Websites using Tiki Wiki CMS Groupware

Okay, let s break down Tiki Wiki CMS Groupware, covering its overview, revenue (though this is tricky for open-source projects), alternatives, pricing, and customer care.

Tiki Wiki CMS Groupware: Overview

• What it is: Tiki Wiki CMS Groupware (often shortened to just Tiki ) is a full-featured, open-source (LGPL-2.1+) web application that combines a wiki, CMS (Content Management System), groupware, and application framework. It s designed to create a wide variety of online communities, websites, intranets, extranets, and knowledge bases.

• Key Features:

  • Wiki: Core wiki functionality with version control, page history, and collaborative editing.
  • CMS: Content management features for creating and managing articles, blogs, news, and other structured content.
  • Groupware: Features for collaboration, including forums, calendars, task tracking, messaging, and chat.
  • Forums: Robust discussion forum capabilities.
  • Blogs: Integrated blogging functionality.
  • Trackers: For managing bugs, feature requests, tasks, and other project-related items. Very flexible and customizable.
  • Calendars: For scheduling events and meetings.
  • File Management: A repository for storing and sharing files.
  • User Management: Comprehensive user and group management, including permissions and access control.
  • Surveys/Polls: Tools for creating and conducting surveys and polls.
  • Newsletters: Features for creating and sending newsletters.
  • Themes and Layouts: Customizable themes and layouts to control the appearance of the site.
  • Plugins and Modules: Extensible architecture with a variety of plugins and modules to add functionality.
  • Internationalization: Supports multiple languages.
  • Security: Security features to protect the site from unauthorized access and attacks.

• Target Audience:

  • Organizations of all sizes (small businesses, non-profits, enterprises).
  • Communities and groups seeking collaborative platforms.
  • Developers who need a flexible framework for building web applications.
  • Users who want a self-hosted solution with a high degree of control.

• Strengths:

  • Highly Feature-Rich: Offers a vast array of features in a single package.
  • Flexible and Customizable: Can be adapted to a wide range of use cases.
  • Open Source and Free: No licensing fees.
  • Self-Hosted: Gives users complete control over their data and infrastructure.
  • Strong Community: Active community providing support and contributing to development.
  • Mature Platform: Has been around for a long time and is well-established.

• Weaknesses:

  • Complexity: The sheer number of features can be overwhelming for new users. Has a steep learning curve.
  • User Interface: The user interface can feel dated compared to some modern CMS platforms. While continually improved, it can still be considered less intuitive for some.
  • Configuration: Extensive configuration options can be time-consuming to set up.
  • Hosting Requirements: Requires a suitable hosting environment with PHP and a database (typically MySQL or MariaDB).
  • Security: While secure when properly configured, its complexity can lead to misconfigurations and vulnerabilities if not managed carefully.
  • Development speed: Since it does many things, it s more difficult to refactor and keep up with the fast changes of specialized applications.

Revenue

• Open Source Model: Tiki is open-source software. This means the core software is free to download, use, and modify.
• No Direct Revenue for Core Software: There are no licensing fees for using the core Tiki software.
• Indirect Revenue Streams (for the Project and Ecosystem):
  • Professional Services: Companies and individuals offer services such as:
    • Custom Development: Building custom features and extensions.
    • Theme Design: Creating custom themes.
    • Hosting: Providing managed hosting services.
    • Installation and Configuration: Helping users set up and configure Tiki.
    • Training: Providing training on how to use Tiki.
    • Support: Offering paid support contracts.
  • Donations: Users and organizations can donate to the Tiki project to support its development.
  • Sponsorships: Companies can sponsor the Tiki project.
  • Tiki.org: This is the website where the project is managed and it s also where you could purchase some services.

Alternatives

Here are some alternatives to Tiki Wiki CMS Groupware, categorized by focus:

• Wikis:

  • MediaWiki: The software behind Wikipedia. Focuses primarily on wiki functionality.
  • DokuWiki: A simple, easy-to-use wiki that stores data in plain text files.
  • Confluence: A commercial wiki popular in enterprise environments (Atlassian product).

• CMS (Content Management Systems):

  • WordPress: The most popular CMS, known for its ease of use and extensive plugin ecosystem.
  • Drupal: A powerful and flexible CMS suitable for complex websites and applications.
  • Joomla!: Another popular CMS with a balance of features and ease of use.

• Groupware/Collaboration Platforms:

  • Nextcloud: A self-hosted collaboration platform with file sharing, calendar, contacts, and more.
  • ONLYOFFICE: A collaborative office suite that can be self-hosted or used in the cloud.
  • Microsoft SharePoint: A commercial collaboration platform widely used in enterprises.
  • Google Workspace (formerly G Suite): A suite of online productivity and collaboration tools.

• All-in-One Platforms:

  • XWiki: A platform similar to Tiki, combining wiki, CMS, and application development features. Considered by many to be the closest alternative.
  • Liferay: A commercial digital experience platform (DXP) with a wide range of features.

Pricing

• Core Software: Free (Open Source)
• Hosting: Varies depending on the hosting provider and the resources required. You ll need to pay for hosting, a domain name, and possibly an SSL certificate. Costs can range from a few dollars per month for basic shared hosting to hundreds of dollars per month for dedicated servers or cloud hosting.
• Professional Services: Hourly rates or project-based fees for custom development, theme design, support, training, etc. These costs vary widely depending on the provider and the scope of the work.

Customer Care Details

• Community Support:
  • Tiki.org Website: The main hub for the Tiki community, with documentation, forums, and other resources.
  • Forums: Active forums where users can ask questions and get help from other users and developers.
  • Wiki: Comprehensive documentation on how to use and configure Tiki.
  • Mailing Lists: Mailing lists for announcements, discussions, and support.
• Commercial Support:
  • Professional Service Providers: Many companies and individuals offer paid support services for Tiki. You can find a list of providers on the Tiki website or through online searches. These providers can offer dedicated support, consulting, and custom development.
• No Dedicated Customer Support Team (for the Core Project): Because Tiki is an open-source project, there is no dedicated customer support team in the traditional sense. Support is primarily provided by the community and by commercial service providers.
• Documentation: The quality of the documentation is generally good, but it can be overwhelming due to the number of features.

In Summary:

Tiki is a powerful and versatile platform that offers a lot of functionality for free. However, it can be complex to learn and configure. If you need a feature-rich, self-hosted solution and are willing to invest the time to learn it, Tiki is a good option. If you need something simpler or more user-friendly, you might want to consider one of the alternatives. Be sure to factor in the cost of hosting and potential professional services when evaluating the total cost of ownership.