[Zope-CMF] ZVMF vs. MSCMS

Thomas Olsen tol@tanghus.dk
Fri, 31 Aug 2001 11:25:14 +0200


Just for the fun of it - and because MSCMS is probably going to be the 
closest competitor - heres the the feature list from the horses mouth:

http://www.microsoft.com/cmserver/evaluation/features.htm

(sorry for the long post - maybe we should have a ZCMF-talk@zope.org :-)

1) In-Context Authoring Templates
Allow content contributors to build and contribute richly formatted content 
in easy-to-use templates without leaving the Web site.

check. but the "richly formatted" is still in the works I guess

2) Real-Time Content Updates
Enable content contributors to publish content directly onto development, 
staging or live production Web servers.

check - although I've never tried Zopes versioning feature.

3) Revision Tracking and Page Archiving
As pages are updated, existing versions are automatically archived. Users can 
easily compare changes of previous work with existing pages.

I think the undo mechanism is great but it's not quite the same.

4) Flexible Workflow
Multiple levels of approval ensure that content is always reviewed and 
approved before it goes live on the Web site.

check

5) Content Scheduling
Using automated scheduling tools, users can schedule content publication and 
archival times.

check

6) Extensible Object Properties
Create custom meta-data properties on content objects and allow users to 
profile content as it is being created.

check

7) Dynamic Server Clustering
Intelligent caching enables clustering of dynamic content servers. This 
enables load balanced environments that provide site scalability and server 
failover.

check - ZEO

8) Object Caching
Caching of content objects in RAM and on the disk ensure that dynamic page 
assembly and serving is fast.

check - tho I never played with customizing it?

10) SMP Support
Support for multiple CPUs on Windows 2000 Advanced Server and Windows® 2000 
DataCenter Server ensures handling of high serving loads that are common with 
enterprise Web sites.

Whats that got to do with the CM(x)? Guess its more of an OS question.

11) Dynamic Page Assembly
Content objects and templates are assembled as pages are requested from the 
Web server.

check - they really need to write down everything. Could just as well write 
"accessable thru the web" or something just as obvious ;-)

12) Presentation Templates
Site design and layout are controlled by presentation templates, allowing for 
quick and cost-effective site redesigns.

check!!!

13) Dynamic Template Switching
Using the Publishing API, presentation templates can be switched on the fly, 
changing the layout or design of the page in real-time.

check. Guess ZCMF does it even better as it provides personalization by skins.

14) Separation of Content from Format
Content is stored and managed separately from its associated presentation 
templates.

check   (see 11 :-)

15) Object-Based Content Repository
Content is stored in Microsoft SQL ServerTM 2000 as re-usable objects.

check

16) Connected Content Pages
Allows content to easily be published through multiple presentation templates 
to multiple locations or Web sites.

check

17) UNICODE Support
Support for multi-byte character sets means sites can be built in any of the 
world's major languages.

Guess this is supported? Input?

18) Language-Specific Content Targeting
Allow content contributors to target localized content objects to specific 
users based on individual language preferences.

Whats the status on this?


19) Multilingual Site Support
Support for multiple languages within single Web sites.

see 18

20) Quick Installation
Content Management Server installs easily through simple installation wizards.

well - I prefer tar balls :-) 

21) Sample Templates and Web Sites
Sample templates, Web sites, and customization code are all included in the 
box.

check

22) Flexible COM API
Developers can build powerful content management applications and share 
content with other systems using the flexible Publishing API.

dont mention COM but sharing with other system should be straight forward 
with syndication services or xml-rpc or similar.

23) Template and Resource Galleries
Templates and Web site resources are managed centrally on the server through 
Template Galleries and Resource Galleries to ensure centralized control over 
corporate publishing and design standards.

check: Portal tools

24) Dynamic Site MapSite map and navigation are generated automatically as 
pages are published to the site.

guess this would be a 15 min. job...

25) Site Deployment Manager
Allows site administrators to easily move content and Web sites between 
servers.

check: import/export

.NET Suite Integration
Out-of-the-box integrations with Windows 2000 Advanced Server, Microsoft SQL 
ServerTM 2000, Microsoft Commerce Server 2000, and FrontPage® 2000.

guess some would find this valuable ...

26) Windows Active Directory Services (ADS)
Use existing ADS and NT Domain directory services for security.

check:  LoginManager etc (don't know about ADS - does anybody use it at all?)

27) XML
Templates that publish content in XML format can easily be built.

check


Conclusion: All in all I think ZCMF is pretty nice in the lead technology 
wise. What the management types miss is simply the shrinkwrap and an 
all-in-one package...
-- 
Regards
	Thomas Olsen