Web content management, as the name signifies is a web-based software system that provides website with authoring, administration, publishing and collaboration tools specifically designed to allow users to manage website content without having any programming or coding knowledge.
Almost all these web-based systems use a content repository or a database to store page content, metadata, and other information assets that might be needed by the system.
Choosing the right content management system (CMS) for your website could sometimes be a tough tasks. Here is the list of the Top 5 most usable web-based content management systems:
WordPress: This PHP blogging platform is by-far the most popular CMS for blogging, and probably the most popular CMS overall. For those users not familiar with HTML or other markup language, WordPress provided a WYSIWYG editor. It also offers the widest range of plugins and themes to choose from. Its robust documentation and the interactive online forums make it the most preferred web-based content management system.
Joomla: Comparatively a more complex and advanced CMS, however its easy installation makes it popular among new and also advance users. Joomla’s installer is meant to work on common shared hosting packages. The only drawback is that if you were to customize your website then you goto pay for it as the Joomla theme and extension community relies more on paid plugins and themes.
Drupal: Unlike typical blogging platforms, Drupal offers a more of pure and traditional CMS platform for websites and large content management. One of Drupal’s most popular features is the Taxonomy module, a feature that allows for multiple levels and types of categories for content types. Drupal also has a large community of followers and has an excellent support system or technical plugins and general questions.
Textpattern: A more designer centric CMS platform, Textpattern has a code base that is lighter and minimal. As an alternative of the WYSIWYG editor, Textpattern uses textile markup in the textareas to create HTML elements within the pages. This makes the pages lighter and faster to load. This CMS might appear very minimal at its core level; however you can always extend the functionality by 3rd party extensions, mods or plugins.
ExpressionEngine: This CMS offers the maximum flexibility for any kind of project. Its user administrative section is clean and intuitive. For a beginner, it takes only a matter of minutes to understand the layout of the back-end and to start creating content or modify the look. This CMS also offers unique features such as the ability to have multiple websites with one installation of software.