Comparison of Top CMS Systems

Comparison of Top CMS Systems

Presented by Ryan Streetrstreet@crownpartners.com

www.coolryan.com@ryanstreet

We become what we behold. We shape our tools and then our tools shape us.

-Marshall McLuhan

Objective

• Define the Top 3 CMS Systems• Features• Strengths and Weaknesses• Scenarios

A Word of Caution

Are You a Baby Duck?You can't rationally compare alternatives with no experience in the alternatives, and software imprinting robs you of that vital experience.--”The Software Imprinting Dilemma” Jeff Atwood. 2007

Top 3 CMS Systems

• WordPress• Joomla• Drupal

Honorable Mentions

• DotNetNuke• ExpressionEngine• MediaWiki• Concrete5• TYPO3• LifeRay• Adobe CQ

Where Did Your Data Come From?

• http://trends.builtwith.com/cms– Circa 2007– Over 90 mil. Distinct websites indexed– Quantifies data from Quantcast, Alexa, Google,

Internet Retailer, and Fortune.

Top 3 Stats - WordPress

Top 1 mil. Top 100K Top 10K

Top 3 Stats - Joomla

Top 1 mil. Top 100K Top 10K

Top 3 Stats - Drupal

Top 1 mil. Top 100K Top 10K

WordPress

History

• First Released in 2003• Matt Mullenweg and Mike Little• Fork of b2/cafelog

Content Structure

• Pages and Posts• Custom Post Types Supported• Posts utilize categories and tags• Widgets

Templates and Themes

• Utilizes a fallback structure• Parent and Child Themes Supported• 1600+ available for download

Plugins, Extensions, and Customization

• Rich Plugin Architecture– Observer Pattern utilizing Action and Filter

“Hooks”• 23,000+ available for download

SEO

• Utilizes URL rewriting “permalinks”• SEO Friendly Images• Internal Linking

Support and Community

• Good Documentation• WordPress.tv, learn.wordPress.com, etc.• Guided Tutorials Built In• 60+ WordCamps per year• ~500 WordPress Meetups

Other Features

• Multi-Site Capable• 5 Different Native Mobile Apps• Free WordPress Blogs hosted at

WordPress.com• WordPress VIP• Sister Projects called BuddyPress, BBPress,

PollDaddy, Askismet, etc.

Strengths

• Ease of Use• Backward Compatibility• Number of Plugins and Themes Available• Developer Following and Ease of

Customization

Weaknesses

• Inflexible (Easy to Outgrow)• Security

Joomla

History

• Forked Off of Mambo Project in 2005• Won Numerous Awards including Packt Open

Source Content Management System Award 3 Times

Content Structure

• Utilizes Article and Component Structure• Leverages Menus To Drive Content Curation

and Display• Extendible through downloadable

components

Templates and Themes

• Robust and Flexible• Utilize a Fallback Structure• Parent and Child Structure

Plugins, Extensions, and Customization

• 5 Different Extensions Available– Components, Modules, Plugins, Templates, &

Languages• Components are ‘mini-applications’• Modules add functionality (ex: login/search)• Plugins Extend or modify functionality of Joomla

through use of events• Templates drive the look and feel• Languages allow for internationalization

SEO

• SEO Friendly URLS• Customizable Suffixes• Robots Information on the Menu/Content

Level

Support and Community

• Good Documentation• Thriving Forums• Joomla Resource Directory• Joomla Magazine• Joomla Connect

Other Features

• Multi-Site Compatible• MVC Architecture• More Functionality Out of the Box

Strengths

• Community• Flexibility

Weaknesses

• Security• Administration is Unintuitive• Code Bloat

Drupal

History

• Released in 2001• Created By Dries Buytaert• Current Version: 7

Content Structure

• Nodes, Content Types, and Fields• Menus• Taxonomies• Views• Panels

Templates and Themes

• Robust and Flexible• Fallback Structure• Parent and Child Themes

Plugins, Extensions, and Customization

• Modules• Themes• Distributions

SEO

• Clean URLs• Paths and Redirects (Canonicalization)• Meta Information

Support and Community

• Good Documentation• 913,000 User Accounts• 22,600 Developer Accounts• 19,000+ Modules Available• DrupalCon, DrupalCamp, and DrupalGangers

Other Features

• Multi-Site Capable• Multiple DB Support• Multiple OS/Stack Support• Actually Referenced as a Framework

Strengths

• Highly Flexible• Community

Weaknesses

• Bad UI• Complex• Backward Compatibility

When Should You Use Each One?

Scenario 1: Joe’s Pizza

• Sole Proprietor• Wants About, Contact,

Directions and Menu Pages

• Wants to be able to update site with weekly specials himself

Scenario 2: Joe’s Software

• Wants Standard Company Pages

• Wants a knowledgebase for software

• Wants a news section for latest updates and releases

• Wants developers to update knowledgebase but not other pages

Scenario 3: Joe’s Realty

• Wants Listings of Properties

• Wants Company Pages• Wants a newest listing

section• Wants Realtors to log in

and edit/update listings themselves

Questions?