Community site without databases,cms, etc.

How complex does it have to be?

[webjourneyman]

I´m planning a community site where I´d like users to contribute, I intend to approve and edit every submission (if needed).
I´ve been looking at php/mysql solutions and content management systems but I wonder, since I´m going to review everything anyway, if I couldn´t just use a simple customized contact form and code the site solely in html, entering the submissions by hand, something I think is better SEO wise and just plain simpler.
In your opinion is this doable or advisable?

[LifeinAsia]

Is it doable? Yes. Just as digging a ditch with a toy shovel is doable- it just takes a LOT more work when not using the right tools.

Is it advisable? Probably not. You can probably find a lot more productive use of your time than hand coding and copying every single message posted.

If you get half a dozen/day, you can probably keep on top of things. But what will you do when you get dozens or even hundreds of posts/day? It's much easier to start with a system than trying to migrate to one later on.

You should be able to easily customize and build SEO functionality into any off-the-shelf system (if not, just find another one that is easily customizable).

[rogerd]

Webjourneyman, that sounds REALLY tedious. Plus, the longer people wait to see their contributions, the more likely they are not to participate again.

There are some forums that are Perl based and store the pages without a database.

One alternative for a low-volume community is to use a blog like WordPress. It has comment features and a variety of comment moderation methods. You could find or create a template that makes the comments as prominent as the original post as it would be in a forum.

[webjourneyman]

Thanks. The idea is not for your typical forum, it´s more of a wiki where all content will have equal chance of being viewed by readers.
Still it will not be like a wiki since I´m more interested in getting new pages than edits to existing ones.
I don´t think I will be getting that many submissions. Mostly I believe I will be writing the content myself, and whatever might be submitted will be scrutinized to fit the overall editorial guidelines. I don´t think there will be many times where just pushing the accept button will do, I think that most likely I´m going to have to edit everyting to some degree.
Hardcoding is really not that hard when using copy-paste.
But, and thats a big but. I´m totally unexperienced in regards to community sites and I do value your input greatly and I do take it to serious account. Thanks again.

[sodani]

Webjourneyman, if you're going to be creating all or most of the content yourself, you might as well use wordpress. It's a blogging software that literally takes 5 minutes to install. You don't need to know any programming. All you need is a domain and a shared webhost.

[webjourneyman]

Thanks for the suggestion I´m hearing this more and more. I´m going to look into it.

[webjourneyman]

I see you use drupal, If I go with a cms that´s the one I´m using. Hows it working for you? I wonder how good at php/msql one has to become to make own or modify a module.

[sodani]

I like drupal a lot. What it's really good at is multi-user driven sites, which wordpress isn't. You should learn some php if you want to modify the modules though.