Plone
Plone is a CMS that uses the Zope application server, which uses the Python programming language. This is unique in a world filled with PHP applications. It is made to be used as an intranet, portal, web site or community site. It helps manage all sorts of content, organized into folders, that can be uploaded by a community of users.
Current Version: 4.0.0
Cost: Free
Development: Community Driven
Specialization: CMS, Groupware
Hosting: Own Server
Source: Open Source
License: GNU GPL
Language: Python
Database: Flat file
Our Experience:
Plone is easy to quickly figure out how to manage and organize all sorts of content. One might even compare it a bit to a Wiki, but with much more functionality. Upon logging into Plone you’re greeted with a folder of content, anything you upload or create here gets put into a the top menu. If you create a subfolder then you can put pages, events, images, new items… and then use a “collection” to list certain ones on a page. The system is powerful enough to host all kinds of content.
Plone isn’t your traditional CMS, so you need to be aware that while it may work for a normal website, it works best for groupware sites like portals, intranets, and community run sites.
Helpful Links:
- Plone.org The Plone homepage with documentation, downloads, and support.
- Non-technical introduction A good article describing Plone CMS for non-technical people.
- Plone.tv A place for Plone screencasts and other video media
- Plone.net Includes Plone sites, support providers, hosting providers, case studies, and media stories
- Suggest a Link
Related Site News:
User Reviews: Submit Your Own
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Voting has been open for this CMS since Friday, March 13th, 2009. There is 1 Review for this CMS. You can follow future reviews through the RSS feed if you'd like.
Review by Karl Horak March 17th, 2009 9:10 pm
Strengths: Far fewer vulnerabilities than PHP-based systems; extremely extensible and flexible; wide range of 3rd-party products to deal with off-norm use-cases; extraordinarily helpful community; excellent i18N support; it has unsurpassed accessibility features. Plone scales to enterprise levels–http://plone.net.
Robust tools for automated generation of finished code from UML class and state diagrams are available. Fine-grained workflow control is supported, including several common sets out of the box. Plone is mature and stable. A large cadre of professional trainers and consultants is available world-wide.
Weaknesses: Although rarely needed, Python skills are harder to find than PHP. That said, Python is a quick learn and highly readable. Probably not for the hobbiest unless you have some Python background. While it has a learning curve, the climb is worth it for those needing security, workflow control, flexibility, and scalability.
Plone’s CMS niche is often confused with other, less powerful OSS CMS because it operates at the confluence of web content management, social S/W & collaboration, and enterprise portals. To get that kind of power, you otherwise have to turn to high-end commercial systems.