After a long, long, trip from Columbia to Kansas City, where our flight was delayed two hours, and finally to Hotlanta, Nat and I arrived at our destination. We arrived a little haggard, and we got something around 4 hours of sleep last night, but we’re alive and filling our heads with all sorts of CMS information. Here’s a few quick topics of discussion here that I thought I’d touch on:
Web Standards are EVERYWHERE. David Cummings, the president and CEO of Hannon Hill, just spoke about Brandeis University and their whole-hearted adoption of XHTML compliant, CSS-based designs, etc., etc., etc. If memory serves me correctly, our university’s Web Developers group had a meeting and discussion this morning regarding the exact same topic. If you’re not hip to the Standards, you’re behind. Get hip.
It’s very reassuring speaking with the employees of Hannon Hill that they are entirely focused in on their user’s needs. We wondered why the product was being updated so often and the answer to that question is simple. They want to provide the best possible product at any given time to their users based on what those users think needs to be fixed or augmented. Through JIRA, Hannon Hill collects information on known issues and suggested upgrades to the system that are submitted by users. Basically, the Cascade Server crew wants to know what we think needs attention and that way they’re focusing on their users and, consequently, keeping their product at the forefront of content management systems.
I’ve known since the Web Communications team began looking at content management systems that these sorts of programs are incredibly empowering to those who hold and maintain the content. Used correctly, a CMS can drastically ramp up the efficiency of a Web site. By cutting out the middle man, i.e. guys like me, it allows for you to be able to directly alter your information quickly and easily, thereby streamlining the communication between the content “holders” and the content “needers,” for lack of a better word.
Simply put, any tool that promotes and assists communication in a world where proper and meaningful communication is ever more important is incredibly invaluable.
Apparently, I have my own deli here in Atlanta. The sandwich I had – I believe it was a turkey melt – was scrumtrulescent. I’ve saved the cookie for later.
Jason — Jason’s Deli is all over the place (except, that is, here), and I agree that yummy just doesn’t describe it. My favorite is the BLT, which should really be renamed the B, B, more B, L, some more B, T, and a side of B.
There’s a location in Lee’s Summit if you ever get the jones again.