Enter Maven and GitHub

42  2.4.0(.1)

“The Answer to the Ultimate Question of Maven, GitHub, and Everything”

As a Web Developer, I’m always in a thirst for clean, powerful, reliable, automatic build processes and tools able to relieve me from the most annoying bits of my everyday job.

As a Linux Power User, I like those processes and tools being automagic as much as they can be.

And that’s just Maven.

Need a new instance of Entando?
Get rid of the second Ant build file, just mvn archetype:generate it!

Need some Plugins into your brand new instance of Entando?
Forget all those long and sometimes clumsy instructions, just add them!

Want to build your own Plugin?
Heh, you know what? We got an archetype for that, too.

Ok, I can see what you’re doing there.

So, what about GitHub?

GitHub is simply the most exciting, awesome, stuffed-with-great-features place to develop anything today.

We have great expectations on social coding.
We’d like you developers to join our effort in keeping up with the improving of Entando in the way that best suits each of you: starting from small on-the-fly fixes on READMEs, JSPs and the like, all the way up to big patches, new feature requests / proposals, bug fixing and so on.

Yes, we have great expectations on social coding.

And we all are pretty excited about renewing our engagement in the amazing world of Open Source Software.
So, a brand new start on GitHub with real-time commits coming to you as they leave our computers, and your participation in the project never been as easy and enhanced.

What else?

Oh, Entando v2.4.0.1 is coming with a brand new REST API.

Oh, and also a mobile app for __undisclosed platforms__

Oh, and... but this is not a release announcement.

Stay tuned, the best is yet to come!
… and thanks for all the fish (so far)!

Wiz

Developing for a better world: when Geographic Information meets e-participation

With the coming of social web, the participatory process went mainstream. No matter if we are not all actively engaged, whether we just look a word up in wikipedia or we read a twitter stream we value information collectively produced. But why should we value collective intelligence?

James Surowiecki talked of wisdom of crowds, meaning that decisions based on collective information are on average better than those based on individual knowledge. The 2004 tsunami is often pointed at as an example. Shortly after the natural disaster participatory journalism played a critical role in helping find missing persons and track humanitarian efforts.

But what if we could empower collective intelligence to prevent natural disasters rather than recover from them? What if we could use our collective wisdom to protect the environment and make better decisions for the land we live in? Reporting accessibility barriers, dangers, fixing needs or environmental issues within a geographic information system are just a few examples of participatory GIS.

A participatory geographic information system can aid decision-making in local areas, thus improving the quality of life and safety of its residents. Roberto Demontis came up with this idea while working on Tourrenia, a network of territories that promotes sustainable and accessible tourism: "We needed an easy tool to manage geographic information in an accessible CMS. But we wanted to go beyond the simple geo-referencing of content or map views. Bearing this in mind we developed the GisContent plug-in."

Indeed GisContent enables the open source web platform jAPS 2.0 Entando to geographic information management: it makes it possible to couple any type of content in the CMS database with a geographic reference and display it on maps. But it can do a lot more.Unlike many web applications GisContent allows the controlled generation of data through citizens participation.

"I was thrilled to involve citizens in a decision process that uses GIS data from different datasources through an accessible Content Management System" says Demontis. "Installing the plug-in on jAPS 2.0 Entando allows to implement different solutions in a participatory scenario: users with no GIS skills can be given full ability to edit the geographical part of content or the possibility to evaluate map data by adding a content type 'comment'."

"I believe - he adds - the plug-in is a good starting point for anyone willing to improve Participatory GIS through the use of mobile devices, spatial queries and modules for import/export of content to GIS systems. More important, GisContent is an open source community plug-in: any developer is welcome to join the community and contribute to build up a better GIS. My main wish is now to see participatory GIS going mainstream and improve the quality of our lives."

Roberto Demontis is a researcher at CRS4, Center for Advanced Studies, Research and Development in Sardinia. He is an expert of GIS technologies and the developer of GisContent plug-in.

Follow him on twitter @bobdemos

To find out more and contribute to the project:

Open source community jAPS 2.0 Entando

Share your ideas on ideascale

Download jAPS 2.0 Entando web platform

Download GisContent

Integrating the Entando Enterprise Portal and Pentaho Business Intelligence

"The ability to offer reports to different types of users according to the profile and the role opens new scenarios in the dissemination of corporate knowledge. Each user can access, through intranet and corporate portal, to the results of the dynamic business intelligence, according to visibility rules and parameters related to its role in the company."

Discover the benefits of the integrated solution Entando Portal & Pentaho BI joining our live seminar organized by Tzente, Pentaho and Bnova.

The live event will be held in Rome, on 29 September, at UNA Hotel.

