Chapter 8: Content Management Systems

Overview

Author: Gareth Downes-Powell

• Why a Content Management System (CMS) is useful

• Obtaining a CMS

• Meeting intranet needs

• Other publishing technologies

In this chapter we deal with various methods of organizing and storing content. Our primary focus will be on Content Management Systems (CMS), but we will also look at Portals, Document Management Systems, and web logs (blogs). We will discuss the benefits CMS can offer, and how it can make your intranet serve your staff more efficiently and save both time and money.

We look at some of the processes involved in selecting a CMS package, and some of the qualities you should be looking for. We discuss the use of CMS with both your intranet and web site, and integrating the CMS within the two to stop duplication of data.

Next we look at how the CMS needs to work with your existing intranet, and discuss some of the issues involved, and look at different approaches that can be taken. Finally we close the chapter by looking at some of the other publishing technologies and techniques available such as Document Management Systems and portals.