So far I really like Bricolage, but installation is a bear if you want the latest version. I installed the version that comes in the Ubuntu repositories using Synaptic and had it up and running in very short order, but I’m the sort of person who has to have the version that is shiny and new, so I had to try the install process. Let’s just say that it is doable, but you should do it only if you are a Perl god.
Bricolage is not the sort of CMS you are going to want to install on your average hosting service. If you’re using a VPS or something that would be fine, but I won’t even attempt it on our host. However, because of the way that Bricolage works you don’t really need to install it on the host. I have installed it on an old 1.7Ghz server sitting in my basement. When it goes into production I will move it to our church office and we’ll access it from there. When the site get’s published, the Bricolage server will generate the entire site and transfer it to our hosting service via FTP or SSH.
The beauty of this type of CMS is that it is very loosely coupled with the front end. Everything you want in a CMS is there including being database driven (PostgreSQL), having custom workflows (something Joomla doesn’t have), fine grained control over templates (another thing Joomla doesn’t have), version control (another thing missing from Joomla), etc. However, you don’t get the rich component/module library that Joomla has.
In my opinion, the loose coupling makes a rich add-on library unnecessary. Because of the fact that things are loosely coupled, I can choose any tool I want for any given task. If I want to integrate a forum or calendar with my website I can choose the calendar package I like best and easily integrate it. I don’t have to look for a Joomla component to do the trick or write my own Joomla component (not to mention that a lot of Joomla components are crummy). I have written a few Joomla components and find the process to be cumbersome at best. If I really wanted to, my understanding is that I could even include the entire calendar package (templates included) right in my Bricolage database and have it roll out when I push it to the host (this may be more hassle than it’s worth, but is probably possible).
Because the site is not generated from a database on-the-fly for every request, it is extremely fast. If my site is just a collection of static html pages, each request no longer involves running PHP and making 10 database requests. The file is just served straight up. IMHO, this is the way it should be.
