbourne, Australia
  • Registered: 2004-05-19
  • Posts: 220

Re: Help me find a CMS

hcgtv wrote:
cuteseal wrote:

It was surprisingly simple hcgtv once you got over the inital shock! big_smile

Do you use mambo at shuttertalk?

Nooope!  I was looking at mambo for another site...



At shuttertalk, for news I use punbb with my own news script and reply only mod.

For articles... I handcraft the html pages... ouch!! big_smile




One day I'll move to a full blown cms... one day...

Digital photography news, reviews, discussions and more!
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  • From: -8 GMT
  • Registered: 2004-05-04
  • Posts: 1,396

Re: Help me find a CMS

zc923 wrote:

Hey, Rickard, maybe this means you should develope a full CMS to work with PUNBB! big_smile

/dosen't keep hopes up.

one could only hope. we've been hounding him for awhile about this... maybe... just maybe it will happen sooner rather than later now. wink

~James
FluxBB - Less is more
  • Registered: 2005-01-05
  • Posts: 5

Re: Help me find a CMS

Hi,

I did want to note that someone actually developed a CMS using punBB - http://www.puncms.dizmedia.com/forum/index.php

Unfortunately, the guy then appeared to have dropped off the face of the earth, which is too bad b/c the CMS and forum design he used look very good.  I emailed him once without any reply back, so I'm not really sure what happened sad

Anyway, I use Mambo on several sites and wanted to recommend it if you didn't develop your own CMS for punBB instead.

Thanks.

  • Connorhd
  • Connorhd
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Re: Help me find a CMS

zc923 wrote:

Hey, Rickard, maybe this means you should develope a full CMS to work with PUNBB! big_smile

/dosen't keep hopes up.

i am planning to attempt to make a punbb based cms, however i'm a bit slow and it might not be brilliant wink - http://punbb.org/forums/viewtopic.php?id=4709

FluxBB.
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25 Reply by zc923

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Re: Help me find a CMS

If I had the time, patience, and skill, I would develope a cms based on punbb. It would just call the news functions from the db. You could even have a gallery.

Do, or do not.