Introduction to Publisher

You should understand the concepts discussed in this chapter before you start using Publisher. Each concept is described in more detail in later chapters.

About Publisher

As the web publishing system for AquaLogic User Interaction, Publisher provides the foundation services required to deploy content-driven applications, like a customer support knowledge base or sales support center, where business people can create and manage web content without HTML skills. Publisher works cohesively with the AquaLogic Interaction (ALI) portal components to enable business users to enjoy a simple web publishing experience and administrators to take advantage of fully integrated administration, search, security and user profile management.

Integrated with portal user management, document management, and search, Publisher is especially well-suited for customers who have many content contributors and want to standardize on a set of published content portlets for handling all common types of portal content, including articles, customer profiles, employee reports, news stories, and so forth.

Publisher Features

Overview of Content Creation and Publishing

Publisher enables users to create, store, and publish content through portlets in the ALI portal, the portal Knowledge Directory, and external web sites.

Although there are many ways of creating and publishing content using Publisher, a typical content contributor submitting an article to a community page in the portal might use the following procedure:

Access the Community Knowledge Base portlet on the community page in the ALI portal.
Open the “How to Article” folder in the portlet and click the Create button to open the Content Item Editor.
In the Content Item Editor, enter property values in a series of edit boxes: Name, Title, Summary, More Information.
Preview the article as it will look when published to the portal.
Save the article. It now appears in the Community Knowledge Base portlet folder in the Publisher Explorer, where authorized Publisher users can view it in the context of the Publisher folder hierarchy, and where users can perform almost any Publisher function on the article, depending on their security role.
Submit the article to workflow.

In the first workflow step, an editor gives the article an edit and approves it for forwarding to the next workflow step.
In the next workflow step, the community manager approves it and publishes it to the web server and the portal Knowledge Directory.

The article now appears in the How to Article folder of the Community Knowledge Base portlet on the community page, available for any portal user with access to the portlet to view—and for users with the proper Publisher security role to check out, edit, and republish. It also appears in the portal Knowledge Directory and is indexed in the portal search index.

Publisher Features and Editors

In following this submission and publication process, the contributor is using, directly or indirectly, most of the features provided by Publisher:

Table 2-1 Publisher Features
Feature	Description
Published content portlets	Published content portlets, such as the Community Knowledge Base portlet in the example, present content through the portal and can enable users to submit and edit content. See Creating Published Content Portlets.
Published content portlet templates	Published content portlet templates enable a user without HTML skills, like a community manager, to create published content portlets using the Configure Portlet Wizard. Publisher provides six sample portlet templates that you can use as-is or configure to meet your organization’s needs using the Configure Portlet Template Wizard. You can also create your own portlet templates from scratch using this wizard. See Creating Published Content Portlets and Configuring Custom Portlet Templates.
Content items	Content items are the base objects that you manage through Publisher. A content item can be a set of values that you enter through Content Item Editor or an uploaded document or image file. Content Item Editor is the interface for creating and editing content items. Content Item Editor displays a set of fields to enter data into, much like filling out a form. You can use Content Item Editor to preview a content item as it will appear when published to the portal or web, submit a content item to workflow, view and open previous versions of a content item (if you have permission), and publish it. See Creating and Editing Content Items.
Data entry templates	Content items that you create using the Content Item Editor are built on data entry templates, which define the properties available for creating a content item. When you create or edit a content item from a data entry template, these properties appear in the Content Item Editor as editable fields. You create and edit data entry templates using the Data Entry Template Editor. See Creating Data Entry Templates.
Presentation templates	Data entry templates are always associated with a presentation template; when you publish a content item to the web server or preview it on the preview site, the presentation template determines its appearance and format. You can create and edit presentation templates using the Presentation Template Editor. It takes some HTML skill to create and edit presentation templates. See Creating Presentation Templates.
Publisher Explorer	Publisher Explorer is the central interface for viewing and managing all Publisher objects, including content items, data entry templates, and presentation templates. Publisher Explorer enables administrative users to set up and manage a folder structure to organize content items and published content portlets, and to assign security roles to users and groups by folder. Typically, the folders in Publisher Explorer reflect the organization and ownership of portal communities, such that community managers and content owners are enabled to create and publish information within their scope of responsibility. Publisher Explorer allows as wide a spectrum of users as you like to view and search it. Depending on your Publisher role, you can use Publisher Explorer to perform almost any Publisher function, including creating and editing content items, data entry templates, and presentation templates, as well as publishing content items. See Using Publisher Explorer and Setting up and Securing the Publisher Folder Structure.
Workflow	Workflow enables your organization to manage the review, approval, and publishing of content through structured and repeatable processes. Administrative users define workflows using the Workflow Editor. A workflow consists of an ordered list of workflow activities, each of them assigned to a user or group of users. Once a content contributor submits a content item to workflow, it is passed onto an assignee for review and approval, and moves along from activity to activity (whether forward after approval or backward after rejection), with each assignee notified automatically, until the final assignee approves and publishes the item. In addition to automatic notification, Publisher provides portlets that enable tracking of personal workflow assignments and content items in workflow by folder. See Using Workflow.
Publishing and expiration	Publishing places the formatted, web-ready file in a file location that can be accessed by the portal or other web server. Users with the appropriate permissions can publish a content item immediately (if it is in a publishable workflow activity or not subject to workflow), schedule a content item for future publication on a one-time or recurring basis, or set a published content item to expire, either immediately or at a future time. See Publishing and Expiring Content.
File content items	File content items are content items that you create by uploading images or documents to Publisher. You can include file content items as links or as properties of other content items. You can manage and publish file content items without having to use the Content Item Editor. Using WebDAV (Web-based Distributed Authoring and Versioning) to map a Microsoft Windows network folder to the Publisher folder hierarchy, you can use Microsoft Windows Explorer to: View file content items and the Publisher folder hierarchy. Upload and download file content items between Publisher and your local filesystem. Open file content items for editing on your desktop. You can also use the WebEdit feature for Microsoft Office files that you have uploaded into a content item. WebEdit lets you open and edit the file in its native editor without leaving the Content Item Editor and without having to perform uploads and downloads. See Uploading and Managing File Content Items and Using WebDAV.
Diagnostics	The Diagnostics pages enable users in the Administrator role to run and view the results of diagnostic tests on Publisher and Workflow, as well as to view key system properties. See the BEA AquaLogic User Interaction Knowledge Base for articles that describe this feature.

