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#1 2011-04-12 11:25:06
- HarryG
- Member
- Registered: 2011-01-12
- Posts: 21
Should I change my existing web site (1750+ files, 900MB) to a CMS?
I probably need some hand-holding and reassuring…
1. seems like it’s complicated to keep local copies of a web site this large. Our provider dropped us for missed payment.
2. I have edited hundreds of files to correct global misspellings (à instead of à) using wingrep, then easily uploaded the 200 changed files. Can this be done with textpattern? This includes changing <a href= …> tags, when I changed the file structure of the site. Is this possible with TextPattern?
…
And many more questions such as this. I have been reading the online documentation for days and still can’t figure it out.
Regarding the existing site: Right now only two people manage the site. Both have admin access to the remote server. Both are semi-skilled in CSS and html. When there is a typo on one page, one of these (volunteers) has to fix it, not the site owner. It was thought that with CMS, the site owner would be able to make such changes. But it seems easier to train a newbie in rudiments of html and in ftp to to introduce him to content, presentation, articles, pages, forms, <txp:…> tags, etc.
So we would end up with the same two people doing all the work, but it would have to be done through and extra layer of indirection.
So….
is it really worth it, in this case?
I would be grateful for any advice, including emails.
Thanks
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Re: Should I change my existing web site (1750+ files, 900MB) to a CMS?
HarryG wrote:
1. seems like it’s complicated to keep local copies of a web site this large.
For a website that consists of only static pages (not handled by a CMS) that’s actually quite easy if you use a tool like rsync.
I have edited hundreds of files to correct global misspellings (à instead of à) using wingrep, then easily uploaded the 200 changed files. Can this be done with textpattern?
Such simple changes could probably be done through PHPmyadmin using an SQL query to search and replace.
This includes changing <a href= …> tags, when I changed the file structure of the site. Is this possible with TextPattern?
Probably, yes. Might require a plugin if you need to do complicated search/replace actions.
Regarding the existing site: Right now only two people manage the site. Both have admin access to the remote server. Both are semi-skilled in CSS and html. When there is a typo on one page, one of these (volunteers) has to fix it, not the site owner.
What does the site owner do? Only provide the content and the two other people put it online?
It was thought that with CMS, the site owner would be able to make such changes. But it seems easier to train a newbie in rudiments of html and in ftp to to introduce him to content, presentation, articles, pages, forms, <txp:…> tags, etc. So we would end up with the same two people doing all the work, but it would have to be done through and extra layer of indirection.
That extra layer does make things easier. For example: if you have previous/next links in an article series, you don’t have to maintain them yourself, but the CMS will do that for you. Anyone who is capable enough to understand CSS and HTML should have no problem understanding how a CMS like TXP works.
So… is it really worth it, in this case?
If you were building a new site: yes
If your website will stay as is for the next years: probably not worth the time of converting everything.
If you plan on doubling the number of pages on your website: yes
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Re: Should I change my existing web site (1750+ files, 900MB) to a CMS?
I would say with a site of that size, using a CMS places you in much better standing for the future as adaptations to changes in site design, changing internet conditions and so on are so much easier to achieve than editing a vast number of individual files. If, for example, you wish to change the structure of the site, it is a matter of marking the articles you wish to restructure and assigning them to a new section or category. If your site is designed well, the CMS will take care of interlinking automatically. In the end you’ll have much greater freedom of organisation and your users will be able to navigate and find information more easily.
With a site of that size, there will, however, inevitably be an initial effort involved in transferring it to a new system – as there would be for rearranging it too. Thereafter changes to the content are easily made in the CMS without needing HTML/CSS knowledge. Probably the most laborious aspect will, in fact, be transferring the content to the system. There are various tools for extracting text out HTML pages and conducting site-wide search-and-replace instances. Textpattern offers a few importers from other blogging systems and there are plugins for importing articles from excel tables etc.
The decision as to whether it is worth it depends on the specifics of your site, the kind of content you have, the complexity of interlinking you already have at present, and the future goals for your site (need to adapt to future requirements/reorganisation, whether it is needed in its entirety for future use or whether ‘just for posterity’). These will determine a) the complexity or ease of the work ahead of you and b) how much of it you have to do.
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Re: Should I change my existing web site (1750+ files, 900MB) to a CMS?
Should I change my existing web site (1750+ files, 900MB) to a CMS?
If by files you mean pages with images 900mbs seem too large for me. A CMS would probably help in the size optimisation, navigation and supply a search facility for the site.
I guess it depends on the quality of the content and the energy one is willing to spend converting it.
If you feel that it is a worthwhile endevour, go the cms way
Yiannis
——————————
NeMe | hblack.art | EMAP | A Sea change | Toolkit of Care
I do my best editing after I click on the submit button.
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Re: Should I change my existing web site (1750+ files, 900MB) to a CMS?
Very interesting question. If you want to be able to give the site owner the ability (and responsibility) for adding to and editing the content (text and images) on the site, there’s no doubt a CMS comes in handy. If you would like to suddenly add a common feature such as “related articles” or “all the articles in X category”, with a CMS you can do this quite simply. Or say you would like to suddenly make some SEO improvements to the metadata — CMS to the rescue.
You definitely have to think through the long term plans for the site. Don’t underestimate the effort that would be involved in transferring the content to a CMS (any CMS), but if you plan to continue to evolve and grow the site, it will be worth putting in the time up front.
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Re: Should I change my existing web site (1750+ files, 900MB) to a CMS?
Should I change my existing web site (1750+ files, 900MB) to a CMS
- Short answer: No
- Long answer: The most pragmatic way to start the future of the site with a CMS is to keep the old structure/content and start using a CMS at day X.
Main advantages:
- No import necessary
- You can still link to old content on the same domain.
- Updates for old content can be done in a new article in the new CMS. An optional 301 redirect in the old document would beam visitors to the new article.
The decision to be made:
1. Old domain ‘as is’- www.domain.tld contains everything old and new
- www.domain.tld/new is the place for the CMS installation and all new content from day X.
- BTW: This is the classic way to add a blog and/or a news section to an existing website.
- www.domain.tld/archive (you name it) contains everything old and nothing new
- www.domain.tld is the place for the CMS installation and all new content from day X.
- You should not use ‘archive (you name it)’ as a section name in Textpattern. It’s possible but needs two different URLs for old and new content. Example: archive.html or archive.php for old content. ‘Nothing’ for automatically going through the Textpattern index.php.
- archive.domain.tld (you name it) contains everything old and nothing new
- SEO disadvantage: Sub-domains have a separated ranking from the main domain.
- www.domain.tld is the place for the CMS installation and all new content from day X.
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Re: Should I change my existing web site (1750+ files, 900MB) to a CMS?
Hi Harry,
A CMS can be anything, it doesn’t necessarily have to be a traditional CMS, a Wiki or even a Forum can be used as a CMS.
An easy way to convert HTML pages into an easier method of maintenance is to convert it to a Wiki. I use DokuWiki and have used various methods to get content into my own Wiki, there’s also an Open Office macro that works pretty well.
Once you have a Wiki up and running, you just have to train the end user in it’s usage. No need to to know HTML or have FTP access to change pages, just give them a user account and let them have at it. And with a Wiki, you get a paper trail of sorts, so you can revert back changes if need be.
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