IBM Updates Web Content Manager
April 5, 2011 Alex Woodie
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IBM last week launched a new version of Web Content Manager, an IBM i-supported server solution designed to allow non-technical users to create, publish, and update content for websites and portals, without the help of IT experts. IBM says the version 7 release of the software (which formerly went by the name Lotus Web Content Manager) is easier to use and creates more compelling websites than before. Web Content Manager is designed to assist with all aspects of website creation and management, including both static and dynamic websites. For authors, it provides templates for getting basic websites, including wikis and blogs, up and running within minutes. Users access these tools from a Web browser, simplifying training. No HTML knowledge is needed to create web pages when they use the EditLive! rich-text editor that IBM partnered with Ephox to bring to the product with version 6.1, which was launched two years ago. The software gives users the capability to create and centrally manage multiple related websites by using site libraries. This is an advantage for global companies that need to have versions of websites in multiple languages. The software also includes a customizable workflow model for managing the content lifecycle; supports Web-based Distributed Authoring and Versioning (WebDAV) and WebDAV-supported development tools like Dreamweaver; and uses cascading style sheets (CSS). Additional features, like support for website personalization, search capabilities, and integration with existing enterprise content management (ECM) repositories such as IBM’s FileNet, make the software relevant in an enterprise setting. With version 7, IBM has made several changes designed to foster easier and faster website creation, including user interface improvements, new website templates, and authoring forms. IBM has added support for tagging and ratings, which will give websites more of an interactive Facebook-like flair. The software for creating blogs and wikis has also been enhanced, IBM says. IBM also enhanced Web Content Management’s website analytics, which are used for analyzing the behavior of website visitors. IBM says the enhancements will help users optimize their websites, and get the most out of their sales campaigns by improving conversion rates. Version 7 (the software was once called Workplace Web Content Management) also includes support for virtualization, which will allow customers to run Web Content Manager on its own dedicated server instance. Web Content Manager runs alongside WebSphere Application Server. IBM supports the software on a range of servers, including IBM i, Unix, Windows, and Linux. The software comes with the Cloudscape database, but optionally can support a relational database, including DB2/400, DB2 LUW, DB2 for z/OS, SQL Server, and the Oracle database. For more information, see IBM United States Software Announcement 211-094. RELATED STORY Lotus Web Content Tool Gets Easy-to-Use HTML Editor
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