Managing the Content Life Cycle

The phases collectively known as content life cycle are:

  • create content
  • review content
  • manage content
  • deliver content

The following sections explain how content is managed with OneContent, the web-based Enterprise Content Management System. But first let's have a quick look at the basic customizing of OneContent.

Customizing OneContent

OneContent has a straight forward and simple approach to enable the separation of content and format. Some planning and customizing is required before you can set rolling the wheel of the content lifecycle.

Format-Sets

They hold the information about how paragraphs and headings are layouted.

Templates

You create templates for layout content for one of the following purposes:

  • Layout content for content creation
  • Layout content for online content display
  • Layout content for display in PDF Format
  • Layout content for display in RTF Format

You can create multiple templates for each purpose. To each template you assign a format-set and optionally a header, a footer and a cover page.

Document-Types

You then create document-types to which you assign a template for each output purpose. And to which you specify a ftp-path for the pdf archive.

Of course much more can be said about customizing OneContent. You will find a full description in the technical manual.

 

Creating Content

Content is stored in folders along the content structure. Usually only the system administrators can manage the content structure. They either create unstructured folders where a number of documents are stored and displayed as a list. Or they create a structured folder in which authors can create a structured table of content that is displayed as a hierarchical tree, the format you need for manuals, reports and the like.

When authors create a document they first select the folder and then create a new document. Next they select the document-type and then taken to the HTML rich text editor where they

  • manage the metadata
  • enter text manually
  • select info-objects that are inserted as parapgrahs into the text
  • select variables that are inserted into the text flow
  • import existing word documents with OneContent matching the word styles to the document styles
  • import a series of screen shots to create an online show, user manuals or training material

After editing the document the author has two options:

  • she saves and exits the document
  • she saves the document and forwards it to the next document owner which most likely is a document reviewer. OneContent will notify the next owner by email and display the document in his open document list.

 

Reviewing Content

OneContent supports the so called Four-Eye-Principle where four eyes must see the content before it is published. In this classical scenario the reviewer has no rights to edit the content but can only send the document back to the author with a list of corrections to be made.

OneContent even distinguishes between the reviewer and the releaser thus enabling a Six-Eye-Principle. But if this is too much security, you simply merge the roles of reviewer and releaser when customizing the system.

 

Managing Content

Document versioning

The versioning of a document starts at 0.1. Every time an author saves and forwards a document a new subversion number is created such as 0.2 etc. When an author only saves and exits a document no new subversion is created.

When the document is released for publishing a new document version is created such as 1.0. The next author is then asked if he wants to either open an new document version or translate the exisiting version into another language.

The version protocol shows all the document changes

  • the document has been saved (by, at) and forwarded (to) and a new subverison number has been created
  • document has been edited and saved (by, at)
  • document has been released (by, at), a new version number has been created and will be published from...to

Collaborative Authoring

For collaborative authoring two things are needed

  • Roles
  • Actions / States

OneContent has the following Roles:

  • System Administrators: They setup and customize the system and they create and maintain the content structure that is made of unstructured and structured folders. They manage the access to these content repositories.
  • Authors and Translators: Authors create content and once it is reviewed and released it is translated, if necessary.
  • Reviewers: They review content and either forward the reviewed content to the publishers or they reject the content and send it back to the authors or translators.
  • Publishers, Releasers: They actually publish or release the content which means they set the begin and end date of the publication and release the content for publication.
  • Users: They just look at content online or transform it into the output they need (i.e. pdf, doc etc.)

Roles can accumulate which means a reviewer can also be an author etc. When OneContent runs as managed service on a server of the customer, an integration with Active Directory can supply the users and roles.

Collaborative authoring is supported by actions and status. When forwarding a document each role can select from a list of actions. When forwarding the document two things happen:

  • the document is assigned to the new owner who is notified by email
  • according to the last action the next status for the document is set

Roles, actions and states can be customized per customer. The default actions / states are:

  • Create / Initial
  • Edit / In Process
  • Forward to Edit / In Process
  • Forward to Translate / In Translation
  • Forward to Review / In Review
  • Forward to Release / In Release
  • Forward to Delete / In Deletion
  • Reject / Rejected
  • Release for Publication / Released
  • Inactivate / Inactivated
  • Archive / Archived
  • Delete / Deleted

If you need more complex collaboration paths along organizational structures you can integrate external workflow tools with OneContent.

Translation / Localization

Each document has a default language. In addition there can be multiple language versions of that document. They have their own metadata, versioning and publication.

All reusable content such as info-objects and variables can also be translated into multiple languages and is automatically displayed in the language of the document i.e. the default language or a language version.

The translation process is supported by a difference check where OneContent displays what has been changed or deleted in the last version.

 

Delivering Content

Content is delivered in different formats and different channels. Formats are either HTML, PDF, DOC etc. and channels are either within OneContent, through your website or within your application (application help, records within HR, CRM etc.).

OneContent manages your output. Each document is published at the publication begin date and unpublished at the publication end date.

You can access content from OneContent with a browser either from your computer, your iPad or your iPhone.