Tech Talks: Content Management Systems

By Dave Rutledge

    When it comes to maintaining a website, traditionally you would have to use a publication tool such as Frontpage, or you would have to know how to code HTML. These tools have gotten the job done for many a site, but have their limitations or require a while to learn. For a professional site that is easy for the site owner to maintain, a web design company can design the site and install a Content Management System, which will give a professional look and behaviour, while allowing for easy updating without HTML knowledge or programs like Frontpage.

A Content Management System, or CMS for short, is a type of software that can be accessed over the Internet, and is meant to give the user control of the content of their website. CMS are fast to update, and do not require further file uploads through FTP such as Frontpage or traditional HTML after you have updated source files. The way the CMS allows you to update the site is through a editor that is similar in function to a Word Processor called a WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) editor that allows you to type out the content as you want to see it, and will do it correctly with no previous web design knowledge. Although designed to control the content of a site, CMS’s can control much more than simple content such as images, additional or new pages, internal or external links, site look and page behaviour, and almost every aspect of the site that doesn’t require graphic design.

The content of the site is usually stored in a database when using a CMS, allowing for a robust data structure, and quick and easy backup or data restoration without having to update and maintain hundreds of files or more. Understanding of database design is required when setting up a CMS, along with knowledge of server side scripting languages, and other languages and code libraries. This is why even though many companies promise the CMS for free with purchase of hosting, it is still a good idea to hire a professional design company to securely set up and maintain the database and site.

Sites that are powered by CMS’s allow the user multiple options of how the content is published. When adding an article, you can choose to publish it or not, or even choose a publication date. This allows you to add content with time sensitive publication, or to work on the article until satisfied and then choose to publish it, and when published the general public will be able to view the article.

Some CMS’s can be rigid and come with more tools than a user needs, while the ones most used for professional sites are modular, and allow for additional software to be installed for a particular site use. Such an example can be a gallery, while the CMS can publish images, a gallery is more professional and easy to add images to the site. A modular CMS would allow for installation of gallery software, giving the site the ability to control it’s images in a gallery style.

The main selling factor of a CMS is that once it is setup, the web designer is hardly required for further updates, as the site owner can do the updates, or hire an in house person to do so. It is recommended to keep the web design staff around for if the site requires updates that your staff can’t handle, or if the site requires fixing. The initial cost of site design and CMS setup is close to, if not less, than older ways of site design that required a web-design company to update the site. With a CMS you can update your site in house, which over the long run of owning a site will save you more money, as you do not have to pay a design staff for each and every update. A CMS is a cost effective solution, and smart way of owning and maintaining a website that any business should research further.

David Rutledge is the Owner / Manager of Dreamlab Digital Design Studio. Visit their website at http://www.dreamlabdigital.com  or call (250) 961 - 0932

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