Java or Groovy CMS

Question

Hi,

I'm considering developing a school information system using the Grails web framework. Before a school can use the system, they will need to setup the following data

• School data
• Students
• Teachers
• Subjects
• Classes
• etc.

I'm considering using a CMS in order to get the ability to CRUD these entities "for free". The CMS may also provide other features out-of-the-box that I could use.

Ideally the CMS should be implemented in Java or Groovy, does anyone know of something suitable? I looked at the Weceem CMS plugin for Grails, but it's missing some core concepts I need, e.g. the ability to add users to groups.

Thanks, Don

Answer 1

Java is good for rock-solid, high-performance, secure Enterprise apps. Java is considerably less good for getting a relatively simple Web project out the door in a short time.

Therefore, were I in your position, my personal gut feeling would be to go with something Grails based. I'm not very aware of any projects that already partially implement what you want, but if you can find one (Google?) then grab it! That will leave you more time for polishing and adding bells and whistles.

Answer 2

I know it's not Grails related, I would use the DaisyCMS, as it's java based you can add an extra Java Web applications to the Jetty and add extra functionality to the CMS using Grails for your other functinality. I hav enot tried this, it's just a suggestion.

Answer 3

Use Grails scaffolds to get simple CRUD functionallity.

Answer 4

Do you really want to build it from scratch? There are already open-source CMS. In your case I would evaluate open-source CMSs and if necessary would contribute code.

Does it need to be Java/Grails? There are good ones written in PHP or Python (django, joomla).

I tried Grails 1 year ago. It is very straightforward as long as you align with the concepts and standards (e.g. simple CRUD scaffolding). But if there a special requirements you get to similar efforts as with a Java framework like Spring MVC (though grails is also based on Spring MVC).

Answer 5

If you're not tied to Java, I'd recommend looking at Drupal for PHP as your CMS. Many sites, even sites of major Java organizations such as SpringSource, have used Drupal as their CMS because it offers so much out of the box.

Answer 6

Magnolia CMS 1 in version 4.3 has full-blown Groovy support. After 7 years of active development, a CMS like Magnolia provides you with a ton of stuff you need to run a website. I wouldn't even think about starting from scratch no matter what framework you use. Understanding the problem you are trying to solve and finding a solution to it is usually taking more time than actually implementing said solution. Even if you believe you know what you need now, rest assured your requirements will overrun you before you know it.