Searching for an easy to use, flexible blogging and Content Management System (CMS) for a new site I am creating for a client, I came across Majestic, created by web development company Injader.
I need to create a site which will allow multiple users to easily add news and additional pages, upload photos to a gallery. I have created a number of sites using the Joomla CMS system so that their users could update the sites themselves once I had set them up. Each time the sites have either remained unchanged or I have had to to the updates myself ; the admin interface was too hard for them to learn.
This time, Wordpress was my main preference; with plugins and tweaks I could get it to do what was needed. It was not ideal but it was the best option that I was aware of - until I found Majestic. Majestic’s inbuilt features immediately attracted me, providing all the functionality I needed, and a simple admin interface means my clients will be able to start blogging without a steep learning curve. I was sueblimely happy with my discovery 
Not only does Majestic provide a simple blogging solution but has extras that even Wordpress cannot provide, such as more flexible user permissions. Plugins being developed by Injader will also provide more advanced uses if you need them. Apologies if this sounds like an advertisement, I do tend to be enthusiastic about such finds.
Another discovery I made was that Majestic has been developed by Ben Barden, whose blog I have been reading for quite some time and who I know from the Aussie Blogger’s Forums as a knowledgeable and helpful contributor. I have asked Ben to write a guest post to give you more info on Majestic and an opportunity for you to have your questions answered - so if there is any more you would like to know about Majestic please ask in the comments here.
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That sounds interesting, I’ll have a look see at this Majestic
Well done to Ben!
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Have you tried Serendipity? http://www.s9y.org
I personally use it for all my sites and swear by it.
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Very interesting Sue. I guess the key words here are easy to use with enough features.
I’ve SU it of course
Wel done Ben - kepp up the good work!
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Took the tour… read the about and the features and… I can see how this CMS could be useful for many publishers, although I find it a little too much for simple blogging needs. Besides, there are many features needed for Majestic to be able to compete with WordPress as a blogging platform.
It’s my opinion that Ben still has a lot of work to do. The UI lacks elegance - OK, some could argue that the UI doesn’t have to be pretty but discoverable and I have to agree. The problem with “ugly” UI is that they somehow slow down the discoverability.
Another problem is that Majestic doesn’t work in all browsers yet, but according to Ben this issue will be solved soon. For a startup, this shows potential.
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Although maybe too much for what we currently expect to satisfy simple blogging needs, because of what the current platforms offer us, I think the availability of simple to use extra CMS features can enhance a blog, giving more flexibility to suit the subject matter and originality. Although the designs vary blogs are very much clones of each other in regards to included features.
Currently too many plugins and tweaks are needed to create CMS functionality in current blogging platforms and the current CMS platforms are complicated to set up and use.
Thanks for the comments and for the Stumble.
Mihaela - thanks for the feedback. Were there any particular features you didn’t see on the list? Could you elaborate on your criticisms of the interface - what would you suggest changing?
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It will be my pleasure, Ben. I didn’t want to sound “too critical” about your endeavor - I think you are on the right path to success.
If you want I’ll personally send you an email with my ideas later on this week, I am very busy now. Drop me an email (email address on my blog) if you agree.
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Joomla & Wordpress are two of my favorites, but I haven’t looked at Majestic.
I’ll definitely check it out.
[…] Blimely looks at Majestic as an alternative to Wordpress for a CMS type site - something I need to go […]
I was interested by this too. I am going to set up a simple web page for Ryans Scout Group and had no idea what would be free/cheap and easy to use.
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Very interesting. I’d never even heard of Majestic before. I’ll have to add it to my list of CMS systems. Thanks for the article.
Mike
http://www.cmstester.com