Review of PHP-Nuke
PHP-Nuke is a very popular content management system which uses an SQL database and is developed in PHP. It is open source and covered under the GPL. Since it falls under the GPL, the source code can be freely distributed. However, version 7.5 and up have required a purchase of the latest package (to support the continuing development of the software), but the source code can still be freely distributed by those that purchase it. The purchase requirement only applies to the latest stable release of PHP-Nuke, and all previous versions are available for free.
A popular favorite among web developers, PHP-Nuke has had a long standing tradition of being one of the premier catch-all management systems. The range of features and capabilities is astounding with the standard package, and there even more third-party additions which can be included. It lends itself to a variety of different styles of website, and its recent record has shown it to be a stable platform to work on.
Why PHP-Nuke Is Great
The administrative interface is exceptionally well designed and intuitive. It consists of a series of buttons and a sidebar menu along with a few quick glance statistics of recent users and articles at the bottom. PHP-Nuke comes fully loaded with several modules which make it easy to create new pages with their WYSIWYG editor, add and manage users, and even incorporate and manage your advertising banners easily. The forum module allows you to add a specialized version of phpBB, and you can also turn off or on an encyclopedia with a few clicks.
The PHP-Nuke website also sells modules, themes, and templates on their website, so developers can directly market their wares to an interested audience, and users can invest in higher quality additions to their website. There are several themes and modules for sale across the internet, but there also are several available for download. Regardless of whether or not they are free, any modules and themes you include are at your own risk, so it would be wise to have a backup.
Due to its widespread use and age, the community is expansive, so unofficial support is easy to find. The large community of users also generates a plethora of themes and third party modules available for download, so it's easy to save time by using those to fit your web authoring needs.
Potential Issues with PHP-Nuke
The latest release of PHP-Nuke requires a payment of $12 USD, but with that price comes the latest in security patches, features, and support. Also, there is no update or upgrade system where you purchase the software and stay ahead of the curve, so any time you want to upgrade to the absolute latest, it's another $12.
Those who need a very simple website can certainly achieve that goal with PHP-Nuke, but as many of the features are automatically turned on, you'll have to weed through all of the blocks and modules you don't want. If all of the features are left on, it creates a cluttered website, so there will be some adjustments in almost every case.
Post new comment