How to convert html site into CMSMS?

[Su-jan]

Hi there,

First of all, many thanks for this forum and for everyone providing help!

I have a web-site since 1996 and I know very basic HTML, a tiny little bit of CSS of phpbb. From time to time I move along with the time and now I've decided to switch to CMSMS...    (Two years ago I switched from html table layout to a CSS "table" design. Yeah!).

First of all, the good news is that CMSMS is already running on my server. No problems at all! Now, how do I convert my old web-site to CMSMS? I've already watched this video http://cmsmadesimple.org/uploads/media/ ... colate.htm and I've learnt how to convert the design to CMSMS, but what about the content?

My current web-site consists of about 500 single pages - where the layout is all the same and only the content changes. The 500 pages are divided in different folders. Also all my images (approx. 3500 jpegs) are in different folders. For example:

All text pages are in:

Text
  2006
  2005
  2004

And the images are in:

Images
  2006
  2005
  2004

Do I really have to create 500 single pages again (through the admin panel "content / pages") by copying and pasting the text? Can I not simply change my existing HTML pages, strip them from all the html code (so they're plain text) and upload them to the server and CMSMS will take these plain texts and it will be displayed nicely on the web-site. I understand that it's done with this {content} thingie (how do you call this), but how does the page know which content to use?

The same with the pictures, do I need to upload all 3500 pictures again?

Sorry for the long message.

Thank you for any help in advance!

Best regards
Su-jan.

[tsw]

with those images, you can just copy all images to /uploads/images.

but with content, I dont think there is any other way than creating the pages by hand...

[Dr.CSS]

Yes sorry to convert them to CMSMS you will need to make new page and copy/paste the content into the content edit box for each page, I've found that with tinyMCE it will take the , ,
tags with it, unless you strip all html and use the embed tag, "{content} thingie (how do you call this)" it is called a tag.

As for the images 2 ways...

1) if they are on same server you can point to them with http://nameofsite.com/images/2004/image.jpg

2) if they are on same server and in pages and you use embed tag you need to do nothing

or upload them to uploads/images folder on your CMSMS site, some FTP software will let you connect to 2 servers or same one twice in the program and you can just hilite and drag them/folders to uploads/images and wait as they transfer, then change all paths in pages to reflect new location...

[Su-jan]

Hi,

Many thanks for the info!

Where do I place the embed tag?

For example, now all my pictures are at http://www.domain.com/pictures

Should I put the tag in the template (in the section). What would be syntax then? Would something change if I used the album module?

Many thanks.
Su-jan.

[Pierre M.]

If you need to import hundreds of content pages, I think you need an import module or script to feed the db. But I don't know any.
I hope the images can stay where they are today.

PM

[Dr.CSS]

I use it here http://www.multiintech.com/index.php?page=embeded  in the template like this...

     
        {title}
        {content}
        {embed url=http://www.multiintech.com/old/index.html}
     

If you go to Extensions » Tags on the right side is the word Help click that and you will get the instructions on how to use it.

[Pierre M.]

Mark, are you answering about the images or the pages ?

About pages, I don't understand : your tag works nicely for /old/index.html alone ; but what if the old site has /old/page1.html to /old/page876.html ? you won't write 876 tags, would you ?

I was asking for an offline database feeding script. Input = html files + hierarchy, title and metadata conventions, ouput = SQL inserts to CMSms DB.

PM