“Cost of Maintaining Your Custom CMS”

I don't have much to add to what you've said. That was a very good recap of most of the issues that a company should consider before building their own CMS (or any other application). I especially like the reminder that these issues were decided years ago, when big-iron went (mostly) the way of the dinosaur.

The one issue you didn't touch on (at least, that I've thought of since reading it) is the cost of maintaining the software in the long run. Things like:

• training new employees, who can't possibly have experience with your all-custom solution
• supporting existing employees
• fixing bugs
• adding the features that will be needed in a month, or six months, or a year

Of course, those costs are more hidden, and less likely to be included in a cost-benefits analysis before the project is approved (and the problem is worse when it's the IT department that does the analysis, especially if the IT department WANTS to write it... their numbers will be skewed)

Seth