Put simply a Content Management System (or CMS) is a way of controlling your web site.
Instead of manually editing static (non changing) pages, you interact with dynamic (changeable) pages through the CMS.
On the market today there are many different Content Management Systems available, most are free or open source although there are paid options available.
The problem that many web developers face when creating a web site is choosing the right Content Management System.
In the following article I will look at the most common types of web sites and will give examples of what the best Content Management Systems are for each type.
A General Purpose Company Web Site If you are a small business owner who wishes to create a simple web presence then CMS Made Simple is right for you.
CMS Made Simple, like the name suggests is an easy to use Content Management System that is suitable for smaller end web sites.
It is perfect for those that require static and dynamic web pages, and even has some nifty modules available, including mailers for email.
Best of all CMS Made Simple is free and open source.
A Personal Blog / Article Site If you wish to run a personal blog or a site where you display articles/news written by you or your company then WordPress is right for you.
It is available for you to host yourself or for those without web hosting you can use their hosted version.
WordPress is a popular publishing platform that has thousands of different themes and plugins available and can literally be modified into the right CMS for any project.
WordPress is also free and open source and this very web site is currently running on it.
A Forum For those wishing to run a forum there are several great options for the software you can use.
PHPBB and Simple Machines Forum are the best open source (free) forum software packages available.
However if you are looking for a more stable and supported forum CMS then Vbulletin is one of the more popular paid pieces of software out there.
Just remember whatever Content Management System you choose, ensure that it is updated regularly and when those updates come out to update your version straight away.
Also look around before paying for a CMS because there are actually many open source alternatives that are better than the paid versions.
Lastly you might consider deleting the default 'admin' account and using a different login name as this can save you from many security vulnerabilities.
Instead of manually editing static (non changing) pages, you interact with dynamic (changeable) pages through the CMS.
On the market today there are many different Content Management Systems available, most are free or open source although there are paid options available.
The problem that many web developers face when creating a web site is choosing the right Content Management System.
In the following article I will look at the most common types of web sites and will give examples of what the best Content Management Systems are for each type.
A General Purpose Company Web Site If you are a small business owner who wishes to create a simple web presence then CMS Made Simple is right for you.
CMS Made Simple, like the name suggests is an easy to use Content Management System that is suitable for smaller end web sites.
It is perfect for those that require static and dynamic web pages, and even has some nifty modules available, including mailers for email.
Best of all CMS Made Simple is free and open source.
A Personal Blog / Article Site If you wish to run a personal blog or a site where you display articles/news written by you or your company then WordPress is right for you.
It is available for you to host yourself or for those without web hosting you can use their hosted version.
WordPress is a popular publishing platform that has thousands of different themes and plugins available and can literally be modified into the right CMS for any project.
WordPress is also free and open source and this very web site is currently running on it.
A Forum For those wishing to run a forum there are several great options for the software you can use.
PHPBB and Simple Machines Forum are the best open source (free) forum software packages available.
However if you are looking for a more stable and supported forum CMS then Vbulletin is one of the more popular paid pieces of software out there.
Just remember whatever Content Management System you choose, ensure that it is updated regularly and when those updates come out to update your version straight away.
Also look around before paying for a CMS because there are actually many open source alternatives that are better than the paid versions.
Lastly you might consider deleting the default 'admin' account and using a different login name as this can save you from many security vulnerabilities.
Source...