Mare Nostrum

Comments...awaaaaay!

Guilt has been gnawing at me, ever since I started a blog in which you cannot add comments. Now, I've fixed that problem.

Use case forums

Here's a logical trail to follow:

• We've been answering a lot of questions about use cases with our technology. That's the main reason for the white papers and videos I've been publishing.
• However, the number of use cases is always going to be larger than our current set of support materials.
• Therefore, we need to provide a way for customers and partners to ask questions about use cases, rather than waiting for us to publish white papers, demos, and the like.

Our solution: The forums here on developer.xythos.com now have a section dedicated to use cases. We've already had our first questions posted, less than a day after we started the forums. We're glad to answer your questions, too.

Straight through the browser

We just published a new project, a web UI plug-in that lets you drag and drop files through the browser. The plug-in is fairly simple Java applet. It's beta quality code, so post any issues or questions you have in the discussion thread for this project.

Why is this project significant?

• It's another way for Macintosh users to get content into the Xythos server. We don't yet have a Macintosh version of the Xythos Drive, but many Mac users just want a way to drag and drop files into the server, without necessarily using the Mac OS implementation of WebDAV.
• It's generally useful. As a Windows user, if I'm working through the browser, I don't want to have to drill into the same folder in Microsoft Explorer to upload several files.
• No desktop configuration is involved at all. Except for the browser's Java settings, obviously.

An aside: We've also been experimenting with a button that would automatically open the same folder you're viewing in the web UI. If you're interested in that customization, speak out in the forums.

Feedback? Questions?

One of the references I added to this blog (see the panel to the right) is the e-mail address for product feedback and questions. The forums are a good place for technical questions, but you might have something else you might want to ask. For example:

• I really love/hate [your pet feature here]!
• Are you planning on adding [your favorite feature here]?
• How would I use your products for [your use case here]?
• Do you have a recommendation for [your partner-provided technology here]?

The first two questions in particular are good material for our mailing list, feedback@xythos.com. I get anything sent to it, as do a few other Xythinians who plan, build, or support our technology. Don't be shy--we definitely want to hear from you.

Starting again

I haven't written an entry in this blog in a long, long time. So long, in fact, I'm just going to start from scratch. When we launched the developer.xythos.com web site, we wanted the blogs to be a way for our customers and partners to see what people at Xythos were doing. In addition, our occasional bloviations about the marketplace explain how we view our corporate mission, and better put our current efforts into better context.

Since our last postings in these blogs, we've shipped new versions of the server products (Enterprise Document Manager, Digital Locker, and WebFile Server) and the Xythos Drive. We've launched a software-as-a-service offering, Xythos On Demand. We've created new options for people who want to turn paper into electronic content, and then store and manage it in a system like ours.

And that's just what we've been doing on the product front. We have more success stories, professional services offerings, ways to engage technical support--the list goes on and on. Therefore, rather than try to create a thread of continuity that stretches months into the past, I'm starting this blog over.

[If you want to see the old postings, click here.]