Making a CMS, how hard is it?

[Chousho]

My skill in PHP is limited at the moment. I am, however, reading a few books on PHP and mysql that seem to give me a nice foundation. However, getting from here to where I want seems a daunting task.

I am basically thinking that I would like my site to have the following features.

1. A secure method for adding users (staff) and allow them to edit their pages (or other's pages if they have admin priv)
2. MySQL backend for easy backup purposes
3. An RSS feed for each page of content, along with a main category rss feed that compiles multiple articles of content
4. Multiple language support using XML

Any tips, opinions?

[roosevelt]

it really isn't tough and will save you a lot of coding if you can master Object Oriented Programming. Because you'll notice as you write more complex scripts, you'll need to re-use same functions over and over again. Building your CMS would be a easy task for me. This is the type of screnario I'd use:

Database
- UserGroup Table
- GroupId
- GroupName
- ManageUsers
- ManagePages
- User Table
- UserId
- GroupId
- UserName
- PassWord

So basically you'll join the GroupId under User Table with GroupId under UserGroup table. And it will handle the permissions and such for different areas throughout your website. For RSS I highly recommend to use PHP & DOM but if you wish to use the long and hard way you can manually generate the codes. For example:

<?php
header ('content-type: text/xml");
echo "<?xml blah blah ?>";
echo "$element";
?>

Check out www.php.net, www.phpbuilder.com and www.phpfreaks.com for great articles and reference.

[Chousho]

it really isn't tough and will save you a lot of coding if you can master Object Oriented Programming. Because you'll notice as you write more complex scripts, you'll need to re-use same functions over and over again. Building your CMS would be a easy task for me. This is the type of screnario I'd use:

Database
- UserGroup Table
- GroupId
- GroupName
- ManageUsers
- ManagePages
- User Table
- UserId
- GroupId
- UserName
- PassWord

So basically you'll join the GroupId under User Table with GroupId under UserGroup table. And it will handle the permissions and such for different areas throughout your website. For RSS I highly recommend to use PHP & DOM but if you wish to use the long and hard way you can manually generate the codes. For example:

<?php
header ('content-type: text/xml");
echo "<?xml blah blah ?>";
echo "$element";
?>

Check out www.php.net, www.phpbuilder.com and www.phpfreaks.com for great articles and reference.

Ahh, thank you very much.

I have been currently reading the book "PHP and MySQL for Dynamic Web Sites" by Larry Ullman (good book) and sitepoint's "Designing Without Tables Using CSS". Along with this I have been using this site to give me a better idea of how to do this. Have you heard anything of these books/sites? Thankyou very much for the links, I have three new bookmarks on my list!

[roosevelt]

I've read two books completely and referred back to two other books. Check this post http://www.vbulletin.com/forum/showthread.php?t=169952 (might need to scroll down a bit) and you'll see how exactly I learned PHP & MySQL... very quickly.

[Chousho]

I've read two books completely and referred back to two other books. Check this post http://www.vbulletin.com/forum/showthread.php?t=169952 (might need to scroll down a bit) and you'll see how exactly I learned PHP & MySQL... very quickly.

Wah! $99 for the CD course! I'll have to think some before I spend that much. Do you think it is worth it after using? Just to be sure, these are what you are talking about, right?

*sobs* Oh well, I can find the $100 somehow.

[roosevelt]

Yes that's the one I am talking about. This particular CD taught me more than 80% of PHP. And this is where the first time I was introduced to Object Oriented Programming (Larry Ulman doesn't touch OOP at all). I think this video training cd, book by larry ullman is the best pair to learn php and mysql. And the PHP Anthalogy books by Harry Fuecks (sitepoint.com) are extremely useful to make good content management systems. I still have to learn a lot by going through my own experiences, there really isn't any book which teaches you everything about php. BTW back then I didn't buy it with my own money, just told my dad and made some promises to do good in school and he decided to gave me those . (however i am doing good in school).

[Zachery]

If making a cms was so easy, there would be tons of good ones

[roosevelt]

If making a cms was so easy, there would be tons of good ones

There are all sorts of dumb Portal out there not CMS. For example PHP-NUKE, Xoops (better than phpnuke) and some others. I really find it hard to implement Ajax technology now with my CMS . Because rcms was never build to work work javascript and i didn't quite design it a way to work with javascript... for example cross browser issues, client side problem and so on. However i am still working on it and trying to get rcms go along with javascript and xml (AJAX).

*Some may argue that portal and cms are the samething. If it was then where are the features of page management, article management, and other content related things?

[silly rabbit]

Any tips, opinions?

Chousho, take a look at "WebTemplates". I am using it for website 'integration' and am learning quite a bit about Vb in the process. Works quite well, 'as advertised'.

Rabbit

[Chousho]

Wah! $99 for the CD course! I'll have to think some before I spend that much. Do you think it is worth it after using? Just to be sure, these are what you are talking about, right?

*sobs* Oh well, I can find the $100 somehow.

Found the money *still cries*

2-day delivery sounds pretty good for $14, I just hope the CDs don't get broken on the way here.

[XtAzY]

not really relevent to the topic but i wish there is a cms that enables which forums u want to how in the front as part of ur navigation

[sinucello]

Hi,

not really relevent to the topic but i wish there is a cms that enables which forums u want to how in the front as part of ur navigation

I think that most advanced OpenSource CMSystems allow you to genrate navigation includes for your forum. At least for TYPO3 this would be very easy.

Ciao,
Sacha