UCM search is probably the most fundamental part of the product yet it has barely changed since inception. Here are some tips & tricks for finding what you want.
Sunday, 29 December 2013
Monday, 19 August 2013
PS7 - New ADF Interface for Stellent
The 11.1.1.8.0 release of WebCenter Content includes a new alternative interface for Content Server. It is driven by ADF and requires it's own instance of WebLogic. It includes enhancements to search (so it requires OracleTextsearch,) it now organises content using "libraries" and folders (so it needs FrameworkFolders and ACL security) and it features inline previews of documents (so it needs DynamicConverter.) Looks to be targeted at simple users - there are no admin functions exposed.
Installation is a little complex, see the instructions.
Here is the new interface user guide.
Here is a handy video that demonstrates the interface and its features.
So where is this all going? It looks like Oracle are getting serious about the integration of Stellent into WebCenter, which would ultimately mean the retirement of IdocScript in preference for ADF & JDeveloper. It's been a while coming, but here it comes.
Speaking of integration, there's also a WebCenter Sites integration component that now comes standard, a content duplicator that looks a lot like the demo created by uh, someone like fishbowl (I forget who.)
Here is the SitesIntegration guide.
*** UPDATE ***
OMG THERE ARE NO VISIBLE CONTENT IDs? Instead the three non-customisable search result templates only display the filename and the title (which is usually just the filename.) #facepalm
Installation is a little complex, see the instructions.
Here is the new interface user guide.
Here is a handy video that demonstrates the interface and its features.
So where is this all going? It looks like Oracle are getting serious about the integration of Stellent into WebCenter, which would ultimately mean the retirement of IdocScript in preference for ADF & JDeveloper. It's been a while coming, but here it comes.
Speaking of integration, there's also a WebCenter Sites integration component that now comes standard, a content duplicator that looks a lot like the demo created by uh, someone like fishbowl (I forget who.)
Here is the SitesIntegration guide.
*** UPDATE ***
OMG THERE ARE NO VISIBLE CONTENT IDs? Instead the three non-customisable search result templates only display the filename and the title (which is usually just the filename.) #facepalm
Monday, 27 May 2013
Digital Asset Management (DAM) Best Practice
I haven't noticed any articles discussing Digital Asset Management (DAM) best practice so I thought I'd offer my own insights...
Tuesday, 2 April 2013
WebCenter 11g PS6 is out - finally fixes firefox!
WebCenter 11g PS6 is out today. (By today I mean April 2 in Australia, but oddly it is April Fool's Day elsewhere. I hope those Oracle guys don't have a sense of humour!)
The important bit is the fix in SiteStudio 809 that allows Contribution Mode to work in Firefox 13 and up. I'm also happy to report the SiteStudio Manager panel works too in the latest Firefox.
But that's about it. Just a couple of other minor bugfixes.
If you're still on 10g you can use this latest SiteStudio 11g, just switch to using Java 1.6 in your intradoc.cfg file.
In Content Server, there is one new feature I'll mention, the internet-style search syntax for metadata fields. (I think it's already available in the QuickSearch but it can now be used on any metadata field.)
Spaces are treated as AND, commas as OR, minus as NOT, quotes as exact. They can be combined with parentheses.
The important bit is the fix in SiteStudio 809 that allows Contribution Mode to work in Firefox 13 and up. I'm also happy to report the SiteStudio Manager panel works too in the latest Firefox.
But that's about it. Just a couple of other minor bugfixes.
If you're still on 10g you can use this latest SiteStudio 11g, just switch to using Java 1.6 in your intradoc.cfg file.
In Content Server, there is one new feature I'll mention, the internet-style search syntax for metadata fields. (I think it's already available in the QuickSearch but it can now be used on any metadata field.)
DoMetaInternetSearch=true
Spaces are treated as AND, commas as OR, minus as NOT, quotes as exact. They can be combined with parentheses.
Thursday, 21 March 2013
End of an era?
