SilverStripe unleashed

I am building Search Engine optimized CMS, content management system. For those uninitiated, CMS is a class of software that help you publish like desktop publishing software. In this case, you publish to the web or intranet or workflow. Take some examples.  Plone has excellent SEO and so does Drupal. But I needed a better Swiss knife; simpler to train staff, PHP friendly, easy to do typical tasks like form creation and specially built for SEO.

SilverStripe is an ideal platform to build SEO CMS. It is simple. You have three choices; create, delete and organize (aka reorganize). Each page type is similiar but you control its behavior. Explaining Plone archetype and its incredible potentials and UML, most of my clients experience hypoglycemia. I call it computer overdose. With SilverStripe, it is easier almost deceiving to say; sure create a page and decide later.

It stores up changes and pops up warning if you want to commit changes. It changes icons depending on its draft or publish status. It works naturally with foreign tongues. Re-arranging menu items into primary and secondary menus is like playing cards with drag-n-drop interface.  It gives you options to look at draft or published pages. SilverStripe interfaces feel like a computer games. It is entertaining.

Despite of its 2.0 version, SilverStripe is not 2.0 and requires healthy amount of community rebuilding, patient urging of developers to share secrets. It is not for newbies without PHP5 know-hows or object programming. But it is worth the trouble for developers who want a solution; flexible yet design friendly.

Under the rug, SilverStripe toolkit based on sapphire appears  to be 2.0 and MVC/CRUD with AJAX.  For more detailed reports of my initial experience, read part 1.