FB/Twit Sync for Joomla
Isn't it about time someone developed an module that synced all the changes made on your Joomla install to your Facebook Page and onto Twitter?  You can set up an RSS feed and with the Google owned Feedburner alert subscribers via email.  Facebook and Twitter are no problem  - they've got that sorted but I'd love to have my Facebook updated and Twitter informed.  So this is the next module idea - using the read-more link so only the start of a long article is passed to your facebook with an automatic link back to your site.  Watch this space.

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Home Website Design Website Types
Types of Website

Dynamic Sites - Content Management Systems

A content management system (CMS) site consists of two parts:

  • Front-end - what your user sees.
  • Back-end  - what you use to keep your site up-to-date.

CMS use databases to store information (e.g. the text in the site) and the ''look'' of the site is dictated by the template.  This means that the template can be changed without having to re-enter the information in the site, as the two are stored independently.  This makes the system very flexible in terms of asthetics.  

Once set up this type of site requires almost no technical knowledge to maintain.  All the updates to the content (for instance the text or pictures in the pages of the website) can be done by you.

Baby on LaptopKey Strengths of CMS:

  • Cheap for medium to large sites 
  • Simple to update and maintain
  • Extra functionality can be added in modules, often available ''open-source'' (ie free)
  • Established user communities that can provide support and help
  • Easily allows multiple users to maintain with separate passwords

 Key weaknesses of CMS:

  • Style is more limited than for static sites and for very specific style requirements a bespoke template would be needed, adding to the cost
  • Can be vulnerable to hacking if the CMS is not updated regularly

Overall, we think that the advantages of CMS outweigh the disadvantages, as we believe that they provide a low cost, flexible website solution.  The CMS we use most often are:

  • Wordpress - a simple, extremely user friendly but adaptable system.
  • Joomla - a flexible, powerful system with a strong following.

Dynamic sites can also take advantage of open-source solutions for shops, forums and lots more.  These can be installed inside or alongside your main site. We commonly use:

Static Sites

Static sites are the simplest of website.  Static pages are created like the pages of a book and then uploaded onto the internet where they will remain until replaced by a new page in the same way.

Key strengths of static sites:

  • Totally bespoke and individual
  • Cheap for very small sites

 Key weaknesses of static sites:

  • Requires technical knowlege to update and maintain
  • Quickly becomes expensive for medium to large sites
  • Extra functionality needs to be custom written (making it expensive)