Content Management Systems

Personally, I love content management systems (CMS). They are a great way to build a website and integrate a collective body of knowledge and effort. The real value in a CMS is found with the modules (or plug-ins depending on the system). These are additional pieces of code that others develop and can be plugged into an existing site.

CMS extending webpage usability

For the Center for Limnology, I developed two prototype digital libraries using Drupal and Joomla. What I needed was a system that could hold resources in an easy and accessible manner while protecting against unauthorized users. Both Drupal and Joomla had modules that can hold bibliographic information, and both had systems that can allow only authorized users to view the content.

Here’s an example of a Joomla site:

Here’s an example of Drupal

CMS allow for Faster Web Site Updates

The other added advantage is that updating pages is more simple. So new content can be added quickly and does not require remaking html pages. For the project through the limnology library, new content can be batch uploaded, so thousands of new additions can be added in just a few minutes.

In addition, since items can be batched processed, this cuts down on other steps in the processing of materials. With a CMS, I was able to reduce several steps in the workflow while retaining the same information.

The final Drupal site is available here.