Managing content part III: Other options.

April 2004

In this three part series we take a look at the best options for maintaining websites. The third and final installment examines alternatives to Macromedia Contribute or Bricolage.

Typo3

Typo3 is an interesting option for a mid-size site with regular updates from a variety of contributors. Typo3 is open source and built on technologies widely available from hosting companies. Also, installation is comparatively straightforward.

It does not match Bricolage in terms of flexibility, features and ease of use so we would advise against it for more ambitious projects. Nonetheless it is a powerful and flexible product and a valid alternative for smaller, less trafficked sites.

Custom development

If you have a very specific need (such as maintaining a news area), developing a custom web application is not a bad bet. Modern development technologies enable this kind of thing to be built quickly and you can be sure that it will exactly fit your needs. CMS software has to cater for a huge variety of cases and the added complexity can make it difficult or sometimes impossible to adapt it to your needs.

Pay an agency to manage your site

This sounds expensive but it's not, especially if you only require few updates. With any content management solution you have the up front costs of buying and/or installing software, plus the time and cost of training staff. Finally you have the time spent performing the updates.

Web professionals already have the appropriate software and know how to use it effectively. If all you need is a few changes every months then the total cost of keeping your site up to date will be fairly low and it frees you from the hassle.