web services idea

vaaaska

I'm not really worried about protecting my idea...so I'm going to ask away about this...

Let's assume that somebody has made a cms that is worth paying a few bucks for (because there are some good ones out there that are free). Perhaps it can be expanded in all kinds of ways, etc...good stuff. Just pretend this exists.

I have this idea for a web service where a cms could be hosted on a single server for many people at a time. Each person has their own system basically that manages data and even creates a website.

However, the website exists on another server. Via an API the client website is pulled from the cms server and displayed (and/or even cached) on the client site (pages, images and all).

I know that Blogger basically does something like this. You can write in Blogger and get the pages to appear on your own site.

Just poking around curious to see if anybody has any thoughts on this.

abc123

What is the real advantage on having the CMS served from one server?

If you created a CMS that people were willing to pay for then would it not be just as easy to put the cms on their own server? It doesn't seem to me that it is really a servcie. I would have thought of it more as a product.

CMS are valuable things but when they are out there for free then I think it would have to have something really unique in order to sell.

You might be onto a good idea but it'll have to be a really cool system to sell. Good luck. :-)

vaaaska

It's another option for people who don't want the headache of installation and management and stuff. That's about the best thing I can think of so far...

Just thinking this one out loud.

abc123

People would pay for the management and installation to be taken care of. I don't suppose they would care how you choose to do it. So long as it works and they don't have to worry about it.

I've seen CMS websites (and I'm sure you have as well) where they showcase what they can do. Basically they set up a spoof site and give you access to the CMS. There you can go in and change things and see the results. The site then resets itself to the default look after say 3hrs so no changes are permament. This would give potential clients the opportunity to try before they buy.

vaaaska

I know for a fact that not everybody wants to have a cms on their own site. It's obviously these people I'm talking about. I don't care about people trying and buying...this is a different approach for the sake of discussion.

Practically every person I've ever spoken with about Flickr has said the same thing...'it's awesome but I would sure like to install it on my own site so I could modify it'. This is understood, but you know, people still use it, pay for it and Flickr has provided a darn good API for folks to do with it as they will.

Jason_Batten

vaaaska wrote:
I'm not really worried about protecting my idea...so I'm going to ask away about this...

Let's assume that somebody has made a cms that is worth paying a few bucks for (because there are some good ones out there that are free). Perhaps it can be expanded in all kinds of ways, etc...good stuff. Just pretend this exists.

I have this idea for a web service where a cms could be hosted on a single server for many people at a time. Each person has their own system basically that manages data and even creates a website.

However, the website exists on another server. Via an API the client website is pulled from the cms server and displayed (and/or even cached) on the client site (pages, images and all).

I know that Blogger basically does something like this. You can write in Blogger and get the pages to appear on your own site.

Just poking around curious to see if anybody has any thoughts on this.

Hrmmm, Interesting.

It all depends on the users that you expect to use the system. If you make it so people can extend the application through there own servers, what happens with you update the application on your server? There will be tight restrictions on what they can do and what you can do I would imagine :queasy: 😕

I don't think the idea would work too well to be honest. If you managed to pull it off then the rewards would be pretty sweet. But it seems to generic and restrictive of an idea...

Figure out who you want to offer a solution to. You need to know the problem to fix it. You can't just create a solution then try to ram it down some poor web user's throat.

Who's the user? What's their issue? What's your solution? How's the solution fix the problem? How well does the solution fix the problem? The key is being specific, not generic.

Can't just develop a CMS for all, no one CMS will ever address all of the issues different people/businesses will face. Do I have the wrong idea or have you worked out some cool customization thingo for the user of the system?

It seems to be a matter of cool system vs. useful system 🆒

vaaaska

Jason Batten wrote:
Can't just develop a CMS for all, no one CMS will ever address all of the issues different people/businesses will face. Do I have the wrong idea or have you worked out some cool customization thingo for the user of the system?

'CMS' is a too broadly defined term...and this is why it's not really possible. Somebody should write up a big article explaining the differrent kinds (I might do this).

The idea is/was twofold:

1) an API for getting pages and assets and caching them to the site server
2) an API that allows people to do certain custom things (but I don't have anything specific in mind)

Actually, yesterday we hit upon the plan. This was an idea...and I bet somebody is or will do this soon. We're going a more normal route.

'cool v useful'...hehe, it's both! And the target audience is very specific. Rumor has it we might have an article about it in some of the industry mags but this is not my department. 😉

Jason_Batten

rrright... well don't share any information then :p

vaaaska

Jason Batten wrote:
rrright... well don't share any information then :p

Some peeps are on the way - but I'm not sure how soon it will be. Certainly before the end of October. But as I said, the audience is quite specific (meaning, you probably won't care much about it).

Jason_Batten

vaaaska wrote:
Some peeps are on the way - but I'm not sure how soon it will be. Certainly before the end of October. But as I said, the audience is quite specific (meaning, you probably won't care much about it).

Aren't I cool enough to be in your group or something :p

What's the specific audience, or is it so specific you're not allowed to give specifics 😉

vaaaska

No, don't take it that way. To be specific, it's for people like me.

Jason_Batten

vaaaska wrote:
No, don't take it that way. To be specific, it's for people like me.

People like you? I don't think there are many people like you unless you have cloned yourself 😉 Besides, I don't know you so that really doesn't give me any insight :bemused: