Nesta CMS

Nesta is a lightweight content management system and static site generator for content sites and blogs. It is written in Ruby on the Sinatra web framework. Instead of a database, content lives in text files on your disk, which you write in Markdown or Textile in your own editor, dropping into HTML or Haml when you need more control. It suits developers who prefer file-based workflows and version control for a personal site or blog.

Publishing means putting the files online, and the README recommends Git but does not require it. You can deploy Nesta either as a static site generated ahead of time or by rendering HTML on the server. Setup is a RubyGems install followed by a command that scaffolds a new site, with a config file for options and a local development server. Content goes in a pages folder and a build command produces the static version.

Nesta is licensed under MIT and has documentation on its site covering creating content and deployment. It is a self-hosted tool; there is no hosted service built into the project.