MotoCMS is an interesting product in that it’s a flash based content management system in a time of HTML5 and CSS3. If you are looking for a CMS system that is going to give you the ability to develop flash websites with greater ease and more functionality then this is an interesting tool to use to run your flash website. I personally don’t use flash to date on any of my websites but Flash does still serve a purpose for a lot of multimedia sites out there.
I had a chance to ask Demetrio Fortman, the CEO of the company about the impact that this has had on their CMS and this is what she had to say. She said “flash will have its niche for a long time for sure. It doesn’t have worthy rivals in such directions as video production, interactive effects and many rich internet application solutions. Up to this time, we see that many Javascript and HTML5 applications are still unsolved to compete with Flash. You see, we are not against HTML5 and other IT innovations. The question is what’s better for the users. If the customers need the product’s versions for IPad, IPhone, for example, we will generate them, and maybe start working with HTML5. It depends on how matters will stand in IT sphere. We are flexible, you see, and are able to adapt to changes.”
On my first dive into this CMS product I’ve got to say that I wasn’t sure what I could expect. This is coming from someone who’s favourite CMS is not flash-based so naturally I was sceptical.
Templates
When you first sign up for an account you need to select a template. There is really no way around this step. Naturally once you have this in place you can completely customize the template as much as you want. There is a lot of control over adding flash elements, different types of media even down to font control.
The Fonts Manager itself gives you the option to upload your own fonts from your computer to your MotoCMS site and then from there you can apply them. This is great for designers looking for a simple way to get their typographic design work into MotoCMS.
Media Library
One of the most useful areas of MotoCMS is the control that you have over media on a MotoCMS website. The heart of MotoCMS is the ability to use Flash, Sound, Video and other forms of media in their website’s architecture seamlessly. There is also a way to embed YouTube videos into as well. The maximum file size on media that you upload to your website is 2MB.
SEO Settings
As with evaluating any content management system the question always comes up about search engine optimization. MotoCMS does offer some options to control SEO on the page itself and site wide. There are the normal SEO settings available in MotoCMS including the following…
- Do not index and do not follow checkboxes (by default these are unchecked meaning that the pages you create are indexed to search engines and the link relationships are followed by search engines)
- Page Keywords
- Page Description
Some of the site-wide SEO options include the ability to generate a sitemap and integrate with Google Webmaster Tools. Outside of that, you can also integrate your MotoCMS with Google Analytics by adding the tracking code generated in Google Analytics to the site.
Backups and Updates
One thing that is great to see in a CMS product by default is to be able to backup and update your website without any technical “knowhow” or additional setup and MotoCMS does give you the ability to do this.
Overall Thoughts about MotoCMS
My overall opinion about MotoCMS is that it’s a great option for people if they are looking for a content management system that is going to allow them to do the following…
- Run a “Media Heavy” website without a lot of setup
- Having a Flash based site that is easy to administer, make changes to and updates easily
- Designers looking for a CMS that can accommodate your needs as designers while providing their clients a way for updating a flash-based website.
There aren’t many Flash-based CMS products available today to help you run your website and in a niche market like this MotoCMS stands out as an option for anyone looking for a killer flash-based CMS solution.
About Luc Arnold
Excellent summary article Luc. MotoCMS is indeed a great resource. Enjoy
Lee
Moto CMS – Looks great. As for any sort of support… Dont count on it. We have been trying to contact customer support for some additional changes which we are very willing to pay for with no avail. It has been MONTHS and MONTHS of us sending them emails and requests only to be met with empty promises.
I cant even begin to tell you how disappointing the experience has been. I will go as far as saying the company and its management is an absolute joke.
I highly recommend against the service. Dont waste your time and money.
Thanks for posting about this Amir. Reviewing it from an application standpoint which is important to note but I am glad that you brought up the support aspect of it. Thanks for the feedback Amir,
Luc
Same experience with amir. Waste of money, time, and efforts over the course of 3-4 months of back and forth troubleshooting. The Editing software and layout got bugs everywhere. Highly NOT recommend.
I have had good support for fixing my template when it stops working. However, it stops working SO frequently that I am about to ditch it. Installation is a nightmare!! Integration with a server that doesn’t have Zend installed is a bigger nightmare. The support team has been fast to fix things but, as I said, fixing has been too necessary a component. It’s a great template though when it’s working: updating is easy, SEO is fantastic. Photos load very slowly. Overall, I don’t recommend.