What is Carbide?

Carbide is a Web Site Management System (WSMS) developed by Industrial Medium. It is a hosted solution - meaning that the web site is hosted on Industrial Medium servers in our secure data center and makes use of a core software application that allows users to easily update and maintain their web site(s) with a standard web browser.

Using standard web technologies and software such as Java, JSP, XML, webDAV and Apache, Carbide is a scalable and robust web content management solution designed to let the non-technical business user control as many aspects of the web site as possible - without having to acquire a great amount of technical knowledge.

What does Carbide let me do?
Using Carbide, non-technical staff will be able to add, edit and delete all web page content as well as add or delete the actual web pages themselves using intuitive web based interfaces.

Furthermore, staff members will be able to alter the structure of the site by adding, deleting or renaming the folders that contain the web content. Carbide has been developed to use the folder and file interface that most Windows and Macintosh users are very familiar with.

What other benefits are there?
While not immediately of great concern to some clients, an added benefit of Carbide is the use of XML as the underlying data storage format. As Web browser technologies continue to change and mobile computing devices (phones, PDA's, etc…) become more prevalent, XML will play an increasing role in the distribution of content to all Internet users.

In addition to the technical benefits of Carbide, there is a time & cost savings that clients will experience - assuming a goal of improving the maintainability and relevance of the site and content. Using Carbide allows existing staff members to assume responsibility for a much greater portion of the site than is currently possible without having to become experts in HTML and other web technologies.

Additionally, using Carbide reduces the dependence on 3rd party contractors or internal IT staff to make substantial changes to the content structure of the Web site - saving both time and money. For instance, dedicating a full-time staff member to the management and maintenance of the Web site would likely cost in excess of $50,000 to $60,000 per year in salary and benefits for a mid-level Webmaster. In contrast, a complete Carbide site starts at a far lower price - saving an organization thousands of dollars per year.