Comments on: Is your newspaper.com is a big ball of mud? http://ryansholin.com/2007/09/17/is-your-newspapercom-is-a-big-ball-of-mud/ Ryan Sholin on the future of newspapers, online news and journalism education. Thu, 11 Mar 2010 02:29:40 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: Andrew Rogers http://ryansholin.com/2007/09/17/is-your-newspapercom-is-a-big-ball-of-mud/comment-page-1/#comment-9015 Andrew Rogers Wed, 19 Sep 2007 11:03:55 +0000 http://www.ryansholin.com/2007/09/17/is-your-newspapercom-is-a-big-ball-of-mud/#comment-9015 Depends very much on the quality of the mud. Depends very much on the quality of the mud.

]]> By: Joe Murphy http://ryansholin.com/2007/09/17/is-your-newspapercom-is-a-big-ball-of-mud/comment-page-1/#comment-9008 Joe Murphy Tue, 18 Sep 2007 02:58:48 +0000 http://www.ryansholin.com/2007/09/17/is-your-newspapercom-is-a-big-ball-of-mud/#comment-9008 The big ball of mud approach seems manageable for answering easy and small development challenges. It's more feasible (and likely) with solo and small-team development. I don't see mud being useful for the 'big challenges' online newspapers face (like connecting all the like-minded information they publish, one of the cooler things they could do online). Then again, I don't see many online newspapers tackling big challenges, so maybe the mud's okay for now. And heck, clean output doesn't mean you've got a sweet CMS, it just means 1. There's somebody up on the CMS team that knows HTML or 2. Your CMS was built in the past two years. The big ball of mud approach seems manageable for answering easy and small development challenges. It’s more feasible (and likely) with solo and small-team development.

I don’t see mud being useful for the ‘big challenges’ online newspapers face (like connecting all the like-minded information they publish, one of the cooler things they could do online). Then again, I don’t see many online newspapers tackling big challenges, so maybe the mud’s okay for now.

And heck, clean output doesn’t mean you’ve got a sweet CMS, it just means 1. There’s somebody up on the CMS team that knows HTML or 2. Your CMS was built in the past two years.

]]> By: Megan Taylor http://ryansholin.com/2007/09/17/is-your-newspapercom-is-a-big-ball-of-mud/comment-page-1/#comment-9007 Megan Taylor Mon, 17 Sep 2007 20:13:31 +0000 http://www.ryansholin.com/2007/09/17/is-your-newspapercom-is-a-big-ball-of-mud/#comment-9007 As a user of a news CMS, I'm chewing more bubble gum than I did when the site went up by hand. And never mind scotch tape...I'm running low on duct tape. As a user of a news CMS, I’m chewing more bubble gum than I did when the site went up by hand. And never mind scotch tape…I’m running low on duct tape.

]]> By: Matt Waite http://ryansholin.com/2007/09/17/is-your-newspapercom-is-a-big-ball-of-mud/comment-page-1/#comment-9006 Matt Waite Mon, 17 Sep 2007 20:00:59 +0000 http://www.ryansholin.com/2007/09/17/is-your-newspapercom-is-a-big-ball-of-mud/#comment-9006 I don't have much to add, I just wanted to point out that "casual, undifferentiated structure" may be the best euphemism for s***ware I've ever heard. Truly a gift to the language. Ask yourself this: would your newspaper's IT staff allow your print publication system be described as having a "casual, undifferentiated structure" where features were just willy nilly added to the print system along the way? No. I get why most sites happen this way, but it's time to call a production system a production system and treat it at such. I don’t have much to add, I just wanted to point out that “casual, undifferentiated structure” may be the best euphemism for s***ware I’ve ever heard. Truly a gift to the language.

Ask yourself this: would your newspaper’s IT staff allow your print publication system be described as having a “casual, undifferentiated structure” where features were just willy nilly added to the print system along the way? No. I get why most sites happen this way, but it’s time to call a production system a production system and treat it at such.

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