Content Management Systems
Posted on November 4, 2008
Filed Under Business Computing, Internet, Open Source/Freeware, Software | Leave a Comment
Everyone needs a web site, right?
That’s especially true if you’re in business. A web site helps customers find you, learn about what you do, and can even give them an easy way to buy your products or services. Tied in with other marketing material, a web site is a great place to send people to learn more about who you are and what you do.
In the beginning, the web was only hypertext (text that you can click on and be taken to another document or web site) documents that had little or no graphics or embellishments. It quickly replaced older technologies like Gopher and dial-in BBS’s and it wasn’t long before it became apparent that the World Wide Web would revolutionize the way we share information.
As the Web evolved, an industry grew around designing Web pages and buzz phrases like “web presence” came into vogue. Software packages like FrontPage and Dreamweaver promise to make it easy for anyone to create nice looking web pages and they’re reasonably straight forward to use. Many of these programs are really not a whole lot different than using a word processor like Microsoft Word.
A lot has changed in what web pages are capable of however and for the most part, static web pages made in one of these software programs just doesn’t cut it for a dynamic web sites that are meant to drive business. Today’s buzz phrase is “content management”.
Content Management Systems (CMS) are a framework around which a Web site can be built. The CMS provides the functionality for the site while the look and feel of the site can be changed without affecting content (the information you publish) or functionality. In fact, most CMS’ allow you to completely change the look of the web site without ever having to worry about the content changing.
To manage the look of a site, many CMS’ use the concept of a “skin”. A skin is a web design that is applied to the site and provides the look and feel only. One would typically design the look of the site, make some changes to it specific to the CMS, and then install the skin on the site.
The CMS will have some type of backend where content can be created and managed. Sadly, there isn’t much of a standard – let me rephrase that, there is no standard – way of dealing with content in a CMS. Some use “news” items, some “content” items, you name it. The trick is to decide on the CMS you like and get used to how you create and edit content in it.
CMS’ also offer functionality that you just can’t easily get with static web pages. Most come with options to offer special content to users who register on your site. Many also have add-ons that supply shopping carts, blogs, discussion forums, wikis, you name it. They fit right into the look of the site and they are usually not too difficult to use.
The beauty of CMS is that you can add and edit content at will without messing up the functionality of the site or having to call your web designer to modify it for you. The added bonus is that you can do some pretty advanced stuff with your web site using the built-in tools or some add-ons.
Many of the best CMS systems are also free. A great place to start is http://www.opensourcecms.com
Back to School Tools
Posted on August 27, 2008
Filed Under Internet, Open Source/Freeware, Software | Leave a Comment
It’s hard to believe but the summer’s almost over and next week it’s back to school for most students. There are staples that make a PC useful for a student and there are some cool software packages that make learning easier and more enjoyable.
Projects require research and historically that meant encyclopedias among other things. Today there are a plethora of online encyclopedias including encyclopedia.com and wikipedia.org. Wikipedia has taken a bit of a beating recently with content being falsified but the old stalwarts like Britannica and Columbia are all online. A Google search for the keyword “encyclopedias” is a great place to start.
On the subject of research and at the risk of digressing, the latest build of Google Earth 4.2 (http://earth.google.com) released August 21, 2007 is definitely worth a look. The Wikipedia description of Google Earth reads: “Google Earth is a virtual globe program that was originally called Earth Viewer and was created by Keyhole, Inc. It maps the earth by the superimposition of images obtained from satellite imagery, aerial photography and GIS
3D globe.”
The newest version of Google Earth includes Sky which takes Google from the ambitious mission of mapping the Earth in an easy to use software package to mapping the entire universe. But Google Earth is more than just a mapping and planetarium application, with a large number of add-on KML files available, you can do anything from monitoring global warming to following in the footsteps of Bob Marley.
Regardless, the main staple in producing a project or paper is of course Microsoft Office simply because it is the most familiar office suite out there. The basic versions of Office include a Word Processor (Word) and a Spreadsheet (Excel). In most cases the Student & Home Edition would be the best buy at around $180.00. The Student & Home Edition includes PowerPoint, a presentation package, as well as Word and Excel.
If you are buying a new computer you can also opt for Microsoft Office Basic which includes Outlook (email, calendar, tasks, etc.) rather than PowerPoint. Office Basic cannot be bought off the shelf however, and must be purchased with a new PC.
A free and very capable alternative to Microsoft Office is OpenOffice.org (www.openoffice.org). OpenOffice.org 2.2.1 – the most current version – includes a word processor, spreadsheet, database, presentation software, drawing software, and a mathematical equation editor. Don’t let the price tag fool you, this is full featured software and the term “you get what you pay for” just doesn’t apply to it.
Once a project is completed it needs to be submitted. Often that means printing a hard copy and submitting it to a teacher or instructor. Sometimes it makes sense however to submit a project by email or by another electronic means. Often the best bet in that case is to write the project to Adobe PDF format. PDF files can be opened on practically any computer even if the program the original document was made with is unavailable.
The standard for creating PDF files is Adobe Acrobat which starts at $299 US. There are lower cost alternatives however ranging from free – PrimoPDF (http://www.primopdf.com) and CutePDF (http://www.cutepdf.com) are excellent examples – to more robust but low cost packages like DeskPDF (http://www.docudesk.com) and CutePDF Professional (http://www.cutepdf.com).
And once the marks come in and the accolades for such incredible work subside, you’ll surely want to backup your work for posterity’s sake. A great way to backup this type of data is with rewriteable CDs or DVDs or if you want to be sure your masterpiece won’t be overwritten, to CDR or DVDR. I find Nero (http://www.nero.com) to be about the best software around for the purpose.
Happy studying!
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