Atex plans to introduce its new cloud-based content management solution, Content Hub, later this quarter. Content Hub will be able to connect to both Atex and non-Atex editorial systems and will deliver content across mobile, tablet, and desktop platforms.

Open Source Matters, Inc.'s content management system, Joomla!, has been updated to include multi-database support with the addition of Microsoft SQL Server. Joomla! 2.5 also includes new features such as advanced search and automatic notification of Joomla! core and extension updates.

SDL, PLC released SDL Studio GroupShare, a collaboration hub that integrates with SDL's Trados Studio and is designed to improve productivity and collaboration. Studio GroupShare enables users to engage with consumers in the language preferred by individual customers.

Innovative Interfaces, Inc. updated its Content Pro digital asset management solution, which allows libraries to create, manage, and share digital collections online. Content Pro 2.1 includes a revamped interface and design, slideshow and carousel viewer features, and a desktop app.

Atex released a new browser-based content management system. The Atex Content system is designed to help media companies manage their workflow and is available for any device with a web browser and the Atex plug-in installed.

Good web content management (WCM) has long been an important element in the struggle to execute successful content strategies and marketing campaigns. The ability to author digital content for a worldwide audience, across a variety of platforms, has become integral to maintaining a competitive edge, which is why the design of WCM systems within the marketing industry deserves a second look.

Before 2007, the word "kindle" simply meant to light on fire. Since Amazon's release of its Kindle e-reader in November of that year, the product has ignited the emedia market. A new report from InfoTrends, "Reading E-Media: The End User Perspective," addresses the growing markets of e-readers and multipurpose devices such as iPads by questioning consumers about their user experiences with these devices.

One of the biggest problems with advanced software isn't with the technology at all - it's the human element. As systems and services become more complex, they also become harder to use and harder to customize. An agile software platform becomes considerably less agile when every tweak, upgrade, and change requires the intervention of the IT department or other specialized technical professionals. CoreMedia is looking to solve this common conundrum for those in the content management sphere with its CoreMedia 6 content management platform and the new CoreMedia Studio feature, released on Jan. 26.

For many companies, standalone email is no longer adequate for workplace communication. As workers grow accustomed to using more real-time social tools in their personal lives, companies are turning to technology providers like Saba to help transform the workplace. The company says it will officially announce the newest version of its social media tool, Saba Live, now with connectors to Microsoft SharePoint and Outlook later this week.

The volumes of information now at the fingertips of companies and enterprises present unique challenges, not only in terms of understanding but also preservation, indexing, and security. One of the companies helping the enterprise meet these challenges is MarkLogic. The company has apparently had a very productive year so far, with its number of customers now topping 200. And with the 4.2 release of their MarkLogic Server platform on October 19, the company is showing that it hasn't forgotten about the fundamentals.

Whether you're a traditional publisher with corporate money at your disposal or a fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants blogger, you should already have a solid strategy in place that guides the content you offer on your website. For most publishers, no matter their size, that strategy involves the kind of content that your site visitors read. Attention-grabbing headlines and search engine optimization (SEO) are no doubt at the top of your priority list, but with the popularity of websites such as YouTube, easy-to-use digital video equipment, and computer monitors that can double as television screens, content providers are beginning to recognize the importance and value of having an online video content strategy as well. It's becoming increasingly necessary to appeal to site visitors who want to view, not just read, your content.

When considering the future of web content management (WCM), it is perhaps helpful to remember that the technology is designed to systemize and automate that which has long been practiced by retailers and expected by consumers in the real world. Just as a shopper who enters a sporting goods store and asks for help finding a fishing rod might beat a hasty retreat if the clerk brings back a soccer ball, visitors to websites expect to be listened to and to receive personalized service. When you figure that an online shopper is not a car drive away from another store but rather just a few quick keyboard strokes away from another website, the pressure to get WCM right mounts exponentially.

Meet the five new fundamentals of the information experience. Whether it's on a desktop monitor or a tiny mobile screen, ‘information experience' is the moment when the user experience and information-intensive applications meet. Over the past few years, as the volume of structured and unstructured data within organizations has exploded and the channels on which that information is consumed has diversified, content consumers have been revising their expectations for what qualifies as an acceptable information experience.

Discovery has never been a simple process for organizations, even in the "old days" when discovery generally entailed gathering piles of documents into large boxes and wading through them by hand. Information long ago evolved from print documents to electronic formats, which has created challenges and opportunities.

Content migration can mean many different things to different organizations. Yet regardless of the origin of the content and where it's moving from and to, there's no disputing the fact that most organizations have a lot of content. And as their business plans and processes evolve, a migration of that content into a new system is often a necessity.

When I think of digital publishing over the next year and beyond, I see three trends dominating the landscape: mobility, ubiquity, and touchability. User-generated content (UGC), social sharing, and social advertising are replacing the old-world concepts of traditional advertising. Your technology (today or tomorrow) should be able to support this paradigm shift.

You probably feel you have a good sense of the assets of your organization. You know how many employees you have because they are all in an HR database. You know the sales you made last month because they are all in a sales ledger database. You know how many items you have in stock because they are all in an ERP database. You know how many computers you have because they are all in an asset database. And at the end of the year, all these databases will be queried to produce the annual accounts.

You may have heard about WEM. W and M stand for "web" and "management," respectively, while E refers to "engagement" or "experience," depending on who's talking. Many WCM (web content management) folks love the new acronym and declare WEM to be the next WCM.Vendors are especially excited that Product X is no longer a WCM offering but a WEM suite now. But you should be forewarned that in the quest for improving presentation management, vendors are soft-pedaling many core CMS concepts that haven't really seen a lot of innovation in recent times. This, too, could impact your website visitor experience.

There is no standard IT definition of "cloud"-the National Institute of Standards and Technology is working on that as I write. Still, there is no question that we're entering a new age of cloud computing. The benefits of cloud storage and computing are many: e.g., lower cost than in-house storage, reduced stress on internal IT resources, efficiency, and guaranteed availability. Just like a sudden change in the weather, cloud storage and computing will be disruptive. It is one thing, however, to trust your MP3 files to a consumer cloud service. It is quite another to entrust your whole business information architecture.

Back in 1896, an employee of the Missouri, Kansas, and Texas Railway noticed that everyone is drawn to a train wreck. So, for a publicity stunt, the railroad staged a head-on collision between two locomotives, both going at 45 mph. When the locomotives collided, the boilers exploded, killing several people and injuring many. The crowd had been assured that engineers were consulted and an explosion wasn't possible. The inability of experts to sufficiently imagine something outside their realm of direct experience contributed to major catastrophe. No one questioned the basic assumptions or thought to ask, "But what if the unthinkable does happen?"