Information Management

1. Information Management DIG 3563 – Lecture 6 Content Management Systems: Wordpress J. Michael Moshell University of Central Florida Original image* by Moshell et al . Imagery is fromWikimedia except where marked with *.

2. Objectives of this course • concerning CMS: • Be familiar with what CMS are good for • Have brief experience with three CMS • - Wordpress • - Drupal • - Joomla or another system of your choice • Have extensive experience using ONE CMS to build an information management system/website

3. What is a • Content Management System? • A 'toolkit' for constructing interactive websites • Written in a scripting language (PHP, Java, Perl…) • Based on a database (mySQL, most often) • Consisting of a core set of code • and LOTS of optional modules • - some are free • - some are purchased

4. What CMS will we study? • ** Three of them, in this course • Wordpress – moving up from a Blog platform • Joomla – popular general purpose CMS • Drupal – The industrial-strength Big Boy • What are you going to be doing about CMS? • Installing, demonstrating and evaluating. • usage statistics http://trends.builtwith.com/cms

5. How should we CHOOSE a CMS • for our project? LOGICAL WAY: (1) Identify the FEATURES we will need for our project (2) Download PLUGINS (Modules) for various CMS and see which one sucks the least, for your needs (3) Choose THAT CMS for your project

6. How WILL we CHOOSE a CMS • for our project? LAZY but MOST COMMON WAY: (1) I already know how to use XXX (usually Wordpress) (2) So we will de-scope our project as needed to make it work with XXX

7. How WILL we CHOOSE a CMS • for our project? LAZY but MOST COMMON WAY: (1) I already know how to use XXX (usually Wordpress) (2) So we will de-scope our project as needed to make it work with XXX (How does that sound, in the real world? Mediocre!)

8. Top 10,000 sites (hits) as of 9/4/13

9. (But look at 100k and Entire Web)

10. (But look at 100k and Entire Web)

11. Top 100k sites

12. Top Million Sites

13. Wordpress: • Advantages: • - only one version-stream; usually up-compatible • (but you still must check modules • for compatibility with your version) • - simplest system to use • Disadvantages: 1) Some security hazards in plugins. • 2) Everybody • knows how to use it … so … no ADVANTAGE

14. Wordpress: • NOTE: wordpress.com is NOT wordpress.org • Wordpress.com is a HOSTING SERVICE which • lets you set up and run your own blog • * Wordpress.org is a SOURCE CODE SERVICE • which lets you download, customize, and host your • own CMS. (They're cousins....)

15. Wordpress:Installation • Download Version 3.6 • Unpack it • Move the wordpress folder into • our docroot folder (MAMP: htdocs; WAMP:www) • * browse to localhost/wordpress • or localhost:8888/wordpress • This will cause index.php to be executed.

16. Wordpress:Installation http://codex.wordpress.org/Installing_WordPress • Before we start the wordpress setup, we need • to create a database and a mySQL login ID • and password.

19. Note ... this did NOT work for me. I redid it using database name 'wordpress' and it worked.

22. Write it • down!

23. Wordpress:Installation • We have a try at the automatic pathway.

25. wordpress jmmwordpress (created with phpMyAdmin – previous pages)ditto localhost

26. My first attempt failed: DATABASE ERROR I tried several things. Ultimately I deleted the database, created a new one named 'wordpress' and went through the steps again. This time it worked.

27. Write it • down!

31. The Default Shell (styling) and starter page.

32. Wordpress: • Originally a Blogging • System. Fundamental • element = "a post" – • dated, signed, with • limited format • control.

33. Wordpress: • Evolved into a • Content Management • System. • In a CMS, the fundamental • element is a page ... e. g. • the startup page.

34. Editing the startup page:

35. It's a WYSIWIG editor

36. But you can also edit the HTML directly, for finer control

37. But you can also edit the HTML directly, for finer control

38. To see the page you edited, click here

39. But it still looks like everyone else's • starter page. I want my own style!

40. But it still looks like everyone else's • starter page. I want my own style!

41. Select 'admin'

42. Select 'Appearance' then 'Themes'

43. Install themes (get them from Internet)

44. I searched for themes using keywords • Peanut • Farm • Rural .... no luck ... but • 'Field'  yielded a nice one.

45. I searched for themes using keywords • So I activated this theme.

46. Now I don't have my splash page. • And I don't want "Just another Wordpress Site" or the Wordpress logo. • Some things to fix.

47. I try to delete the tagline "Just another Wordpress site" I find the Settings option, and try changing the tagline. Click "Save Changes" and get this error message. I use the Back arrow to make sure the site still displays... but clearly Wordpress isn't perfect yet.

48. I try to delete the tagline "Just another Wordpress site" • I find the Settings option, and try changing the tagline. • Click "Save Changes" and get this error message. • I use the Back arrow to make sure the site still • displays... but clearly Wordpress isn't perfect yet. • Much of what you learn in this course will consist • of "how to struggle with a CMS".

49. Wordpress: • Control panel • =“Dashboard” • new plugins • add new plugins here 

50. Wordpress:Features • User classification: ("roles") • Administrator • Editor, • Author, • Contributor, • Subscriber • You can add taxonomic tools, via plug-in, • that create additional roles