RSS FeedDot Net Nuke
Posted by Joshua J. Steimle on January 16, 2007 06:25 PM
Since 2001 or so we've been building content management systems from scratch. We've always planned on making our system modular and trying to resell it. We even got so far as creating a brand and a website for it, although I never finished the content. While we will continue to use our own code for specialized circumstances, we are finding that more and more of what we need to do can be facilitated by using an existing CMS framework like Dot Net Nuke.
DNN is an open-source CMS framework that runs on Microsoft's .NET platform. Wait a second, Microsoft and open-source? I thought Microsoft was the antithesis of all things open-source? Well, I'm not going to get into that because I don't care. All I know is that DNN helps MWI build content management systems faster and better, so we're going to be using it on a lot of our upcoming projects where it makes sense. Where DNN doesn't help we'll continue to do custom development.
If you've got an application written in Dot Net Nuke or are interested in using it, please contact us if we can be of assistance.
UPDATE: We don't build content management systems anymore. We got out of that business circa October 2007.
Comments
That's interesting. If it's building on a DNN framework. I had a client that wanted a design for DNN. The creative wanted a pretty cool custom looking design, development wanted it in a DNN template.
Well I'm probably not the best, but I've taken quite a few CSS HTML templates and integrated them into various backend systems. However I spent around a day and a half and couldn't get this design into a DNN template.
Then turned it over to a .net developer who spent another two days trying with no luck. Well came to the point that we almost built a new CMS from scratch rather than work with DNN templates, but the project was taken internally for reasons not really related to the work we did.
I've seen a couple sites that look pretty custom and nice looking, I can't imagine how look it took them to get it that way. My experience is it seems like a pretty good option if you want a standard design layout, top, 3 column layout but anything else good luck.
Posted by: Kyle Follett | January 18, 2007 11:54 AM
I haven't been involved on the technical end myself so I only know what the developers tell me and what I read in the tabloids, but so far we haven't had any issues, at least none that anybody has bothered me about.
Posted by: Joshua Steimle | January 18, 2007 02:18 PM
I haven't used DNN other than as an end user; however, I wanted to recommend Joomla, if you haven't considered it already. Joomla is also open-source, but targets the Apache/Linux environment. So I'm not sure if that'll fly with your shop.
But if does, here's what I've found over the last month of using Joomla. It was painless to install, but configuring and getting acquainted with it took a week or so. But once you get the hang of it, the thing is very configurable and powerful.
As far as templates go, if you can design it, you can make it a template/theme for Joomla. For a good example of templates for Joomla, go to RocketTheme.com and click on Demos. I am using the Sporticus template at moolala.org, with some customization of course.
Aside from that, there are lots of extensions available, with most being free and open-source. My personal favorite is OpenSEF, which makes it easy to properly SEO your site. If you ever have any questions about Joomla, shoot me an email.
Posted by: Veha S. | January 31, 2007 12:35 PM
This comment is in the context of this 1st URL, I have posted. This is my business website that is currently being redone and in the process. The 2nd is my wife and mines blogsite.I wanted the webmaster to place the DNN on the business site site for me to login and add or remove photo content as the need changes. Not having to pay a webmaster -3-4 hundred dollars , every time I want to make a change.
The webmaster has activated the DNN and I am able to login but this appears more difficult than I thought it would be !
Can someone or several people give me some advice here ?
If so, feel free to email me at phdw2@mac.com
Posted by: Paul Herrmann | February 17, 2008 07:02 AM