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Review report of [=Bricolage=]
Person(s) reviewing it: Devin
More information about it: Main Website,
Article on what Bricolage is and isn't,
Bricolage recent updates as a part of Google Summer of Code
Software version(s): [=Bricolage =] 1.10.2
Status of the report: %red% DRAFT %%
Test implementation: Author/Admin URL: Currently down.
What We Have
The original feature list is available at CMSWhatWeHave
| Feature
| Score (0-3)
| Remarks
|
| Anonymous open publishing
| 3
| It seems possible to create a user "Anonymous" with password "Anonymous" - try it on the test install
|
| easy mirroring capability
| 3
| Seperation of content from presentation allows mirroring and much more -- same content database could output different sites based on location, or in different formats
|
| syndication -out/in
| 2
| Production of RSS can be accomplished as easily (or easier) than presentation as a HTML, but the implementation is not a part of the base package. An included SOAP implementation allows for importing data.
|
| search
| 1
| Search of articles is implemented, but Bricolage is only a backend publishing solution -- so front-end search for articles through the presentation interface would have to be created, as would all frontend end presentation aspects
|
| The ability to create multiple instances
| 1
| The Bricolage server runs mod_perl which is memory heavy
|
| Multimedia handling
| 1
| Seems to handle image uploads well, does not appear to have facilities for other media types
|
| Categories
| 3
| Concept of document categories is integral to Bricolage, but again this is the raw data being categorized
|
| Good performance on affordable hardware
| 1
| recommended install requires at least two machines, one for Bricolage and one for serving the actual files. The Bricolage server runs mod_perl which is memory heavy
|
| Customizability
| 3
| Separation of data from presentation is nearly complete, so applying multiple templates to the same data is easy
|
| internationalization
| 1
| Deals in UTF-8. Unsure how to publish in different languages, though this may be possible. Needs more research
|
| translation
| 0
|
|
| comments
| 0
|
|
| anti-abuse measures
| 0
|
|
| easy moderation
| 2
| The backend editing is designed around a newspaper publishing paradigm. Create -> copy edit -> legal -> publish are steps an content can go through. First impression is that it is feature-rich but not "easy"
|
| calendar
| 0
|
|
| features
| 1
| Ability to tag content as features should be easy; building the public presentation template to present article as feature is not a part of this package
|
| documentation
| 3
|
|
| user moderation - open editing
| 0
|
|
Legend: 0, feature not present at all - 1, the feature exists but is poor and doesn't suit to our goals - 2, the feature isn't as complete as we want but we can use it - 3, the feature is fully functional
What We Want
The original feature list is available at CMSWhatWeWant
| Feature
| Score (0-3)
| Remarks
|
| User Logins
|
|
|
| User Logins (network wide)
|
|
|
| Access Controls
| 2
| Backend content creation and management implements full user permission system, but frontend presentation to users through published pages would need to be created
|
| Notify Moderator Button
|
|
|
| User Moderation - Open Editing
|
|
|
| User Profiles
|
|
|
| Podcasting/Vodcasting
|
|
|
| Redundancy (DB content storage)
|
|
|
| Version Control
|
|
|
| User Notifications
|
|
|
| Customizable skins by users
| 2
| Not implemented per se, but see above under customisability
|
| Accessibility
|
|
|
| GIS
|
|
|
| Photo Galleries
| 0
|
|
| Licencing Options
| 0
|
|
| Image Manipulation
|
|
|
| P2P Integration
|
|
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| Social Networking - Filtering systems
|
|
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| WYSIWYG Editor
| 3
|
|
| Tagging
|
|
|
| Anti-bot Systems
|
|
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| Easy installation
| 1
| This is an industrial-strength solution which can scale execellently, but setting it up is non-trivial.
|
| Cross Site Search
| 2
| If the multiple site all share a common Bricolage back-end, cross site search can be implemented
|
| Documented APIs
| 3
|
|
| Software modularity
| 3
|
|
| Healthy community behind
| 3
| I haven't been a part of the community, as this is a new app to me, but the user and developer lists seem quite active
|
Legend: 0, feature not present at all - 1, the feature exists but is poor and doesn't suit to our goals - 2, the feature isn't as complete as we want but we can use it - 3, the feature is fully functional
What We Could Also Have
Other interesting things this software provides and we can use.
| Name
| Description
|
| Security by separating access to content from presentation
| (from article referenced above) "Bricolage does not serve content to your final audience — it generally runs as a back-office application and often behind a secure firewall — your content library remains safe in Bricolage even if the security of your front-end servers becomes compromised."
|