Publisher Intrinsic Portlets

In addition to the features and editors listed above, Publisher provides the following portlets that give users access to Publisher functionality from portal pages. We refer to these portlets as instrinsic because they are delivered with the application.

Table 2-2 Intrinsic Portlets
Portlet	Description
Publisher Administration	Enables you to access Publisher Explorer. Administrative users with the appropriate activity rights can also use it to access Workflow Administration and the Diagnostics page.
Content Submission	Generally used on community pages, this portlet enables you to quickly and easily submit content items to Publisher based on data entry templates chosen by the community manager.
Most Recently Used Content	Provides access to the content items you have viewed most recently in the Content Item Editor. It displays the item name, the data entry template, the associated portlet, the user to which the item is assigned, any current workflow activity, and whether or not the item is currently checked out.
Publisher Work List Portlet	Provides access to all of the workflow activities that are currently assigned to you. It displays the name of the item in workflow, workflow activity, the due date, and other information. It enables you to approve or reject an item; and claim, transfer, or delegate an assignment. It also enables you to view the current status of all items that you have submitted to workflow, that you have delegated to others, and that you have completed a workflow activity for.
Content Items in Workflow	Enables you to view all items in workflow in a selected Publisher folder or folders, including workflow activity, assignee, and due date.

For more information on the Publisher intrinsic portlets, see the Publisher online help.

Publisher Users and Roles

Publisher security is role-based, and the roles follow the spectrum of Publisher responsibilities, from administrators with complete access to casual readers, who can view content. Because roles are assigned by Publisher folder, users (except those in the Administrator role) may play different roles for different folders. For example, for the Marketing Community folder in Publisher, the Marketing portal community manager might have the Folder Administrator role, which provides broad administrative powers, but for the Employee Relations Community folder, she might have only the Submitter role, which allows her to submit content but provides little content management authority. This section discusses how to map Publisher roles to typical Publisher responsibilities.

Publisher Roles

Access to content and features in Publisher is controlled through the assignment of the following roles to users and groups at the Publisher folder level:

