# Modular website with XML-based backend in Rails? **URL:** \ **Category:** Rails\ **Created:** [July 5, 2009, 11:57pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/modular-website-with-xml-based-backend-in-rails/171573 "2009-07-05T23:57:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 4\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![sander](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/s/90ced4/32.png) [@sander](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/sander)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2009, 11:57pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/modular-website-with-xml-based-backend-in-rails/171573/1 "2009-07-05T23:57:30Z")
I’ve been asked to find the most appropriate framework with which to implement the following: A website with 1. Modules, which separate (partially user-configurable) style, from user settings, from content. A bit like the igoogle modules. 2. …which can be inserted in various places in a page, depending on the user’s preferences, again think netvibes, igoogle, librarything, etc. 3. …which can be inserted via some Ajax magic into an external page. No problem if this is limited to “no login” modules only. 4. Also the whole thing has to have easy interaction with an XML-based database and web services. No SQL database available. 5. …and be easy to use & open source, have many developers who like to work with it. I was thinking (2) is fairly easy to do with a bit of javascript/scriptaculous, also (3) can probably be added quite easily with some limitations. So this leaves mainly 1: Is there a standard way in rails, or a package, to easily render a basic look of a module, with user settings and style in a standard way? Support for skins? Anything that can help here? 4: I know it’s easy to make web services in Rails, but can you replace the entire ‘model’ with something so different? If you know any other solutions than Rails that would work here, I’d also like to hear them. I’m not expecting there is a full solution available anywhere, but mostly looking for modules etc. which can help to do part of this. The focus here is on quickly getting something out and then drawing in other open-source developers for more modules. ---
**Author:** ![sander](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/s/90ced4/32.png) [@sander](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/sander)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2009, 5:19pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/modular-website-with-xml-based-backend-in-rails/171573/2 "2009-07-06T17:19:29Z")
Are you possibly looking at a CMS? Have you looked at Ruby-based BrowserCMS, which has the ability to create Portlets that you can embed in a page? Wayne On Jul 5, 4:57 pm, Sander L. [removed\_email\_address@domain.invalid](mailto:removed_email_address@domain.invalid) ---
**Author:** ![sander](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/s/90ced4/32.png) [@sander](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/sander)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2009, 12:13pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/modular-website-with-xml-based-backend-in-rails/171573/3 "2009-07-07T12:13:55Z")
Most of the content will be dynamic, and CMS systems usually focus on static content made by non-technical users. Still I didn’t know about BrowserCMS, which looks quite useful anyway. Mostly worried about whether forms etc. submitted in such a module would update only that particular module. Which leaves mainly the point about whether Rails can live without an SQL database and how well it can use other data sources. Wayne Simacek wrote: > Are you possibly looking at a CMS? Have you looked at Ruby-based > BrowserCMS, which has the ability to create Portlets that you can > embed in a page? > > Wayne ---
**Author:** ![sander](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/s/90ced4/32.png) [@sander](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/sander)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2009, 3:44pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/modular-website-with-xml-based-backend-in-rails/171573/4 "2009-07-07T15:44:14Z")
Sander L. wrote: > Which leaves mainly the point about whether Rails can live without an > SQL database and how well it can use other data sources. Yes, it can live with a SQL database. You’ll need to tinker with a couple of Rakefiles but otherwise it’s no problem. Google is your friend. If you consume Rails-style RESTful web services with ActiveResource, then that’ll be super-easy. If you want to consume XML-RPC or SOAP web services, then that can be done too but you’ll stray further from the ActiveRecord idiom. That needn’t be a problem. Generally, Rails is great at consuming all kinds of web services. – Roderick van Domburg [http://www.nedforce.com](http://www.nedforce.com)