FAQ

I already have a site that was designed recently and is kept up to date. But, the maintenance costs are spiralling. Are there any options that can help me to reduce these?

If you are using an external supplier to maintain your site on an on-going basis, the fees for this work are likely to be high and will continue increasing as your needs increase. We would recommend a content management system that will allow you to bring all of your content updates in-house. We have Micro and Enterprise editions of NetDevPlus, our proprietary content management system, and both offer a proven, cost-effective solution. Once implemented, they will have no additional costs apart from the optional annual license fee, which includes all future upgrades.

I already have a well-designed website that is up-to-date but it does not have a CMS. Is it possible to keep what we have spent so much time developing and yet still benefit from the advantages offered by a CMS?

Yes. With NetDevPlus, migration from an existing flat HTML site is quick and easy. It involves creating templates and building the pages. The templates for NetDevPlus can be designed for any website. This means you do not need to develop any new creative – we can use all of your existing assets. If you have a database driven site, we can use our migration tools to automate the process of transferring data.

Can we integrate systems such as document management, knowledge management and CRM tools with NetDevPlus?

All data within NetDevPlus is stored in an SQL database, therefore other systems that use this standard can be integrated easily, allowing for improved data sharing capabilities. Our recommendation in the case of legacy systems would be to work with us on a scoping exercise so that we can gain an understanding of your current infrastructure and better understand future needs.

We are very busy and cannot afford to have members of the team out of the office on training courses. How much training will people need to use your CMS?

NetDevPlus has been designed with ease-of-use in mind. Most users only require half a day’s training, and many are able to learn how to use NetDevPlus to edit and publish content within 30 minutes. Naturally, on-going support is available should you need it. What about site and content security? The live site is separated from the editing environment. As a result, all content and admin functions can be performed on machines that are behind secure firewalls or indeed those without access to the Internet.

What happens as new technologies are introduced? Does that mean I'll have to invest in a whole new system in a few years' time?

The system is developed using a .Net framework and SQL database, which structures data in a sensible format. This format makes it easier for the interchange of data across systems. The data can be used for a number of devices if it is stored in the database and as new technologies are developed, the data maintains a consistent structure that will be readable. This means that as standards develop, NetDevPlus will be improved to reflect these changes and patches will be issued as part of our software support programme.

How do I make sure only those who are authorised can make changes on the site?

Like most content management systems, NetDevPlus has a roles-based authorisation access system that ensures only authorised people on our team can make content changes to the site. With NetDevPlus, in addition to traditional roles-based security, an administrator can allow a user to make changes to a specific section or page of the site on a case-by-case basis.

Aren't content management systems very expensive to buy and re-license?

Yes, these systems are often expensive and require a huge capital expenditure commitment. We have therefore developed two packages - the first, a Micro version that incorporates all of NetDevPlus's functionality but limits the number of users and templates that can be used. The Micro version is ideal for those companies that want to launch or maintain smaller, more tactical websites. The full Enterprise edition is competitively priced in relation to the functionality and features available to the end user and is best suited to companies looking to launch or maintain large-scale, content-rich websites. We publish our websites globally.

Can NetDevPlus handle foreign languages including Asian and Arabic fonts?

NetDevPlus is fully unicode enabled. This means that content can be created and published in any language. Language and character sets are not a barrier and the level of support is such that language is set at a page level so you can have pages in a number of languages within a single site. For those with editors working around the world, the system even has a localised user interface so, for example, your editors in Yugoslavia will access the complete user interface including all menus in Serbian.

I've heard that content management systems are complex and difficult to use. How difficult is NetDevPlus to use?

In developing this system, we transferred our knowledge of developing user-focused websites to designing a user interface that is not only clear and simple to use but fun as well.