There has been a steady increase in web developers over the years and it saddens me to see some of the quality of work and abuse of technologies employed as a drop – in replacement for clear lack of ability. Take for example CMS based platforms – these are meant to be used to enable websites to be easily updated and manage a decent volume of articles in a logical manner.

What I see more and more often are simple, static websites that are built using these technologies on the basis that:

• The owner can update the website easily.
• Articles and data are stored logically.

Fair enough but these are the kinds of websites that will VERY rarely be updated and are extremely simple. I am talking about 4 or 5 page websites with simple “About Us” and similar descriptive pages that are using these CMS platforms.

I suspect that one reason why these CMS platforms are chosen is due to the apparent absolute lack of knowledge of even simple HTML and CSS design. It is far easier to just download a template, apply it to a CMS and edit the content in an easy to use web – based editor then create an efficient, static website.

Considering the website is easy for the owner to update, there is almost zero possibility of the website owner ever updating their website script, which begs the question if the web developers who employ this simple means of website creation understand the risks involved. What you end up with is a web developer who spends a few minutes to install a CMS script, followed by applying a (often free) template. Finish it off with a few minor adjustments and that is what they would consider a job well done.

What you really get is a 4 page website that uses 15 megabytes of storage, with a database holding 15 tables and 5 records.