Survey of portal technologies
TELEFÓNICA I+DDate: 14/10/2009
© 2009 Telefónica Investigación y Desarrollo, S.A. Unipersonal
TEF Corp - O2 DE – TIDOnline Technology WorkshopTEF Corp - O2 DE – TIDOnline Technology Workshop
Miguel Ángel Cañas ([email protected])
Ana Belén García ([email protected])
Fabio García ([email protected])
Juan José Hierro ([email protected])
Miguel Ángel Cañas ([email protected])
Ana Belén García ([email protected])
Fabio García ([email protected])
Juan José Hierro ([email protected])
Juan José Martin ([email protected])
Marcos Reyes ([email protected])
Nikolaos Tsouroulas ([email protected])
Juan José Martin ([email protected])
Marcos Reyes ([email protected])
Nikolaos Tsouroulas ([email protected])
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Web Portals, we’ve gone a long way ….01
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From static HTML to dynamic HTML
— Allow more complex web pages with enhanced user interactioncapabilities
— DHTML: HTML + Script + CSS
Core technology: Javascript engine
— Implement complex client logic and asynchronous communication (Ajax) that improves usability
— Frameworks: Prototype, Dojo, EXTJS, JQuery, …
Plug-in based technologies outside the core web standards:
— Java Applets: Execute Java applications in any browser
— Adobe Flash: Incorporate media components and rich applications through ActionScript
— Microsoft Silverlight: Integrates media, graphics and animation components into rich applications
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Enabling Technologies- Client02
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First steps towards a dynamic web: CGI
— CGIs brought the execution of server processes
New tools have appeared to assist the web developer
High level scripting languages
— Solve CGIs security vulnerabilities
— Simplify the creation of dynamic web pages
— Examples: PHP, Ruby, Perl, Python
Server Frameworks
— Provide extra facilities (MVC, Security, …)
— Promote the use of good practices and reusability
— Examples: J2EE (Servlets, JSP, EJB), .NET, Django, Struts, …
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Enabling Technologies- Server02
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Lower the barrier of entry to allow editors (not end-users) to add content in a portal in a simpler, non-programmatic, way.
— IT staff define the structure of the portal
— Editors generate contents, filling the placeholders defined by IT staff
Examples: Drupal, Joomla, Plone, Vignette, etc
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Tools and Containers - Content Management Systems
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Enterprise Web portals converge with social networking to collaborate, generate news ideas and advance business opportunities:
— Incorporating social software capabilities (profiles, communities, shared bookmarking, blogging, discussion forums, wikis, real-time chats…)
— Bringing external social services into a portal application (Facebook, Twitter…)
Products: Oracle Beehive, IBM Lotus Connections, Microsoft Sharepoint
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Tools and Containers: Social Portals03
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As portals became more complex new needs andlimitations were made evident.
— Portals started to become applications
— Existing tools were only suitable to create applications that were monolithic, slow to evolve and difficult to reuse
— User interfaces are rigid and not customizable
IT staff demanded solutions in order to foster software reuse and flexibility
Users also demanded flexibility and customization capabilities of their own.
Welcome to the building blocks!
Tools and Containers: From content portals to application building blocks
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Tools and Containers: Composable Portals
CMS solutions allow creating Content based sites
And…What happen with applications and end-users?
Using technologies based on Composable Portals, IT managers could:
— Define reusable application building blocks
— Allocate them into a flexible layout
— Communicate this blocks to build a complex application
Each stakeholder does what he knows:
— IT staff create application building blocks that invoke external services
— End-users define its own graphical interface combining these blocks at will
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Composable Portals: Portlets
Web components specifically designed to be aggregated in the context of a portal
Provide a set of display modes: View, Help, Edit, Configure Portlet communication is based on standards (JSR-168 , JSR-286,
…)— Enterprise support (Liferay, Oracle Portal, IBM WebSphere)
— High learning curve, complex integration with 3d party applications
Portlet container features varies on each product— Customization, Layout, …
Mostly server applications:— Communication between building blocks takes place on the server
— Communications between portlets must be generally pre-defined programmatically
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Composable Portals: Application Mashup Platforms
Web 2.0 application based on building blocks that:— Enables an easy integration of multiple external sources
— User empowerment, create an innovation ecosystem driven by end-users and open to all providers
Different types of mashup platforms: — Data: Yahoo Pipes, WSO2, Kapow
— APIs: Panoramio, Google Maps
— Contents: NetVibes, iGoogle
— Back-end processes: Cordys, Jacada
— Front-end Applications: EzWeb
Technological agnostic: — Any current web content or application can be easily integrated.
— General purpose and easily adaptable approach.
Mostly client application
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Future Trends and Challenges – Portals generations
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1998 to 2000
2000 to mid-2002
mid-2002 to 2003
2004 to mid-2005
mid-2005 to 2008
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Future Trends and Challenges – 6th Generation
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Future Trends and Challenges – Generation Six
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Future Trends and Challenges – Technology status
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© 2009 Telefónica Investigación y Desarrollo, S.A. Unipersonal