Saturday, January 25, 2014

How to make a CMS website

In previous tutorials in the series "my website, step by step" on various web languages ​​(XHTML, CSS, ...) to create web pages. However, the creation takes time ... And that is why I decided to talk about systems
management of content ( CMS ), how they work, know their strengths and how to choose a CMS to create your site ...

A CMS is a script using the PHP / SQL, created to manage the content of a website more easily, without touching the code In a time less!

When talking about the content, not just text ... this may be the forms, image galleries, videos or flash animations ... In short, all the data you can send, store and download from our server.

NB: For starters, you can use a CMS without touching the code, if you do not want to create something special, but sometimes we must intervene to change some variables or a few lines to edit some parts in your theme or in your site ...

We will see in this article argued, the best CMS that you can use to create your website. And how to choose one that meets your needs.

But let's start with the basics ...

CMS, how does it work?


First, a system (CMS management content = Content Management System ) allows you to manage all the content of your website, whether articles,image galleries or any section of your website ...

CMS uses a database to store the content of the pages, and written in PHP or ASP to allow the user to edit and make changes to the database files through the included graphical user interface by CMS.

There are several types of databases, the database is the most commonly used "MySQL". Then found in second position "Postgre." MySQL is faster than Postgres.

CMS can be found based solely on XML database (xml files). But speed side, MySQL is always faster than the XML type.

For the software side, most CMS are written in PHP. But there are other writings in other languages ​​...

Each CMS has its own modules / extensions and their own themes, allowing it to add other features that are not available in the original version of CMS.

In short, a CMS or content management system is written in PHP to manage content easily through a GUI script, each user has their own rights to it (eg the administrator does not have the same rights than a
contributor), and also allows you to create great websites, without touching the code.

How to choose a CMS:


Choosing a CMS is not something easy, you must know the standard that a good CMS should contain different!

I'll talk about the various factors that you can consider to choose the right CMS that fits your needs.
The simplicity, speed ...

The number 1 factor is the ease of use and speed of query processing (loading pages).

Regarding simplicity, CMS must contain a simple and easy to use and fast GUI to facilitate access to the various options and items offered by CMS (such as articles section in the dashboard WordPress ).

The administration interface should be very easy and worn all types of users, a good interface allows you to post in less than 3 seconds a blank item!

Not to mention the installation ... The installation of a CMS should be as if we begin to write the sentence "I love easytutoriel" for example. All work must be done elsewhere in the factory of CMS, the user should
find everything easy and accessible, without the fuss!The design should be easy to change!

A good CMS is one that offers themes or templates that you can use to change the look of your website. In order to distinguish it from other sites.

As with WordPress , a good CMS is the one who gives you the ability to install themes without using an FTP client.

Note: It is recommended to download themes from the official website CMS, simply because you may be the victim of a malicious code that can destroy your entire web site!Extensions, there he was among them ones you need?

Extensions / plugins / modules are scripts with specific variables using the CMS, to add other features or capabilities that are not integrated naturally to the factory version of a CMS.

Each CMS provides extensions that only work on the platform, so you must look for before you even start publishing content if there are extensions / plugins needed for your website (eg: Include shop online with your site).

As with WordPress, you can add a forum space by installing the extension "bbPress", or other.

You can also program your own extensions / modules and use them in your CMS, if not already an extension to do the same job!

Installation of extensions should be as easy. Not to mention the width of the help and support that should be as reliable and wider community.Create a site without touching the code ...A good CMS allows you to fully utilize without even touching the code!It must be within the reach of any user, whether a geek or a beginner
learned nothing about web languages. Because - according to the Pareto - most people (80%) are just beginners!

And therefore, it is necessary that the GUI is easy and does not require the intervention of a specialist or an engineer to publish content to your website, everything must be popularized.

And so, to publish HTML content, a good CMS allows you to publish directly using visual editors (WYSIWYG) without going through the source code.

A visual editor WYSIWYG web editor that allows you to format the text through a text box and a menu usually placed at the top of the editor.

But what is this "best" CMS?
The best CMS?

"The best CMS?" Is a very open question, you must specify the factors that can be taken in consideration in order to identify the "best" CMS.

I will speak in detail about the myths that are often found near the webmasters ...