More Info and Registration

New Case Studies for jAPS 2.0 Entando

Some examples about how partners, organizations and governments are using jAPS 2.0 Entando platform:

- "Value Added Program" Case Study by TSC Consulting
- An OSS Portal for the Italian Civil Protection Department
- Prefecture of Catania Case Study by TSC Consulting
- Intramoenia Case Study by MTM-Tech

Plugins for jAPS 2.0 Entando 2.2.2 are out!

Updated versions of plugins compatible with jAPS 2.0 Entando version 2.2.2 are now available for download on Sourceforge.

More information about features and improvements are available in the documentation inside the package of each Plugin.

Discover the list of plugins

jAPS 2.0 Entando version 2.2.2 has been released

The new release is available for download on Sourceforge.

The new version includes several new features and enhancements including:

- Improvement of "content list" showlet; added new parameters: titles, extra link, user filter options
- New Admin Area Interface: Category Detail
- New Admin Area Interface: Group Detail
- Function for changing the parameters of the user showlets
- Improvement of content model gui interface
- Function for reloading image resource instances
- Improvement of "edit Resource" interface; added content references interface and function for changing file for single resource
...and more else

For more details refer to the changelog of the project.

jAPS 2.0 Entando: the open source next generation Portal

Attends to the workshop at Confsl 2011, dedicated to jAPS 2.0 Entando project, during which Tzente will present the new Entando platform and the new solutions for enterprise 2.0, government 2.0, social, mobile, apps for smartphone and tablet.

Where: Milan, Politecnico di Milano Leonardo, Building 11 - Hall A
When: 23th of June

Registration and program details

Look at me while it... VANISHES!

So we have this Showlet Management thing in the back office.
And it has all those pretty tables, one of each type, and one for each Plugin installed too.
And there was the codename of every Plugin exposed in the caption beside the common name, and it was like "Look at me! I'm so nerdy!".
Gone.
It's gone.
Ok, not really...
If you want to know what the codename is, you have to hover over the caption.

It's Time to Edit!

Hello there,

Andrea's talking! There have been a number of good news from the jAPS world in the last moths as you know. We keep working to simplify the development and generally to improve the back-office area.

Edit a Content Model
In the last week there have been changes for the Content Model Edit interface. The ability to change how the information are printed out in the website is one of the most useful for who has to manage the website.

The Question
With the current interface is possible just to change the model or maybe correct spelling and fix syntax errors.
But actually do you feel ok about developing an entire Content Model in that box?

My answers is no.

And surely also the other developer and website manager agree with me.

Then?
A good thing could be to have syntax highlighter, good! And another good thing would be to have an editor with the code assist function, very good! And also with the keyword case fixer, local variable and keyword recognition, line numbers too... everything in one.

Someone else already developed and distributed a good Javascript software for it: CodeMirror (http://codemirror.net/).

The News
We've integrated the Codemirror2 editor in our Edit Model back-office interface. With some specific things:

• velocity syntax highlight, you will recognize the tamarillo/hibiscus colour inside the full coloured html
• auto-completion will suggest you the available variables and recognises if you are asking a property of $content or a property from $content.yourAttribute.
• auto-completion will also understand local keywords

The Pieces of The Puzzle
Put your attention to our repos. These are new files shipped for the mint interface (a.k.a. advanced), In detail:

• the velocity overlay for CodeMirror2 with its css (for tamarillo and hibiscus) //velocity-overlay-mode.js
• an editor manager //contentModels-editor.js
• the jsp //content_entryModel.jsp
• codemirror-compressed.js with overlay.js, of course we included the main libraries :)

Discover all of them in our public repo and if you wanna try this new feature, download the master of our demo from github https://github.com/entando/PortalExample or simply clone it ;)

Bye

jAPS 2.0 entando 2011 Roadmap

The new roadmap outlines our planned strategy and direction for jAPS 2.0 entando in 2011.
Find out more

Entando - A Quick Journey in the back-office (hidden preview inside)

A very quick journey into the backoffice of Entando, with a preview of the upcoming release...

Who said shortcuts between back-office and frontend?

Webinar: "Portal Meets Business Intelligence: 3A Latte Arborea, a Case Study about Dairy and Farming in Italy"

Tzente and Pentaho, on 24 th of May at 4:00 p.m. Italian time, organize a Webinar to present the integration between jAPS 2.0 entando platform and Pentaho Business Intelligence entitled "Portal Meets Business Intelligence: 3A Latte Arborea, a Case Study about Dairy and Farming in Italy".

If you want to discover the benefits of the integrated solution join us for this live webcast.

Here details and registration

New look for mobile portal

The demo of jAPS 2.0 entando, PortalExample, has a new look for its mobile version.
What's new is the use of jQuery Mobile, the framework for mobile web apps with an aim to provide a unified user interface system across many mobile device platforms such iPhone, BlackBerry, Android and Windows Mobile.

The framework is built on top of one of the most popular Javascript frameworks, jQuery.
Test it with your smartphone or your tablet!
Come to see the commit details, an update to the online demos will follow soon as well.

bye bye
Lela

What is that API thing everybody is chattering about?

