When Winning An Award Isn’t Necessarily A Good Thing

I’m talking about the “good” type of awards. The “Hall of Fame CMS” award, for example, which went to WordPress in the 2010 Open Source Awards. At least, Matt Mullenweg, the creator of WordPress, doesn’t seem to think so. I sort of agree. WordPress isn’t quite a CMS as I’d expect a CMS to be, and it going on winning CMS awards will lead to people actually thinking that WordPress is indeed a CMS. Then they’ll start comparing CMS features, and eventually find WordPress failing to make the mark.

I think WordPress is excellent… as a blogging platform. It could serve as a CMS too, if your CMS requirements are simple. Indeed, many people actually use WordPress as a CMS. Even people at my work place. But my idea of a CMS is so much more, and trying to make WordPress that sort of CMS I have in mind will require too many plugins, hacks, and various other kludges… if at all possible, to make the entire setup so complicated that one might as well have considered other software that had set out to be a CMS in the first place.

It’s just so strange that people continue to see WordPress as a CMS.

WordPress is really superb. I have to say that again. I use Drupal too, and I can tell you, the administration and maintenance of WordPress is so much more fun than it is on Drupal. (I still use Drupal because it’s a better CMS.) I always think software, like any good tool, should help you get your work done. Not get in your way.