Content Management Solutions for Collaborative International Projects

1. Content Management Solutions for Collaborative International Projects InterLab 2007 October 1-3 • Karl Horak, PhD • Deborah Haycraft • Cooperative International Programs • Sandia National Laboratories SAND Number: 2007-5929C

2. Cooperative International Programs • Technical collaborations that enhance national, regional, and global security • Involve a wide range of activities with our USG sponsors, other national labs, and international partners

3. Requires Advanced Internet Infrastructure Critical need is for Internet access to shared resources and information Increasing: • Growth of international projects • Pace of website construction • Sophistication of functional requirements

4. Typical Use-Case • Engage regional partners • Develop concepts, tools, and joint solutions • Encourage sustainable collaboration • Project infrastructure turned over to partners Requires: • Non–export controlled technologies • Platform independence • Low cost

5. Mindmaps of Potential Solutions Buzzwords or differentiating capabilities?

6. Our Solution: CMS A content management framework: • Increases active participation by our partners • Reduces implementation costs • Dramatically accelerates site deployment • Relieves our customers of the "tyranny of the webmaster"

7. Key Requirements • Non–export controlled • Platform independence • Full-featured internationalization for foreign language support • Fine-grained security model • Low cost • Easily customizable workflows • Broad standards compliance • Flexibility and extensibility • Strong through-the-web development model i18N $ $ $ $

8. Plone • Open-source • Python-based • Windows-UNIX-Mac • Through-the-web control of content • Fine-grained security • Role-based workflow • Out-of-the-box functionality • Highly customizable • Runs behind SNL firewalls, web servers

9. Out-of-the-box with minimal customizations

10. With some customizations

11. Highly customized

12. Directly Extensible through UML State diagram Custom forms and workflow Class diagram

13. Information Sharing within Groups • CMS forms a platform to deliver content • Integrates information for decision support and policy analysis • Replaces “the tyranny of the webmaster” • Self-maintaining information owners • Comprises a differentiating capability that augments: • E-mail • File sharing systems • Provides content that is: • User-supplied • Self-aggregating • Self-updating • Integrates with and augments conferencing tools like WebEx and Centra

14. Lessons Learned • Out-of-the-box feature set is very attractive • Calendar, file sharing, thru-the-web editing, automatic content indexing, automatic site map • Reduces e-mail blight, problems with version control, and configuration management headaches • Fine-grained security model and workflow control • Plone 3.0 has six built-in workflow configurations to choose from • Benefits outweigh costs • Open source • Scalable • Highly extensible • Python and ArchGenXML give developers rapid productivity • Life-cycle maintenance costs are low

15. Barriers • Fairly steep learning curve • Training needed for administrators & developers • Short orientation needed for content owners • Site visitors usually find the interface intuitive • Some hesitancy in use • New and different, strange and unfamiliar in some ways • Sometimes too much for “Connected but hassled” users* Successful result is a strong community of shared interest * http://www.pewinternet.org/pdfs/PIP_ICT_Typology.pdf

16. Benefits • Very rapid deployment • Days instead of weeks or months • Strong separation of content, format, and function • XML • CSS • Object-Oriented Database

17. Key Question Can it be integrated within your IT environment? • Trivial Windows installation creates a localhost testbed • Willingness to leave the LAMP* comfort zone • Resources • Involve yourself in the Plone online community • Commercial training and consulting resources available • NM Plone Users Group * Linux, Apache, MySQL, Perl

18. Conclusions • Requirements-driven process leads to sound tools • Platform independence • i18N capabilities • Fine-grain security • Customizable workflows • Low life-cycle costs • Standards compliant • Flexible and extensible • Through-the-web development • Content Management Framework using Plone • Open-source (Plone Foundation) • Mature (current stable release is 3.0) • UML modeling of custom content • Allows timely and cost-effective delivery of complex online functionality

19. Additional slides follow for discussion of various case studies, if time permits.

20. Examples • LDRD Day Symposium Website • Warhead Safety & Security Exchange Portal • Emergency Management Inventory Website • Training Course on Cooperative Monitoring Portal • Anti-Neutrino Detection System Website • Tamper-Indicating Devices Portal • NNSA ITC Online Training Database Portal • Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement Working Group • DP January 07 Process Portal • NA-42 Strategic Vision Statement Working Group Portal • DP National Work Breakdown Structure Portal

21. Northeast Asia Examples • Quantitative Proliferation Resistance Methodologies for Reprocessing Scenarios Portal • Material Accountancy Process Monitoring Portal • East Asia Forum

22. Middle East Applications • International Water Portal (https://waterportal.sandia.gov) • Web Access for Civil Society Improvements (http://wacsi.unm.edu) • Annual Middle East Symposium intranet