What is a Content Management System (CMS)?

A Content Management System (CMS) is a web based software application that allows publishing, editing, modifying, organizing, deleting, and maintaining content from a central interface. Content Management Systems provide procedures to manage workflow in a collaborative environment.

A good CMS should contain tools to help the novice user manage content, while letting more experienced webmasters handle the layout and any needed programming.

Content Management Systems should also provide tools that make repetitive tasks less repetitive. For example, writing blog entries, adding items to your portfolio, and even uploading new products to your shopping cart.

When I first started out in Website Design 20 years ago, the standard for website designers was to use Notepad to hand-code HTML, CGI, Perl and other languages. If a client wanted to make a simple change to the content of their pages, they had to pay to have the changes made for them, unless they wanted to learn how to program.

Today however, with the use of CMS website software, clients with absolutely no programming knowledge can easily edit their own content using a drag and drop, word-style editor.

These types of editors are also sometimes still called “What You See Is What You Get” or WYSIWYG Editors, even though most of them have evolved far past that.

A wide variety of other tools is included for more advanced users.

The most Popular standalone CMS systems for building websites are: