Easy content updates

Macromedia has released a Contribute 3, which allows users to browse to Web pages, as with a browser, then with a click on an edit button and make changes to the current page as if editing a word processing document, reports Post-gazette..

Contribute`s structure allows the manager to decide who can publish directly, who can edit and send the page for review before publishing, and who can`t publish at all. This provides a control mechanism for companies who want to update pages, either by using external contractors or novices within the organisation, while maintaining absolute control over what gets seen by the public.

Page updates are immediately available and the user doesn`t have to learn how to edit html or how to upload files. The process is done automatically and placed into the proper spot online.

New features in Contribute 3 include the ability to add and directly edit graphics on the page, and the ability to insert video files. Mac users also can insert QuickTime Movies.

Sybase and FatWire Software have announced the availability of a joint solution intended to increase the speed and effectiveness of building and deploying mobile content applications, according to Strategiy.

The integrated solution combines FatWire`s content management technology with the Sybase Adaptive Server Enterprise and Unwired Accelerator products to help organisations create, manage and deploy mobile content.

The combined technologies enable business users to have mobile access to content management functionality from PDAs and mobile phones. Allowing these users to access content and contribute to Web applications while remote and not connected to the corporate network reduces dependencies on IT and programmer bottlenecks.

This makes it faster to deploy Web applications and helps ensure the accuracy, consistency, and timeliness of content across multiple Web-based solutions, the article says.

"The combination of Sybase Unwired Accelerator and FatWire`s content management suite empowers business users to own their Web applications with minimal impact on IT," says Tony Achkar, sales director, Middle East for Sybase.

Content management systems (CMSs) are proliferating within organisations, and the upshot is inflated costs, reduced benefits, and distinct information silos across the customer experience, according to a free research brief by the Patricia Seybold Group reports Tekrati.

The analysts find that instead of using one enterprise content management systems, typical deployments involve a separate CMS for each key application area, such as customer portals, ecommerce systems, marketing automation systems and self-service customer support systems, or, no CMS at all.

The Seybold analysts describe four major obstacles blocking broad uptake of enterprise content management systems: high prices, excess functionality, complexity and dated product perception.