What is ExpressionEngine?

ExpressionEngine is the sweet little program I use to operate the database that runs this site and other sites I have designed for organizations. Have I lost you yet?

Most people do not realize that a website actually has three (3) parts. The graphic interface (what it looks like), the content (what it communicates), and the underlying technology, the 'back end' or programs that display it (how it works). ExpressionEngine, or EE, is the licensed software program I have installed on my server which runs my website. It a Content Management System (CMS). Instead of individual files, each entry is stored in a database. It allows me to post entries from my web browser and tells the browser how to display the site.

Let me start at the beginning. When I started doing websites, a website consisted of a number of 'html' documents or files. Each file represented one page and was linked to other pages or graphic files which showed up when viewed in a web browser like Internet Explorer or Safari. If you want to see what a web page really looks like, go to your top menu and find something like View>Page Source.

I enjoyed working with html code, which is not really difficult. I had to upload each page to an internet server (generally at a hosting company) to put it on the web, using a special program and a process called ftp (File Transfer Protocol). Each time I made a change to a page I had to upload a new copy.

I got better at using code over time. I also learned how to use Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) to make style changes over a whole website by changing only one file. This process was fine for a small site with just a few pages which did not need to be updated often. On the other hand,

• if you need a lot of pages or you need to update information frequently it can become overwhelming, especially keeping all those links straight.
• if you want added functionality, like email lists for example, you need to add a small program called a script which you either find on the web or write yourself with javaScript or some other program.
• no one else can work on the site unless they have special skills and training.

The solution is to use a Content Management System (CMS) to make it easy to use a database instead of separate pages. The functionality and the user-friendly forms that make it easy for anyone to log in and post information are built in. I still use html and CSS to make my pages look however I want them to look, but instead of separate pages you are really seeing information pulled from a database.

Before there was ExpressionEngine, there was pMachine, a program developed by Rick Ellis and offered for use as blogging software (for weblogs). The review I saw in MacAddict stressed how easy it was to install and use. I decided to try it.

It was truly easy to install. As a rank newbie I still thought the learning curve was pretty steep, but the people I dealt with were very helpful and I used the forum they had set up for questions extensively.

I liked that I could still do my own designs and even make changes to the php code (a website programming code) if I needed to. Also, it was free for personal use, although you got more features with a license and you needed a license for commercial use.

Well, the company has prospered and is now EllisLab. pMachine was replaced by ExpressionEngine, which is even easier to use (with a new templating system and modular design). It is the only CMS which I have had any experience with and as far as I am concerned the only one I need.