CMSs are as varied as the websites they are used for. Drupal is not easy for beginners, and WordPress requires the installation of a dozen plugins to work fully.
CMSs are as varied as the websites they are used for. Drupal is not easy for beginners, and WordPress requires the installation of a dozen plugins to work fully. As for MODx, it is more often chosen by professional web designers. Below we present some practical tips on choosing the right system
Defining the domain. If you are going to do a blog – you need WordPress, if a business card site or a directory better opt for Joomla. If the forum, you can use Drupal. If a corporate site – MODx or TYPO3. To create an online store, suitable for any CMS, but WordPress and TYPO3 have advantages in transaction protection.
Determining the learning curve. With a complete lack of experience, you will quickly master WordPress, the second place in ease is Joomla, then Drupal. MODx or TYPO3 are more difficult to master.
Determining the time of employment. Here the picture is similar. The easiest to administer WordPress, and the most difficult – MODx.
Determining the effectiveness of SEO. In principle, the level of quality of SEO is not so much dependent on the CMS, but WordPress leads in the number of plugins for optimization.
How do you check what CMS the site is?
If you want to know what CMS a website was created with, you can do in three main ways.
- The first and easiest way is to access the code of the page.
If you’re using the WordPress control panel, you’ll usually see a line like this in the code:
This means you’ll see a generator as the operator, which shows which CMS this website was created with. You can also check what the path to the other files looks like. In the link to the pictures, you can see the information through the control panel.
- You can check the robots.txt file. This way, the control panel recognizes webmasters who have already created such a file and are well versed in their directories.
For example, we have a Robot.txt file for WordPress:
Disallow: / cgi-bin
Disallow: / wp-admin
Disallow: / wp-includes
Disallow: / wp-content / plugins
Disallow: / wp-content / cache
Disallow: / wp-content / themes
And the same Robot.txt file serves as an example for Joomla:
Disallow: /administrator
Disallow: /cache
Disallow: /includes
Disallow: /installation
Disallow: /language
Disallow: /media
As you can see, the Robot.txt files look very different.
- Special services which recognize CMS.
It is also possible to check the content management system with the help of special services. They work online and quickly identify the control panel of the site.
For example, whatcmsisthis.com is a tool that is available to you around the clock. All you have to do is insert the URL of the desired website and click the “Go” button.
Plugins for CMS
Plugins, also called extensions, are small programs that work in conjunction with a CMS and perform certain tasks.
For example, there are plugins to create photo galleries, contact forms, a website forum, etc. There are also plugins that help perform search engine optimization, automate backups, and protect the site from cyberattacks.
The plugins are written by programmers around the world. Currently, WordPress has more than 50,000 plugins and Joomla has about 20,000.
CMS greatly simplifies and speeds up the work on the site. Although setting up a CMS should be left to an expert, or at least someone with solid knowledge in the field, even novice users will only need a little specialized knowledge for productive day-to-day use. CMSs are designed to manage and update websites without the help of web designers and programmers.
Even the installation barrier is easy to overcome. Many web hosting providers offer automatic installation of CMS software at low prices. Site operators can start publishing content immediately. This becomes even easier with managed CMS offerings, in which the hoster also takes care of maintenance and support for the system. In many cases, this saves the cost of hiring an expert.
Unfortunately, open-source CMSs have a security problem: In most cases, website owners do not use the manufacturer’s pure system, but supplement it with secure templates, plug-ins and widgets.