which CMS for Community website ?
Hi all
I' am planning to build a community website, where visitors can write their own threads, upload pictures and videos, write comments on other users' threads, customise their own page and so on ... with or without login. Can you guys please advise me which CMS is suitable for this ? or that covers all these functionalities ?
Thanx
decibel.places posted this at 17:16 — 18th June 2008.
He has: 1,494 posts
Joined: Jun 2008
Hi tropic,
I am a big fan of Drupal
I would recommend using penultimate stable version 5.7 for better module support (modules are plug ins that extend functions).
However if you don't need the v 5 modules (which will eventually be upgraded to v 6 Drupal is a sprawling messy cooperative effort) Drupal 6 has a new menu and forum system that is a big improvement over v 5. You can also upgrade later on, it is pretty automated.
Not sure how unregistered users could customize their pages - maybe you didn't mean that.
In Drupal you can create as many "roles" for users as you need each with fine-grained permissions (eg admin, member, moderator etc.)
This site uses Drupal, in fact.
silverwing posted this at 18:35 — 19th June 2008.
He has: 79 posts
Joined: May 2008
Truth is, most systems let you do that to some degree. Drupal works, Xoops can, CPG Dragonfly/Postnuke(Zikula) etc. etc. (Joomla doesn't have a good user-permission system afaik).
Head over to http://opensourcecms.com and look for the demos of the systems to get a feel for them.
~silverwing
zinzinny | Misguided Thoughts | showcaseCMS
decibel.places posted this at 21:05 — 19th June 2008.
He has: 1,494 posts
Joined: Jun 2008
yes, silverwing, I agree open source cms is a great test drive!
However the Drupal install is kind of shabby - maybe when I looked there somone had messed it up.
yes, I know the site periodically refreshes
(right on your heels, watch out behind you!)
silverwing posted this at 21:47 — 19th June 2008.
He has: 79 posts
Joined: May 2008
would you believe I'm a moderator at opensourcecms.com?
~silverwing - netsperienced and I have been running into each other a lot lately...
decibel.places posted this at 22:35 — 19th June 2008.
He has: 1,494 posts
Joined: Jun 2008
only by your word - and why would anyone make that up?
Great site, I have not looked at it all but send people there to compare Drupal and Joomla (and then I tell them about the 250 other cms portals you demonstrate there and they really panic!)
I'm a moderator too, at the IT Contracting Network Coder's Corner which is just starting out at ning.com, there are 3 members including myself, the creator of the site, and a fellow named Stan - but you gotta start somewhere!
(site is currently in maintenance - I'm not the maintainer/programmer)
Michael James Swan posted this at 22:38 — 19th June 2008.
He has: 400 posts
Joined: May 2008
That is cool netsperienced...
{{spam link deleted}}
I did try drupal but i am still trying to get to terms with it. LOL
I liked Joomla but it got annoying after a while...
www.hotscripts.com has a fair few scripts which you may find of use...
decibel.places posted this at 23:14 — 19th June 2008.
He has: 1,494 posts
Joined: Jun 2008
yes I know hotscripts - and I have grabbed stuff and modded it from there too (my philosophy is why write it if it already exists - as long as it is well-written)
I was playing around with something called PAW (PHP Automatic Website) from HotScripts I thought was cool until Drupal came on my radar...
What strikes me is how clueless most programmers are about design - even basic ui, not fine art - and then the designers can't take a chunk of php/mysql code and drop it in their page - and I worked with a fellow who specializes in Flash and Actionscript who actually panicked when I suggested we use a JavaScript image preloader and I had to end up writing it..
Michael James Swan posted this at 05:27 — 20th June 2008.
He has: 400 posts
Joined: May 2008
LOL. Poor Man. Must have almost gave him a heart attack. Oh well, i have used some javascript and PHP is used with me for a fair bit. I am trying to do some drupal but i will learn it well soon enough.
I like websites that look good, but yet again i also like them to be easy to navigate.
decibel.places posted this at 12:25 — 20th June 2008.
He has: 1,494 posts
Joined: Jun 2008
Looking good and easy to navigate are not mutually exclusive..
Rather, I think a good designer understands that design follows function
I have come to terms with the fact that I am not a designer - I am far too interested in function than in window dressing - I am working with a couple of talented designers and it is great when the team clicks, from concept to implementation.
I told one I had a site on GeoCities for 10 years (still do in fact) and she just rolled her eyes - right through the email!
The evolution of packages with designed themes like Drupal and WordPress has made it a little easier to create a functional web site that is appealing using someone else's design plugged in - but I generally start with a really basic Drupal theme like Framework and build from psds with css...
My personal site is a modified 4 Seasons theme, I like its whimsical features (change colors and fontsize - but I enhanced that interface) and it's relatively clean look - because I get pretty messy.
I am volunteering a community site for a mental health self-help center using (appropriately) the Drupal Ability theme (also somewhat modified). I took a logo graphic from their brochure of some interlinked hands and showed it to one of my designers - she immediately donated a logo, she said it hurt her eyes to look at the clip art one.
What's nice is the center is so happy they are insisting on paying me something (not my primary motivation) and are referring me to their parent agency which runs 20+ centers around the state of New Jersey.
We are in the process of applying for a free hosting account (for nonprofits only 501c3) at Grassroots.org - they will even throw in a top-level domain for a year to get started!
carmagedon posted this at 17:31 — 20th June 2008.
They have: 1 posts
Joined: Jun 2008
Yes, This CMS Drupal, is very good. In the site http://drupal.org you can download this.
Bye!
PD: Sorry, my english is bad.
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