What are Content Management Systems?

Content Management Systems (CMSes) are widely used today to build and manage websites.

HTML used to be de rigueur of website design and construction. But the problem has always been the dynamic nature of the content. Every time you wanted to change something, you had to call in your webmaster to make the changes. Not so with a CMS. Content is stored in a database and the CMS provides the tools both to update the content and to present that content to your visitors.

Ever since the commercialization of the web, the larger sites like Yahoo!, CNN, etc. have made extensive use of automation to simplify the task of content management. Those tools are now available to even the most modest website builder and that is what the majority of Hardfocus clients are using. In fact, we wouldn't be able to provide many of the web services that we do to our clients without the power that CMSes provide.

Some typical applications of CMSes include:

• Online Journals (blog)
• ECommerce (shopping cart)
• News Portals
• Forums (bulletin board systems)
• Community Sites
• Document Management and Collaboration (wiki)

Hardfocus is always on the lookout for new developments and application of CMS technology. We regularly install and test promising new CMS systems to see how they might be useful to our clients. For our recommendations, have a look at Choosing a Content Management System.

If you are still not sure the direction you should take, feel free to talk to us about your requirements.