Content management system

A content management system (CMS)^[1][2][3] is a computer application that allows publishing, editing and modifying content, organizing, deleting as well as maintenance from a central interface.^[4] Such systems of content management provide procedures to manage workflow in a collaborative environment.^[5] These procedures can be manual steps or an automated cascade. CMSs have been available since the late 1990s.

CMSs are often used to run websites containing blogs, news, and shopping. Many corporate and marketing websites use CMSs. CMSs typically aim to avoid the need for hand coding, but may support it for specific elements or entire pages.

Main features

The function and use of content management systems is to store and organize files, and provide version-controlled access to their data. CMS features vary widely. Simple systems showcase a handful of features, while other releases, notably enterprise systems, offer more complex and powerful functions. Most CMS include Web-based publishing, format management, revision control (version control), indexing, search, and retrieval. The CMS increments the version number when new updates are added to an already-existing file. Some content management systems also support the separation of content and presentation.

A CMS may serve as a central repository containing documents, movies, pictures, phone numbers, scientific data. CMSs can be used for storing, controlling, revising, semantically enriching and publishing documentation.

Distinguishing between the basic concepts of user and content. The content management system (CMS) has two elements:

• Content management application (CMA) is the front-end user interface that allows a user, even with limited expertise, to add, modify and remove content from a Web site without the intervention of a Webmaster.
• Content display application (CDA) compiles that information and updates the Web site.

Web content management system

A content management system (Web CMS) is a bundled or stand-alone application to create, deploy, manage and store content on Web pages. Web content includes text and embedded graphics, photos, video, audio, and code (e.g., for applications) that displays content or interacts with the user. Content Management has many roles in today's market place and is an important base for any website blogging, articles, news, description of products etc.^[6] A Web CMS may catalog and index content, select or assemble content at runtime, or deliver content to specific visitors in a requested way, such as other languages. Web CMSs usually allow client control over HTML-based content, files, documents, and Web hosting plans based on the system depth and the niche it serves.

See also

• Document management system
• E-learning
• Information management
• Knowledge management
• List of content management frameworks
• List of content management systems
• Revision control – conceptually similar, but optimized for text content
• Web application framework
• Web portal

Notes

References

• Andreas Mauthe; Peter Thomas (2004). Professional Content Management Systems: Handling Digital Media Assets. John Wiley & Sons. ISBN 978-0-470-85542-3. 

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Content management systems.

• Content Management Systems at DMOZ
• Popular ASP.NET based Content Management Systems (CMS)
• Top 10 Most Usable Content Management Systems