Hi there folks.

A new project has fallen into my lap, and it looks like it'll be an enjoyable one. I'm a web designer and developer, and time (as with everyone, in any profession) is precious. This a volunteer project, so (as entertaining as it might be) I need to evaluate some time-saving methods. The prospect of having a pre-fabricated CMS system available is a pleasant one. I'm concerned about how appropriate it will be for my purposes though. I'm used to designing a website entirely from scratch, writing my own html, css, php, etc, and I'm unsure of how easy the transition to using a system like XOOPS.

Am I able to have XOOPS run the backend, while have the frontend read out of the databases, or does XOOPS build the user-level interface as well? I know the product is 'skinnable', and 'themable', but can one totally customize the markup, using their own design?

I'm not sure how far out into left field these questions are... I've built many CMSs, but with no pre-fab CMS experience, I'm in the dark as to what are the right questions to ask.

Any direction or advice would be appreciated. Thanks!

I suggest you get the XSAS (XOOPS Stand Alone Server) and try it out for yourself. It is by far the best method to find out if XOOPS is useful to you.

If what you need is static HTML pages that are easy to update through the website, I suggest you look at WF-Channel, Tinycontent, Edito and/or Content/XT-Conteudo modules. They are used for creating pages that you yourself put the content on.
You can then edit the theme and add custom links to pages or make custom blocks with navigation links.

I should think XOOPS could get you pretty far, but whether it is right for you, you are the only one to judge.

I'll give XSAS a try to see how things work.

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Unfortunatly, that's not the case. Discussion boards, news, downloadable resources page, mailto forms, a calendar... No doubt these are all available as XOOPS modules, but I'll have to see if they jive together the way I'm hoping.

Thanks for the reply Mithrandir.

Gesuz... and you wanted to code all that by yourself under time pressure?

Discussion boards - Check out CBB

news - News, AMS, SmartSection, Articles, WF-Sections

downloadable resources page - WF-Downloads, PD-Downloads, xAsset (although the latter is perhaps a bit complex)

mailto forms - Liaise or Formulaire will be your friend

a calendar - Several calendar modules out there ranging from simple to feature-rich to complex. Perhaps start with eXtcal and move up to Agenda-X or piCal if you have further needs.

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Yes.
I enjoy this kind of stuff. I've done many of these several times before, so it's second nature. But hey, if I can get the same case-specific control, and use a non-canned design with XOOPS, all the power to it!

Thanks again for the resources.

Please keep us posted on your progress. It is alwasy nice to see what can be achieved using XOOPS to build applications

Martijn

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I do too, but you can only code so much user management and login code before you start thinking "why for the love of chocolate do I do this again?"

Anyway, I hope you find what you are looking for and feel the desire to be part of the larger picture - we can always use more developers for developing new modules, questioning and improving how things are done in the core and creating new themes.

Welcome aboard, enjoy the stay