Month: January 2009

Documentum’s High Volume Server, 6.5sp1 Edition

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One of the highlights of the D6.5 release was the new features around enabling high volumes of content in the repository.  There are two standard problems around storing lots and lots of content in an ECM system.

  1. Every object in an ECM system has overhead.  In Documentum, it is takes 2-3K in database storage per object.  That can add up quick.  Just think of the emails in your organization or the images that a financial institution might generate from scanned documents.
  2. The very act of adding content into the Content Server takes several round trips to the database.  Is this a valid ACL to assign?  Does the containing folder exist?  Those are just two of the questions asked during the process.

After learning about these features in more detail, in discussions with Victor (See a recording of his presentation on the Developer Network) and Ed, at EMC World 2008, I started making plans to use it on one of my projects.  I later learned that there is a catch.  Before we get to the catch, let’s review the highlights.

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AIIM’s iECM Committee, Validating CMIS

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As you may have heard, I’ve been a member of AIIM’s iECM committee for over a year.  I’ve been more of a lurker as I was a little nonplused at the efforts of the committee, but I stayed with it to learn more about their efforts in detail and hoping to one day be able to help in a substantive way.

Well, that day has arrived.  We are taking on the creation of a prototype, CMIS-based, system to store the presentation from the 2009 AIIM Expo.  The basic premise is to have one or more CMIS back-end systems storing content with a central interface that would provide content, seamlessly, to users.  Rather than explain the details, I’m publishing the “official” write-up.

Before you dive in, if you are a vendor with a CMIS implementation, we want to speak to you.  You can contact me or the people listed below.

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Vignette is Losing at Musical Chairs

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So I was just casually heading over to look at an older Big Men on Content post when I saw their latest.  It seems that Interwoven was purchased today by Autonomy.  Uh, WOW!  Okay, maybe a bit of an over-reaction, but with Vignette in a death spiral, what is next for them?

Before we get to Vignette, lets look at the news itself.

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Review: Reshaping Your Business with Web 2.0

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Billy_book

Reshaping Your Business with Web 2.0

Vince Casarez, Billy Cripe, Jean Sini, and Philipp Weckerle

I have to say that I was pretty excited when Billy Cripe asked me to review his new book.  I’ve been a big fan of his blog for a while now and I have enjoyed his writing on the topic of Enterprise 2.0 and Web 2.0.  I haven’t always agreed with him, but the dialog has always been engaging and enlightening.  I had very high expectations for the book.

I want to start by saying that I did find the book quite useful and informative.  I’m not sure it could be called definitive on the topic, but it was an enjoyable read and provides a solid insight into both the why and how of implementing Web 2.0 technologies in the enterprise.  If you are looking to implement Enterprise 2.0 initiatives, this book will help you understand the various challenges and provide ideas on how to overcome them.

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Tony Byrne Visits the Web Content Mavens

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Happy New Year Everyone!  It has been a while since my last post.  Things have been returning to normal and I took some time off during the holiday season to hang out with my wife and boys.  Upon returning to work, there was the normal small post-holiday backlog accompanied by the chaos that is the Presidential Inauguration.  I understand that it is an important event in American history, but the loss in productivity for what is essentially Obama’s first day of work is staggering.

Maybe I should request a parade on my first day of work the next time I decide to start interviewing for a job.

In the midst of all this, on Wednesday evening I had quite an enjoyable evening at the monthly Web Content Mavens event here in DC.  It was, as always, a fun time talking to various people about their challenges implementing WCM and ECM systems.  I even ran into a few Documentum people.  The highlight of the night was listening to, and talking with, Tony Byrne, founder of CMS Watch.

I like Tony, and not just because he has bought me a beverage or two in the past.  Tony doesn’t mince words.  He tells his honest opinion in his drive to educate people on the world of ECM.  Previously, he had spoken to the Mavens on Social Media, but tonight was focused on the Web Content Management (WCM) marketplace as it stands right now.

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