Errors and the most common myths:


    1. "Better CMS is one that offers many options"
    There is a certain group of webmasters who think that a good CMS is one that offers a "very complicated" interface full of options and buttons, and does not take into consideration the customer who will use it to manage its site, and the client is that a normal user who knows nothing about web languages ​​... He wants an easy and useful CMS! No more.
    2. "The biggest is the more better!"
    A good CMS is often said is used by many people, one with a very fast support, CMS makes all ...
    It is true that, but these people should not forget that if CMS is easier to use. This is a puzzle ...
    The width of the community, rapid support, this is not really the factors that we may consider to choose a good CMS. It is as if we are talking about the famous Linux ... Although most people say that Linux
is more secure against viruses ... Linux is a real headache, and requires a lot of time to adapt to its environment. And besides, today it is only the simple things that work (just see the Google services
with their new interfaces ... easy and useful).
    3. Leave a Geek select ...
    This is the fatal error! Never let someone talented programming or development choose a CMS for you. Because it is likely that he will be interested in CMS that match their needs, and not to yours! So try or
learn about CMS that can help you create the site you like to be. Or read the proposed list below.
    4. Do not look
    Always look on-line demonstrations of CMS you just select ... may you find a large difference between what you were told, and what is this CMS. Also look if there is an active community that can help you in
case of failure!

And there are several other myths that you can distinguish yourself :)
Well!To answer our question, we must first know the most used CMS in the world, and CMS offering and correspond to the following factors (in brief):

    Quick and easy installation
    Graphical user interface accessible and easy to use The existence of extensions / modules to provide several other features to your website
    Change themes in a few clicks
    Publish content easily and change the "2" clicks

The most used and most popular CMS:

Here statistics as circles, to facilitate understanding :) :

Statistics CMS based on a slice of a million sites:

Statistics CMS based on $ 100,000 sites:

Statistics CMS based on $ 10,000 sites:

The only thing I do not understand in the first diagram, it is not
expected existence Blogger ... He is ranked in 4th position after Drupal
 ...

Here in chips, the 4 most popular CMS:

    WordPress:
    WordPress is a great CMS to create professional blogs, but today it has become the most used CMS in the world. This famous CMS offers several extensions to create great websites, and not just Blogs! You can
 create an e-commerce store, forums, social network easily using the WordPress! It is really worth.
    You can read more about this CMS in crossing this link.
    How to install? I've put a tutorial.

    Drupal :
    Drupal is a powerful CMS for creating large portals with many topics! With its base rich in various plugins and easy to "customize" data themes, you can create quality websites. And not forgetting the
large community of support, you can reach them via this link.    You can read more of this CMS here.

    Joomla! :
    Joomla! CMS is a bit like the famous Drupal, but there is a little profit ... Among the 3,200 extensions provided by the official website of Joomla! There are many paid extensions, plus themes. So prepare
yourself before installing ...    However, using this CMS, you can create a website easily.
Installation is quick.    But as I have said above, avoid this type of CMS ... very
complicated and the best extensions are paying ...

    Expression Engine:
    Paid ... for professionals and corporations.

There are many others ... I'll post them (not all, there are thousands) in another article in detail.

Let's check the CMS really worth it! Even if there is new CMS, but that does not mean they are the best.

    WordPress (cited above), and it is used by me in many websites  SPIP SPIP CMS is directed towards the creation of a structured like a magazine site that is to say with headings, sub-headings (and so on) are inserted INTO WHICH articles and brief which can be supplemented with discussion forums.
    CMS Made Simple: A CMS written in PHP, you can create personal websites, social networking sites, or sites of all sizes ... This CMS, even if not very well known in French-speaking countries grew at
support, you can find the Francophone community here .

    SilverStripe: Developed by SilverStripe agency based in Australia ... Allows you to create customized websites based on the Sapphire framework. With Francophone community, you can join by this link .
    Xoops: I used there 4 years Xoops is a little more complicated CMS, but offers numerous options.. You can create a website pure web news, a gaming site or a web directory. Very powerful! Active Francophone
community has existed for years, you can join here.

I tried to include those that I find true CMS. I can sometimes be wrong, and it depends on your needs, not mine.If you know of others that I have not mentioned in this list, do not hesitate to warn me with a comment below .
Conclusion:

Note that if someone tells you "I know the best CMS", know that this person speak a CMS that's good for their site, and it does not mean that CMS can be helpful for your website.

You must choose the CMS that meets your needs, the easier to use and more flexible. One that allows you to publish content in less than half an hour.

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