CMS

http://www.netimperative.com/news/2010/january/guest-comment-choosing-a-...

I wanted to comment on and help clarify something in the Netimperative article "Choosing a community platform" (pub. Jan 28, 2010), but unfortunately there was no such feature. As an alternative and in advanced of some upcoming posts on Web New Castle regarding open source online community development, I'll post a few thoughts here.

You have a lot of different options when you're having a website created. Your choice of options depends in part on what you are trying to achieve. It can also depend on other factors such as budget. If in doubt, choose a content management system.

Whenever I am talking to someone about Drupal, I almost inevitably find myself mentioning that there is usually more than one way to do something in Drupal. Even without making it a point to say this, I usually find myself saying it in some form or the other. And I find many reminders of this - when I am working on a project, talking to a potential client, etc. - more times than not, Doing It With Drupal means you have choices.

Joomla vs. Drupal. It's a not a new comparison or question by any means.

There are times when I understand the question, and there are times when I really don't. When it comes right down to it, I think trying to make the comparison is quite problematic. It's a comparison of apples and oranges.

If one has to make a statement about one being better than the other, without qualifications and without determining factors such as how, when, where, and who will be using one CMS or the other, then easily, Drupal is the better system.

Not that I have a general problem with commercial software, I am happy to see that numerous open source software communities and initiatives continue to thrive. Yes, there exists many die hard fans of open source software, just as there are some who think it is the bane of the software world. I happen to sit somewhere in between - I can appreciate both. And I use both.