Thread

1) I am helping to set up the web presence for a new medical university and am looking at Expression Engine as a possible solution. I am looking for a Multisite CMS with the user accounts being across the various sites, but have multiple tiers of access for individual sites.

For example: There may be a website for users and faculty to register for parking permits, websites controlled by a professor, and maybe a charity or events page (as they come up). Would it be possible for a staff member with a single account to be able to go to the parking site and register a vehicle (no admin), visit the university site (no admin), and be able to maintain a class website (admin with the ability to control visitor privileged and update content)?

2) Expression Engine notes that it has a much better template system. Coming from Wordpress where using php as custom code and other snipets can be a real bear this sound very nice, but I want to know exactly what to expect. Would I be able to use php/ajax/flash/whatever inside of the code base of a template or theme without interfering with or being hassled by the CMS system?

2.1) Is there much support for streaming video and audio? The university is planning to do a lot with streaming video of lectures and such and the easier that EE makes this, the better.

3) With the Multisite Manager it notes three free licenses and anything above that needs to be expanded with additional licenses. Would buying such a license permanently raise the number of website ‘slots’ that I have to four (or more depending on quantity bought), so that a site could be made, and then taken down with that slot being recycled for a new project, or would I have to buy a license for each new project regardless of how many previous licenses have been bought and are/are not being used? I hope that makes sense?

Hey there Wyman,

Welcome to the ExpressionEngine forums! Glad to have you here.

Let me see if I can answer your questions for you.

Your first example is a good one. That is not only doable, but rather easy to setup in ExpressionEngine. You can either allow the user to be in a group that can access a limited version of the Control Panel, or if you want them to be even more anonymous than that, create a form on the front end to do the same. Lots of flexibility here.

Oh man, I really love questions like your second one. I come from WP as well. I mean all the way back to the beginnings when it was b2. ExpressionEngine assumes nothing about your content. That means you can use php/ajax/flash/whatever and not be hindered by the parser. Literally a blank canvas. In WP you are forced not only into a workflow, but into a certain way of thinking. You may have a hard time breaking away from all the restraints of WP at first, but it goes away fast once you start to see just how much you can do with ExpressionEngine. It’s like playing in your backyard and thinking it’s awesome but wishing there was enough room to play baseball and not just “pickle”. Then you leave your backyard to a huge sandlot that’s several city blocks in length and width. It’s a game changer. It’s freedom to be the developer you really are. I love it, that’s why I work here.

I am not sure what you mean by question 2.1. I am guessing you are hosting via Vimeo or YouTube and your question pertains to how ExpressionEngine presents those streams? It’s really up to you, as you may already know from reading up to this point, that ExpressionEngine is a blank canvas, how you wish to stream, present, etc. the videos is 100% up to your discretion.

Your last question, that totally makes sense! Recycle is a good word. You max out at 4, and then you get rid of a site that is no longer needed, then that brings you back to 3 sites with 1 available. No need to purchase another, they are real license and if not in use, then they are made available to you though MSM.

I hope this helps! If you have any more questions, please let me know!

Cheers,

Shane,

Thankyou for the quick response and answers. I am currently looking at a number of CMS solutions to fit our needs so that I can make recommendations to the Operations Director (the guy who writes the checks). I’ll be honest, I personally rate Expression Engine highly out of our those I have looked at in detail thus far.

As for the video source: We have all of the lecture halls wired for video and all of the lectures will be recorded and transcoded onsite automatically. From there it is the plan to have the content communicated with the onsite web server and made available for streaming. It is both a daunting and exciting project.

Hey Wyman,

Awesome. Best of luck with your project!

Cheers,