Should we build our next generation web application on the DotNetNuke platform?

Question

We are currently considering using DotNetNuke as a base for our future portal-based and client-customizable web application that is going to be hosted centrally. The idea is

Answer 1

I don't have experience with Dot Net Nuke but I looked at the source code and considered using a number of "content management systems" as the basis of a web application.

The problem with this approach is that such systems almost always have an architecture that makes doing exactly what you want quite painful. Commercial class libraries are designed primarily to be reused (by professional at companies) and they can have their problems. Content management system not even designed to have their code reused, even if people sometimes try to do so. It is easy to find a seemly simple element (as a made up example, say, a string showing the count of the number of files) is defined and put on the page in a very surprising way. This makes modifying or removing simple elements difficult - if you can find out how the element are put on the page at all! Remember, also, with these applications, you are also somewhat dependent on the updating and bug-fixing of the collective that put the thing together. Uh, and also because these things are common, they are more likely to be subject to a common exploit (like phpBB often is).

I haven't looked at Drupal. It is more modern and more often used as the basis of a generic web portal. But I would still be skeptical about using it as the basis of something I was heavily customizing.

Unless you expect to not do a lot of modification to the initial DNN architecture, I would shy away from doing things the way you propose.