It seems like he is trying to over-normalize the database.

I had an entire class in college about database normalization.  Although it is recommended in web (and other) applications, if you ask me, it's possible to 'over-normalize.'  Like you were saying Joe, it would require joining an additional table, and once you do it for all the features I could see that severely impacting performance for installs that have a lot of sites.

Not to mention the time it would take to pull those fields out of their tables and more or less re-create the structure for them.

I think it's just fine like it is.  I have to bring out that saying "if it isn't broke, don't fix it" (of whatever it is).

Hi Alexander,

Nothing stops you from using your preferred approach in your own custom features. I have no plans to to promote that approach, it has no appeal at all to me and I see zero benefit to do that.

mojoPortal has an open architecture that allows people to implement things they way they want in their custom features. We offer a base class SiteModuleControl which provides some convenience but one can use a plain old UserControl, one can use an OR Mapper or LinqToSql or anything they want. Or they can follow the proven patterns that I use.

In fact lots of people have implemented custom features to meet their project needs but that is a different thing than producing commercial features which requires more work and support. Since I myself am just barely managing to live on the revenue for my paid products it is not surprising to me that there are not lots of commercial add ons from 3rd party developers yet. As mojoPortal continues to become more popular and as I manage to make a decent living then it would become more attractive for third parties to develop add on features for sale.

Also it is not a true statement:

that absolutely no modules for the system developed by outsiders to programmers.

The Poll and Survey features were contributed to the project by community members, the metaweblog api was contributed by a community member, the initial version of the Feed Manager was contributed by a community member, the workflow system was implemented by a community member, the initial pgsql data layer, the initial sqlite data layer and the initial firebird support, and the initial support for LDAP/Active Directory were all contributed by community members.

Success of a project does not happen overnight, you seem to hold it against mojoPortal that we are not already as popular as other solutions and do not already have as much market share as other solutions. If I knew a way to magically get to that level of success overnight I would certainly do it. The only way I know to get to large success is to accumulate small success over time and that is what I am trying to do.

If you have so many worries about using mojoPortal perhaps you should use something else. There exist lots of alternatives and I have never claimed that mojoPortal is the best solution for every need. If the number of third party components available is of great importance you can certainly find a CMS that already has a large amount of add on features you can buy. The irony for me of course is that you have never purchased any of my products so it seems strange you are so concerned that more products are not for sale. Or I guess you expect there will be lots of great free add on features. In any case if you are not finding what you look for with mojoPortal perhaps you should keep looking and you can find something you like better.

Best,

Joe

I'm not sure that the line "you can not become rich by working independently" is true at all.  there are many entrepreneurs out there who have been very successful by working independent. Not to say that you can't become rich by working as a team, but you can become rich by working alone as well.

I think better yet, you're doing something you love! :) (or at least from what I can tell, it's something you love).

To me, software/web application development is something that I love doing because it's challenging and rewarding.  I love getting that sense of accomplishment when I figure out a glitch, or develop an entire solution for a client.

Keep up the great work, Joe! :)

My $.02 is that I spent several months installing and evaluating over a dozen open source CMSs for our organization, both LAMP and .Net-based (we are basically one of Alexander's "#1" user type).  I actually lucked into finding mojoPortal through the Microsoft Web Platform Installer, and late into the eval process at that. Within an hour of using it I knew that mojoPortal was the one that would fit us best. As far as I'm concerned, there are no open source CMSs out there that can match the out-of-the-box ease of use, depth and richness of features, and ease of extensibility that mojoPortal has. Alexander, my firm belief is that you can search but you won't find a better overall open source CMS out there, and certainly not on the Microsoft platform.

Artisteer support can never replace graphic artists, just as photography did not replace painters. The average Artisteer user is going to create a look that's the equivalent of a snapshot, while a seasoned graphic designer like Joe D. can now use Artisteer as the launching point to make a masterpiece. Crafting a truly unique Web identity for a client is an art, and it can't be done properly by just relying on a canned program. I consider myself fairly knowledgeable at CSS, and even I recognize there are quite a few things that Artisteer can't do out of the box... Things like making the horizontal menu appear to partially bisect the header, or graphics appearing to break out of the header. What about animations? The list is endless.

Now if on the other hand your design skill level does not let you create richer and more compelling skins than a novice wielding Artisteer, that should be a signal that it's time to take your game to the next level. Clients should come to you for true value, excellent service, and unique designs; not because it's too difficult to modify CSS.

Joe, please don't let negativity get you down. You are on the right track with this product, and I know that mojoPortal will achieve great success in the future.

Jamie