I'm late, but welcome to 2013.
Staring last year and continuing up to now, the trend is for new technologies or their iterations to be feature-reduced. 2012 was a year of consolidation, where vendors reshaped their offerings to suit themselves. It was about monetising, protecting IP, repositioning, outmanoeuvring the competition. Some noteworthy examples include the iOS6 maps debacle, Twitter's API trimming, the float of Facebook, the ubiquitous rise of the cloud. It was a reversal of the previous golden years of consumer-driven innovation, or perhaps it was simply an exhaustion of useful new ideas. It seems Web 2.0 had fully run its course and the new wave is yet to form.
It is in this context where Oracle seems to have ended development of WebCenter Content. 11g was about its consolidation & integration into the Middleware stack. SiteStudio offered no new features, just maturity. Social media enhancements, such as the whispered Folksonomy component, were abandoned. Apart from the long-anticipated replacement to Folders and of SSXA (both designed for better interoperability with other systems) it seems the Stellent foundation product is parked in the cul-de-sac of software development.
(Well that's why I'm running out of ideas for blog articles!)
With Oracle 12c on the horizon the rumour mill suggests that SiteStudio will be dropped altogether. The strategy seems to have been to reduce the product back to a content repository for a larger suite of Oracle products, shifting preference for websites to the newly-acquired WebCenter Sites. And in the context of the technological consolidation I discussed earlier I would expect some sort of dependency or integration with Oracle cloud would take precedence over any shiny new features.
I assume this is driven by marketing and of sales of product licenses, perhaps it is unfair for me to speculate so cynically. But it affects my job. I'm faced with the choice of just supporting legacy clients or to invest new expertise in WebCenter Sites (or non-Oracle alternatives.) And frankly I'm not happy about the choice. But this is all speculative until WebCenter 12c is released.
What do you see as the future of the Stellent product?
UPDATE:
This article explores the collapse of consumer-innovation in software development from a different angle:
http://thebaffler.com/past/the_meme_hustler
Staring last year and continuing up to now, the trend is for new technologies or their iterations to be feature-reduced. 2012 was a year of consolidation, where vendors reshaped their offerings to suit themselves. It was about monetising, protecting IP, repositioning, outmanoeuvring the competition. Some noteworthy examples include the iOS6 maps debacle, Twitter's API trimming, the float of Facebook, the ubiquitous rise of the cloud. It was a reversal of the previous golden years of consumer-driven innovation, or perhaps it was simply an exhaustion of useful new ideas. It seems Web 2.0 had fully run its course and the new wave is yet to form.
It is in this context where Oracle seems to have ended development of WebCenter Content. 11g was about its consolidation & integration into the Middleware stack. SiteStudio offered no new features, just maturity. Social media enhancements, such as the whispered Folksonomy component, were abandoned. Apart from the long-anticipated replacement to Folders and of SSXA (both designed for better interoperability with other systems) it seems the Stellent foundation product is parked in the cul-de-sac of software development.
(Well that's why I'm running out of ideas for blog articles!)
With Oracle 12c on the horizon the rumour mill suggests that SiteStudio will be dropped altogether. The strategy seems to have been to reduce the product back to a content repository for a larger suite of Oracle products, shifting preference for websites to the newly-acquired WebCenter Sites. And in the context of the technological consolidation I discussed earlier I would expect some sort of dependency or integration with Oracle cloud would take precedence over any shiny new features.
I assume this is driven by marketing and of sales of product licenses, perhaps it is unfair for me to speculate so cynically. But it affects my job. I'm faced with the choice of just supporting legacy clients or to invest new expertise in WebCenter Sites (or non-Oracle alternatives.) And frankly I'm not happy about the choice. But this is all speculative until WebCenter 12c is released.
What do you see as the future of the Stellent product?
UPDATE:
This article explores the collapse of consumer-innovation in software development from a different angle:
http://thebaffler.com/past/the_meme_hustler
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