Thoughts Behind the Cascade Server WCM Connector Strategy
Friday, October 30th, 2009 at 3:00pm -- Morgan Griffith
We often field questions from Cascade Server users on our product roadmap and strategy. With the release of Cascade Server 6.4, we've recently introduced a new product strategy by way of Connectors, and we wanted to share some insights on why we chose this direction for our web content management system.
Our company, and particularly our development team, places client feedback near the top of the totem pole when prioritizing each new release. As a result of soliciting this feedback over the last few years, we're keenly aware of Cascade Server's strength as the center of organizational web ecosystems. That said, we're also aware that our clients appreciate that we don't try to make Cascade a system that's everything to everyone. Rather than reinvent the wheel, in Connectors we've implemented a strategy that allows Cascade to remain the web "hub," for organizations, while fluidly incorporating "best of breed" 3rd party systems.
Connectors allow Cascade Server to tie into other applications, many of which are already in use by our client organizations. For example, many of our clients use WordPress for blogging. Instead of developing our own blog module, we opted to introduce a WordPress Connector to the system that allows organizations to manage blog content from inside the CMS and to publish it directly to WordPress. Likewise, our Twitter Connector allows organizations to automatically tweet newly published content to Twitter without any user intervention.
It's our feeling that we're maximizing Cascade's potential by further developing the web content management side of the system, while ensuring the product stays relevant to our user-base by tying in technologies they already use. Furthermore, the Connectors strategy requires our developers build functionality with not just one specific Connector in mind, but with a system architecture that ensures the potential for scalability and expansion in the future. Currently, we're in the process of shaping future Connectors, including one for Google Analytics. We would love to get your feedback and thoughts on additional Connectors to incorporate into the system in the future. If you'd like to share your thoughts, please don't hesitate to visit our Cascade Server Idea Exchange.
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