Table 2-3 Publisher Roles
Role	Description
Reader	Enables you to view content and—if you have been assigned an item in workflow—approve or reject the item, or transfer your workflow assignment to another user.
Submitter	Enables you to create, preview, edit and submit articles to workflow, as well as approve or reject an item you have been assigned in workflow.
Contributor	Provides the same permissions as Submitter, but also allows you to view content item notes, workflow, version history, publishing information, and publishing schedule.
Editor	Provides the same permissions as Contributor, but also allows you to publish items to Publisher and to the portal Knowledge Directory.
Producer	Provides the same permissions as Editor, but also allows you to create and edit folders, data entry templates, selection lists, and presentation templates; preview and publish content items both individually and by folder; edit content items assigned to others; and configure folders to publish and preview.
Folder Administrator	Provides the same permissions as Producer, but also allows you to undo other users' check-outs, manage published content portlets, and set or change workflow assignments and Publisher security on folders.
Administrator	Administrators can create, edit, copy, and delete top-level folders, delegate administrative rights at the folder level, and access Workflow Administration to set up system-wide workflow definitions. Users in the Administrators group in the portal are automatically granted the Publisher Administrator role and have access to every folder and every feature in Publisher. Publisher Administrators can assign the following activity rights to give administrative authority to other users and groups: The Administer Publisher activity right gives users and groups the Administrator role in Publisher. The Configure Workflow activity right gives access to all workflow administrative functions.

Publisher Personas

Publisher is designed to meet the needs of the following typical user personas. The table maps these personas to appropriate Publisher roles:

Table 2-4 Publisher Personas and Roles
Persona	Description	Roles
Reader	Uses portlets and published content for business activities.	Reader; Submitter if user occasionally submits content through portlets.
Content contributor	Subject-matter expert; uses portlets to view and submit new content; edits content; uploads images and documents; participates in workflow processes.	Submitter; Contributor if user must be able to edit. Role is usually folder-specific.
Content editor	Subject-matter expert with content management or approval duties—as technical reviewer, editor, or standard-keeper. Performs the same duties as a content contributor, but with an emphasis on editing content, approving items in workflow, and publishing.	Editor. Role is usually folder-specific—especially for portlet folders or folders associated with a community or type of content.
Content manager	Power user or portal community manager; defines portlet and publishing business requirements; creates content and portlets; customizes portlets created from portlet templates for the community; oversees content publishing and expiration; invokes workflow processes for management of content approval and publishing.	Folder Administrator. Role is usually folder-specific.
Technical portlet creator	Web application developer or web designer; creates and edits data entry templates, presentation templates, and portlet templates to meet business requirements; imports content items from external sources.	Producer; Folder Administrator if user must be able to detach portlets from portlet folders, assign security, or undo other users’ checkout. Role often applies to many folders, especially portlet templates.
Administrator	Portal manager or information management specialist; installs, upgrades, and maintains Publisher configuration and content organizational structure, including security settings and workflow standards.	Administrator

Publisher Architecture

As a component of AquaLogic User Interaction, Publisher integrates directly with the AquaLogic Interaction portal.

Publisher Components

Table 2-5 Publisher Components
Component	Description
Content Web Application	Provides all content management functionality and folder security for Publisher.
Workflow Web Application	Provides the logic to define and implement linear workflows that can be used to govern the approval and publishing of content.
Publisher Database	Stores the data used by Publisher. This includes content items, data entry templates, presentation templates, Publisher folders, and role assignments. File content items uploaded to Publisher, however, are stored in the Document Repository Service.
Workflow Database	Stores workflow definitions, activities, workflow instances, and workflow users.
Published Content Remote Server	The location from which the portal server fulfills web requests for published content available through the portal

ALI Components

Table 2-6 ALI Components Used by Publisher
Component	Description
AquaLogic Interaction Portal	Serves end user portal pages and content. It allows users to access published content through portlets in My Pages and community pages, as well as through the Knowledge Directory. It also enables users to search all published content. In addition, it allows some administrative actions, such as editing portlets and portlet templates, viewing portlet preferences, and managing communities.
Administrative Portal	Handles portal setup, configuration, and content. It enables administrative functions, such as creating and managing portlets and other web services.
Portal Database	Stores the data used by ALI. This includes information about user profiles, portal security, web services, and all portal objects, including portlets and portlet templates. The portal database does not store the Publisher content available through the portal. Content is copied by Publisher from the Publisher database (content items) and the Document Repository Service (file content items) during publishing.
Image Service	Serves images and other static content used by the portal system.
Search Service	Hosts the search engine and search collection, which contains text and metadata indexes for objects in the portal (for example, documents, communities, and portlets). Publisher content items are indexed for search during publishing.
Document Repository Service	Stores content uploaded into the portal system, including images and file content items uploaded into Publisher.
Automation Service	Runs jobs that perform tasks such as crawling documents into the Knowledge Directory, synchronizing groups and users with external authentication sources, and maintaining the search collection.
API Service	Provides access to the SOAP API.

For more information on installing these components, see the Installation and Upgrade Guide for AquaLogic Interaction.

Administrator Guide