CMS or WYSIWYG for Novice Webmaster?

[flood6]

On more than one occasion I've had family members or friends ask me how to build a small site (or asked me to build one for them). For the ones who want a small, simple site they can maintain on their own do you think I should point them toward a simple WYSIWYG (I'm thinking FrontPage or Publisher) or a CMS? I'm afraid suggesting some basic HTML tutorials will turn them off.

I know a lot of it will depend on what they want to do with their site, but lets assume they just want to post some poetry or pictures of their dog. Which do you think is the better way to go for someone who has a moderate grasp of computing and the internet?

Hi Flood6,

My suggestion would be MS Publisher. I feel it has one of the shortest learning curves for drag/drop & resizing, plus comes with templates, help pop-up & integrates with the rest of Widows OS.

I hope this helps.

[flood6]

Thanks, cpw3! I actually built my first website with Publisher. It was great for me because I knew how to use computers and and the internet, I just didn't know much about how either worked so Publisher was great for me.

It's interesting to hear your agreement that it might be the best to suggest.

Thanks again!

Yes, my first website in 1996 was also done in MS Publisher. lol, those were the days. Good luck to your family members, Flood6!

[Patrisha]

Check out the WebSiteBuilder at http://www.icaboodlesites.com/patrenz/abouthb.php , anyone who can type with one finger can build a quality, cost-effective web site in less than one hour. Just login - make selections - add content (like using Word) - upload personal graphics - save & publish. The monthly hosting fee of $19.95 gives you 24/7 access to an ever-expanding inventory of Themes and Modules. Anyone can update/change their site as much and whenever they want. It has a 7 day free demo so take it for a test drive and see.

[ambassador]

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Dec 1, 2004

Is there no simple (i.e. limited features) and easy-to-use CMS that can be bought outright without having to pay a monthly fee?

Ambassador
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[freddieb]

CMS is definitely the way to go.

Try http://www.opensourcecms.com/ for scripts ranging from simple to advanced.

I wouldn't recommend Publisher because the pages that are produced are MS specific, are code-bloated and are not cross-browser compatible and newbies wouldn't have a clue on how to change code, etc for other browsers.

My 2 cents

[freddieb]

Further to my previous post I've had a look at a new CMS that shows potential http://www.yetanothercommunitysystem.com/

Worth a look, for simplicity, etc.

[kjohnson5576]

Check out WebStudio by Back to the Beach Software. Easy and at $50 it's a steal.

[stephenmunday]

For a simple personal page, why not just go with Blogger? Limiting, but you really can't go wrong and you can customize the template if you want to get a little technical.

[flood6]

Thanks to everyone for their thoughts!

Stephen, that is something I hadn't considered. I think it's a great idea. It's at least an option I'll work into the discussion when I show them some options.

Thanks again to everyone.

[oneofthe3lions]

Thye could use a cheap programme for beginners like webplus or something, but after using many programmes I think frontpage (latest versions) are great for all users for html

[jlknauff]

Originally Posted by ambassador

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Is there no simple (i.e. limited features) and easy-to-use CMS that can be bought outright without having to pay a monthly fee?
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Most are free