Content oriented

Content models

2009-06-06T02:54:00.000-07:00

The jump form CI (Computational Intelligence) to Genetic Programming (GP), for an Information Architect, is somewhat exciting. Starting from the first steps till some intricacies of sieve building. When I approached it the assertion that among Living things a wrong if clause is an opportunity and not an error made me even more intrigued. So, even if not a geneticist, I've continued to follow mostly the theoretical side as a great source of inspiration for new content representational structures.
In this case I'm presenting here, and interesting set of consideration about data structures: hyper graphs. A serious study of content representations must consider not only the straight connections but functors and modifiers as well. In such a view the traditional graph representation (coming form the old semantic networks) introduced by topics (or tags) is somewhat static in its node to node jumps. See here. The soundness of the connection between biology and content analysis maybe traced back to Hegel and before English natural historians and scientists. For a study on the relation nature/culture in Hegel see here and here.

Definitions first

2008-11-19T16:18:00.000-08:00

It could be considered a triviality to call a Content Management Systema (CMS) a Content Orient CMS. However the reasons for this are easy to resume.

If we go back since the birth (2000/2001) of CMSs and this is more clear if we consider CMS Frameworks from open source (the ones which dominate now in the low end segment of the market) it is quite clear that CMS have been conceived as sort of panels organized to form a grid of predefined content sources. The most evident of those cases is the templating system. A template is quite restrictive on the content producer side. It requires content to be in some ways serialized unless one edits the template, in such case other and more serious problem arises like the CMS compatibility along the successive releases or the, mostly unwanted, need for programming skills.

A quite different path could be devised getting back to the concept of Context from John McCarthy (lisp's father among other things). I have taken this path.

But back to definitions COMS could be used to name a Content Oriented Management System as opposed/related to CMS.

The same for a Context I will identify a set of items belonging to the same Context, however organized (I will get on this soon).

Manifesto. For a new breed of content management systems

2008-11-13T01:06:00.000-08:00

I started working on the Idea of CMS long time ago (1998). In the last years I have build highly personalized CMS for Publishing, Elearning/Education and b2b.

My aim here is to analyze and propose new forms of CMS more content oriented rather than structure oriented. The main idea, to put it plainly, is that to publish content you need to use content itself to mold the structure of the data underling a site or a service.

By the way I will analyze some "content user segments" (CUS) that more need such an "expressive power growth".

Theoretically there are several formal tools ready to use. From Concept Algebras, Bayesian (and non) content analysis and Semantic Web RDF Logic.

In practical terms I will focus mostly on a set of small niche needs as:

conferences and event announcement and management.
photographers and art galleries online presence.
courses and education management.
news based content publishing.
small publisher intranet/extranet tools and services.

One of the main problems arising in a CMS adoption by literate content producers is the counter intuitive CMS workflow. That is one of the causes of the steep leaning curve CMSs have.