Content Management System

- English -

Resident Freddy
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So im designing a CMS, actually its for my FYP at Uni next year but im off Uni till sept, so im trying to get ahead with this project.

I kinda know what my FYP is on. I will be building a website with a backend database for my uncles car garage. If he will use all the functions that im building it to is another question, (as to get a decent grade, you need to make it quite detailed).

Now im in the process of making a template before designing the website based around the garage, so i can then just re-adjust to tailor the site, or any future sites. Therefore I was hoping to make it quite detailed, then when I eventually get around to the garage website, I can give and take whatever is needed.

Currently I have in the CMS availibility to rename the navigation links, rename the header title, change the content on the pages, change the title on the pages, create users (although i still havent fixed privilidges levels), delete navigation links.

To do: Create gallery section so the admin can upload photos etc.

I was wondeirng if anyone can offer any advice on what else I can include in my CMS that will be useful. I am kinda running out of ideas on what else should be included in a project like this.

My site isnt very object oriented yet, tho I do aim to include some OO programming to it as i think that will boost my grades up.

Any help appreciated thanks :)
 

old.user4556

Has a sexy sister. I am also a Bodhi wannabee.
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Some things spring to mind (I look after a CMS system at work)

- notifcations to document changes inside the CMS
- detailed audit trail of changes to objects
- permission levels (you've already got that covered)
- tagging / customisable categories for documents

That sort of thing?
 

Chilly

Balls of steel
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Will the cms itself get marks? Cos if not, then under no ciscumstances should you write your own. It's like writing your own webserver, but worse.
 

- English -

Resident Freddy
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Will the cms itself get marks? Cos if not, then under no ciscumstances should you write your own. It's like writing your own webserver, but worse.

Im assuming so since its what we have been "learning" for 3 years, tho im kinda new to php and mysql as it is which is why im getting a head start.

Are there any free ones?;p
 

Chilly

Balls of steel
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free CMS? Sure. Drupal + Joomla (both forks of the same old cms, now relatively different), ModX. All good, all php, all open source, all based on MySQL (and other DBs like postgres or various embedded engines).
 

Overdriven

Dumpster Fire of The South
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Heh English, I actually spoke to Clare Stanier yesterday about my 3rd year and FYP. Really not going to be looking forward to that really. Who've you got looking over your project then? Can't really comment on CMSs, but if it'll get you a high grade (I guess something unique for garages would be quite cool actually)
 

Chilly

Balls of steel
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Heh English, I actually spoke to Clare Stanier yesterday about my 3rd year and FYP. Really not going to be looking forward to that really. Who've you got looking over your project then? Can't really comment on CMSs, but if it'll get you a high grade (I guess something unique for garages would be quite cool actually)

A woman teaching computing? Good gracious!
 

DaGaffer

Down With That Sorta Thing
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What do you mean by "uncle's garage"? Is it a car dealership? Or a service centre, or both? That has implications for the bit you mention here; "change the content on the pages", which requires a whole subset of options depending on how frequently you need to change things (in a service centre, not much, and putting everything in a CMS for a "brochureware" site may be unneccessary, but in a sales site, it will be essential, and need more thought).
 

Zenith.UK

Part of the furniture
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I don't know about your particular course, but I seem to remember that the final deliverable only accounted for 20% of the available marks on my HND.

It's a number of years ago so I can't remember the exact breakdown but there were 4 milestones.
1) Proposal. 10%
2) Research, analysis and design. 20%
3) Implementation, testing and evaluation. 30%
4) Final presentation and demonstration, user documentation and deliverable. 40%

Of the 40% for the 4th milestone, half the marks were for the deliverable itself. In my particular case, it was 80-85% finished but with functioning placeholders for the unfinished content. I still got a distinction because I'd scored well in the first 3 milestones, did well in the documentation side of milestone 4 and moderately well for the deliverable itself.

What I'm saying is don't get completely hung up on the final product but pay a LOT of attention to the documentation, analysis and design milestones.
 

Furr

Can't get enough of FH
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All I can say is report report report! What's your course btw? I did Computer Science and *put on top hat* got a first, 80% in my final project which to be honest got me the grade, I developed a C4.5 Decision Tree Algorithm in Java plus a server-client software system, but yeh, the project report was the most important thing, make sure whatever you do it's something with a lot of depth not a wide breadth, you want to be able to write a deep report that explains in depth a concept important to your course.

/my 2 cents
 

phlash

Fledgling Freddie
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Dec 24, 2003
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I'll agree with Furr and Zenith, talk to your tutor, make sure you are doing something interesting to them and demonstrate your *understanding* of the issues / problems in a good report, before hitting the code - you might want to do as Garaen suggests and try a few CMS yourself, pick out their good/bad points in the report (this would be research), then propose something novel for garage owners - then implement it.

Enjoy your final year, my eldest is doing his ATM :)
 

- English -

Resident Freddy
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Heh English, I actually spoke to Clare Stanier yesterday about my 3rd year and FYP. Really not going to be looking forward to that really. Who've you got looking over your project then? Can't really comment on CMSs, but if it'll get you a high grade (I guess something unique for garages would be quite cool actually)

Yea i went to see her aswell. I dont start my final year til sept, but im looking into it now. Im hoping to get her to supervise me, shes always the one i talk to rather than most of the lazy ass lecturers ive tried to see.

The garage is mainly for servicing cars. I guess (not spoken to him in detail about it yet), but perhaps a system to book services in online, advertise cars online (not the selling part), etc.

Ive been looking at some of the free CMS, they are quite interesting and will be digging deeper into the code.

I have done computer science for 2.5 years, tho now im switching over to computing science as ive had enough of java, c, c++ etc. Im gonna aim to finish on a web side as i think it will be easier for me, and tbh i just wanna get uni over and done with and try get into a career i may like. ie teaching.

thanks for your help :)
 

ford prefect

Can't get enough of FH
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Will the cms itself get marks? Cos if not, then under no ciscumstances should you write your own. It's like writing your own webserver, but worse.

I agree, I wrote a cms four or five years ago, and it drove me up the wall.

The thing is, I don't think it really matters how good you are at PHP. You will find yourself thinking up another new shiny feature for it, and while coding it, you will break the whole thing. That is usually followed by half an hour banging your head against the desk before realising you accidently deleted a comma somewhere. Before you know it, all manner of functions are in all manner of random files, despite the good intentions of creating functions.php and then it is another day tidying up code, which will lead to breaking it again.
 

ST^

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It's about 'application design' skills more than the coding skills. If you plan well, it isn't too complicated.
 

Killswitch

FH is my second home
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When I did my FYP the actual code I produced was never looked at and the application (web-based version-controlled full-text-indexed document management system) was looked at for about 5 minutes. It was the write-up that got all the attention.

Counter-intuitively, I found that the best thing to do in the program was make decisions that could easily be written about. In your case, I'd be tempted to try to make a standard API for implementing plugins (like Drupal has). It doesn't have to be complicated, but then you can write about API design, code reuse, OO principles, XML, SOAP, COM and really fill the report with some good, objective writing.

Another possibility would be the ability for users to create custom CSS to skin the site. Then you can write about CSS, browser HTML rendering difference, HCI and interface design and so on.

I found that the actual software I wrote was pretty much just a tool for generating as much research as possible to go into the write-up!!

Your mileage may vary...

(whoops...bumped this a bit...didn't check the date! Did you graduate yet? :p)
 

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