What is the minimum specification which justifies the name Content Management System ?

Question

I've written some simple software which helps me manage and disseminate engineering data on a company intranet. It's pretty flexible about adapting to new content and I wonder if it justifies the description 'Content Management System.

A previous question: how to define content management did a pretty good job of defining a CMS, but I've a feeling my approach fails to reach the bar.

What is the minimum set of features considered essential in a Content Management System, and are there names for subsets of these features?

For example, I've seen some software described as a 'dashboard'. Is this a subset of a CMS?

I'm not really interested in testimonials for other CMS solutions.

Answer 1

It's a bit like Jazz, if you have to ask it's ain't ...

To my mind discussions about such terminology tend to be in the Marketing space. If your software is doing something useful, who cares what it is, or more to the point what label you put on the tin?

Answer 2

Came across a simple definition from a text from what you could possible consider an 'other CMS solution', but we web-frameworkers tend to have bizarre views on CMSs.

Content management systems (CMS) let users create and edit pages on a site dynamically through a web-based interface. Sometimes called brochureware site because they tend to be used in the same fashion as traditional printed brochers handed out by businesses.

Practical Django Projects, 1st ed. James Bennetts
http://www.apress.com/book/preview/9781590599969

Not the final answer, but one definition.

Answer 3

There are two ways to look at it. What is the name: "Content Management System". You could argue that if it is a system to manage content, it's a content management system (small letters). The other way to look at is user expectation. What does a test group of representative users or developers in your target audience expect when they hear CMS? Editing the textual content of a website comes to mind in this case.

If you want to provide a description useful to a broader audience, you have to understand their expectations. If your own interpretation is that those expectations would be unfulfilled, you might come up with a more specific label. Perhaps Engineering Data Management System, or something more specific to your purpose. I think you will be much happier with this.

Lastly, if you need to categorize it on some form of public resource website, you might have to go up or laterally from an existing CMS category. Or, use the category, but a more specific label for the product itself.