SiteNOTE CMS [ Return to Matrix ]

Description

Description

SiteNOTE is a simple and powerful solution to maintain web site content. With SiteNOTE CMS (Content Management System), you can manage, update or create the content of your web site, while preserving a consistent look and feel throughout the pages.
Provided with a ready-to use sample website (template), creating your portal is as easy as downloading the package, deploying it on a hosting environment, and configuring it.
Want a demo video on the editor ? See on http://www.SiteNOTE.net

Want to play with it ? See on http://demo.SiteNOTE.net 

Want to contribute on its development ? SiteNOTE's community is located on CodePlex : http://sitenote.codeplex.com/

Main features for Designers and Developers

  • Platform: Windows 2003-2008, ASP.NET 2.0+
  • File-based editing, does not require a database, means easy maintenance and increased performance
  • Integrate regular ASP.NET web site with SiteNOTE-based editable content
  • Graphical guidelines easily expressed in CSS, HTML, XSL, XSD, depending on the level of control required
  • Friendly URLs for search engines (SEO optimization)
  • Available modules (picture gallery, FAQ, forms, menus, breadcrumbs, quick poll, ...) can be extended by developers
  • Syndicate and manipulate content through a web service API

Main features for Site Editors

  • Very easy to use, no technical skills required
  • Graphical guidelines assistance and enforcement
  • Role-based security and page-level access rights
  • Preview content while editing
  • Submit and approve content before publishing
  • Share contents across pages
  • Single site structure to easily locate pages in site like visiting users
  • Search engine (Karamasoft's UltimateSearch third party component)

Core concepts

Hierarchy

The web site appears to the user as a hierarchy of pages, such as what is displayed on a sitemap. This hierarchy will be used to build the menu navigation automatically. The editors and administrators create the pages and manage the permissions according to the same hierarchy.

In order to handle specific cases in the site navigation, SiteNOTE allows pages to be hidden, offline, redirecting pages, or to be considered as page groups (containing other pages, and whose role is to be displayed as menu entries)

Modules

All the pages of the web site are built using modules that can be changed or rearranged by the administrator in design mode. These modules are either ASP.NET server controls provided by SiteNOTE, either custom ASP.NET server controls provided by the developer. Here are the controls currently available in SiteNOTE :

* Editable controls: structured content (XML), free content (HTML), forms (XML), shared content (the content is fed from a content located in another page).
* Navigation controls: menu, path (breadcrumb), sitemap, language selector.
* Other controls: search engine, authentication.

Localization

SiteNOTE treats localized sites as subsites that can be different -if needed- in terms of content, structure or design. They can be considered unrelated, except regarding the following :

* Users and groups are common across localized sites.
* The "splash" page at the root of the site let the user select the language/locale.
* The page templates, content structure, stylesheets and design images are common and available to all localized sites.

Access to administration

When you access the site administration, after entering your user name and password, the web site is displayed in your browser. The top of the window shows the toolbar, which allows you to perform administration tasks.

The toolbar groups the "page" actions: create, edit content, design, delete, change sort order, properties, permissions. The other icons let you access general-purpose functionalities: publication, site administration, logout.

Technical features

Platform

Server
SiteNOTE runs on top of ASP.NET, CLR 2.0, on Windows Server 2003 or Windows Server 2008.
As SiteNOTE runs as a standard file-based web site, it can run on any standard server (e.g. dual-core cpu, 2GB RAM)
Content Editor
SiteNOTE requires Internet Explorer 6sp2 or higher to edit or administer the website.
Visiting users
Visiting users can browse a SiteNOTE website using any standard web browser like Internet Explorer 5.0 , Firefox 2.0, Safari, Chrome, etc...

Integrated third-party components

CuteSoft CuteEditor is integrated as the HTML editor for content of pages. It is optional as pages can be edited using the structured content editor (XML Editor). SiteNOTE Maintenance contracts provide you with a registered licence to replace the trial one.
Karamasoft UltimateSearch is the integrated search engine for SiteNOTE. Trial licence is replaced by a registered one when subscribing a maintenance contract.

Data storage

SiteNOTE does not require a database for storing content. Changes are directly propagated to the files and served by Internet Information Server. When using the structured content editor to modify content, all the information is stored in XML within the file.
The site structure and security information are stored in XML files that can be rebuild from the information stored in files.
SiteNOTE is using an Access database (mdb file) to store statistics and data submitted through forms. It can be replaced by a SQL Server based data store if required.

Maintenance

Maintenance procedures for a SiteNOTE website are similar to procedures for a static website:

* Backup: copy files in the web site folder and copy IIS configuration
* Monitoring: like static website
* Statistics: like static website: logs can be analyzed with any standard stats tool on the market. Online statistics engines like Google Analytics can be used seamlessly.
* Update: the SiteNOTE admin panel includes a remote update via Internet.

Site Structure

Unlike other CMS, SiteNOTE is only using one structure to manage websites: the navigation structure. It means that page adress paths reflects a natural, search-engine meaningful structure.

Specific cases in navigation are adressed to allow for maximum flexibility:

* Hidden page: accessible, but invisible in navigation
* Page group: visible in navigation, but only used as a node in the navigation (no content in this "page")
* Offline page: not visible, not accessible
* Redirect: visible in navigation, but redirects to an external or internal page

Integration

SiteNOTE has been designed from the ground up to make maintenance, personalization and development a straightforward experience:

* Application integration: ASP.NET pages can be added to the web site by a developer. ASP.NET controls can be added to the SiteNOTE control list, immediately available to Content Editors.
* Object-oriented: the developer, by inheriting from the base class "SiteNOTEPage", has automatically access to the SiteNOTE environment: user, permissions, page properties, site structure, etc...
* Interoperable: SiteNOTE exposes a web service, SOAP-based API to syndicate information with other applications. SiteNOTE can be totally remote-controlled by external apps.
* ASP.NET standards: Master Pages, Web Parts, Membership Provider, SiteMap provider, usual asp.net controls like menu or sitemap, etc... The developer will feel at home...
* SiteNOTE controls: Several controls available to fasten website development: search form and results, language switches, events summary, FAQ, picture gallery, video streams, polling system, etc...
* Designer templates: thanks to our very flexible CSS page design, the designer can create totally new website just by changing CSS and images, without changing ASP.NET page templates.
* Total control: any design can be implemented, because the developer has a total control over the way the content is presented, from easy-to-configure CSS to very powerful XSL templates and XSD schemas.

Comments
5B7S: "I like this CMS because it is easy to use; was easy to install on Arvixe Shared hosting and no need of a database for content. Support team is also very responsive."
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