Simple CMS Recommendation

I’m looking for CMS advice and recommendations. I designed a static website and am being asked to make certain features of the website manageable by the user.

Basically the user wants to upload a few PDF’s, swap out a graphic, update News items and testimonials.

First, know that my forte is design, i can write HTML and CSS, and can read/tweak PHP, ASP, JS, ect. I want to keep the backend simple. Using an existing simple CMS, without redeveloping the website inside a robust system, would be ideal. Although, if advised otherwise, and not too difficult perhaps a custom solution (i.e. using a mix of XML, JS, and PHP) would work too. Either way, i do not need anything to write to a database; a flat file data source should work just fine.

Ideas?

For very simple needs like yours, I would say something like Perch, Cushy or Pagelime. Those all fall in to this camp of being really simple, and integrates well with traditional static sites; giving you some CMS capabilities that you’re looking for without having to completely re-do anything.

Thanks for the recommendations CMS Dude. i will certainly check them out.

Meanwhile, i am open to further advice and suggestions.

You could also take a look at Concrete5. I haven’t used it but thought about doing so. I’ve only seen people recommend it and speak highly of it. I tend to just use Wordpress but the downside of that for me is that it is quite a bit for users to take on and it can take a lo of time to teach.

Martin

Those ones mentioned by CMS Dude are perfect for what you want, as they can be added to a static site without having to rebuild anything. The best by far is Perch, though it does have a small price tag (which is well worth it, IMHO).

Concrete5 might be slight overkill for what the OP is looking to do.

But I have to give you props for bringing that one up. Concrete5 is a very cool CMS and needs to be discussed more often. My two favorite CMS’s at the moment are probably Silverstripe and Concrete5. They also happen to be the two that practically no one is using, which is a shame.

I certainly did give Silverstripe a try, and was mightily impressed. I think it’s a great CMS, and it certainly has a decent user base, from what I can see. But to be good at it, I felt I needed a little more PHP knowledge than I have currently, which put me off a little. There wasn’t enough reason to move from my default CMS at this stage.

I’ve used PulseCMS for a client’s site. It uses php includes, the content of which is easily editable by the user. You choose which sections will become editable areas. I didn’t have to teach my client, he just uses it.
You need practically no php knowledge to install and use it.

[ot]

O no, another good CMS! My head is going to explode. :lol:

Thanks for the recommendation, though.[/ot]

Off Topic:

I feel the same way… I have such a long list of CMS’s that come highly recommended that I wonder if I will have the time to check all of them… or how to choose which one I should try…

Off Topic:

Yes, it’s a bit tough. I have basically limited myself to two—ExpressionEngine and Perch—after trying out quite a few. I have to admit, though, that after a few days of investigation, I’ve added Pulse to that little list, and it may yet bump Perch off its … perch …

Just wanted to follow-up… i gave perch a shot… install and setup were simple… integration went smoothly… easy to use for the customer… love it… thanks for all the great resources… i’ve bookmarked a few!