If you have web content that requires updating on a regular basis, then you either have or need a content management solution. With the emergence of Web 2.0, social marketing, online communities and online business automation, most of you are likely doing a whole lot more (or want to do a whole lot more) with your website than simple content updates. Choosing the right CMS can not only make the tedious task of publishing content to your website easier, it can also become the platform on which you can unify and integrate all aspects of your online business.
Beyond just eliminating the licensing fees normally associated with software, going open source also gives you an agile platform to change as you deem necessary.
There are many different content management systems available today and each have their own take on what features are important for the administrator and end users.
Drupal
One of the best and most advanced open source content management systems available. The Drupal community prides itself on modular development and rapid deployment. Drupal powers some of the web's highest profile websites including whitehouse.gov.
Joomla!
A popular content management system with thousands of free components and templates. Joomla! is popular among hobbyists and small businesses.
ExpressionEngine
Intended to provide an easy-to-use interface for updating your content. Where Drupal might have power and flexibility, ExpressionEngine leverages its ease of use.
Typo3
Another content management system for the popular Linux/MySQL/PHP/Apache (LAMP) server environment. Typo3 pegs itself as ideal for enterprise web content management and intranets.
DotNetNuke
One of the few open source content management solutions for Microsoft's ASP.NET web framework. Popular among .NET developers and organizations using Windows to power their web servers.
Modx
Yet another PHP-based open source CMS. Modx is gaining popularity for being SEO minded, offering simple templating and allowing developers a choice of any JavaScript framework to build their site's front end.