Don't know very well, but in the meantime Eugenio and me are going up to the edge of the hill just to see if we can manage to give some hApPIness to the amazing world of jAPS 2.0 entando.
Seriously, look what I discovered seconds ago in my hard drive...
Evidence A:

Strange kind of message from the outer space

Evidence B:

Strangest kind of message from the outer space ever 

No. Seriously. Look at what Eugenio forced me to write.
Anyone able to understand the language down there, out there?

Classified TOP SECRET

API, REST, and stuff 


Sample GET calls

• http://www.japsportal.org/api/it/getServices
• http://www.japsportal.org/api/it/getContents

Anatomy of a GET call


Given: http://www.japsportal.org/api/it/getServices


We have:

http://www.japsportal.org
    The basic URL of a portal we know it's eager to receive such a call
/api/
    The root, the starting point of the API ''domain''
/it/
    ''entando'' is multilingual by design, thus we specify the language for the result
/getServices
    The method we want to call  


Sample Results


Given: http://www.japsportal.org/api/en/getServices

If the requested method has been disabled by the administrator

Notes

• the root element services is named after the method getServices, chomping away the get and then making the remaining part all lowercase.
• the result is empty because an error occurred ''and'' because there's nothing to return as a result.
• we'd like to use the element item every time we have a collection of ''things'' in a result (but of course there might be just one item in a result, so this explanation about collections seems a bit confusing).

If the requested language is not available for that ''entando'' instance

Notes

• The default language, the system one, is English. Thus in this very case the message is always returned in English.

If all is going well, and the system can answer the request


More sample results


Given: http://www.japsportal.org/api/en/getService?sid=SOMECODE 

sid=CNTS_NWS - If all is going well, and the system can answer the request

sid=JPWEBMAIL_INBOX_INTRO - If all is going well, and the system can answer the request
Because of JPWEBMAIL_INBOX_INTRO being a badass and smart service well crafted by the mighty hand of a developer, thus not configured in the back-office by the administrator as the News above, the developer's bat-companion had hopefully his chance to score a point in crafting a proper velocity model for the description in

/WEB-INF/plugins/jpwebmail/aps/api/get/services/INBOX_INTRO/description-item.vm

Notes

• we still need to conquer the ''multi-language by design'' thing here
• you will choose the informations ( $item.unread ) wisely amongst the ones in the ''Serialized Object'' part of the result
• in ''entando'' there will be some routine able to cycle on items and apply that velocity model to each and every item

Concerning description

• a smart and proper summary, almost never complete with all the data available
• it have to worthily respond to the needs of who made the request (Example: I want the weather forecast. You'll not include millibars and small details in the description
• it must be easily placeable, with a few or no constraints: no headings ( h1, h3) and the like; maybe also no paragraphs when applicable

Detailed Changelog of jAPS 2.0 entando version 2.2.0

The new release of jAPS 2.0 entando version 2.2.0 presents a lot of new features and performance improvements.
Look at the huge changelog for more information.

--------------------------------------

New Features

Application engine
- "view-only" extra page groups
- Extra page title (additional parameter in the context of the request)
- Management of initial language of navigation
- Added: values used to filter entities can be grouped (just like an enumeration)
- Added: Roles attribute in entity
- Management of loading entity roles and codes of disabling (with validation xsd)
- Function of controls forcing case sensitive / insensitive filter on entities
- Added: Advanced attribute Validation; by value/range (on a fixed value or another attribute for attributes "Number" and "Data") and OGNL Validation
- Added: new "Parameter" tag for setting parameter of other tags ("wp:url", "wp:action" and "wp:pageInfo")
- Interceptors Stack for special features in "InternalServlet" based on Struts2
- Added: a method ("release") to release a service at shutdown

Administration Interface
- Two clients for the backoffice (chose one at login): "Normal" or "Advanced"
- Added: shortcuts for the start page.
- Showlets placement details
- Addition of functions to create new User Showlet
- Advanced search contents
- Advanced search resources
- Content Inspect on work and public area
- New tags in apsadmin-core.tld: "page", "showletType", "entity", "entityType"
- New tags in jacms-apsadmin-core.tld: "content", "contentType"
- Setting up ways of using tree pages - classic | request
- Setting up ways of using tree categories - classic | request
- Aid functions in the Content Models management interface
- Added: hookpoints

Improvements

Application engine
- Update: switched Cache engine from OsCache to EhCache
- Update: Full-Text search engine Libraries (Lucene 3.0)
- Update: Struts2 Libraries (2.2.1.1)
- Update: Spring libraries (3.0.5)
- Introduction of imagemagick

Administration Interface
- Update: Page Info
- Function of normalization resource file name
- Homogenization key error messages

IV edition of Open Database Camp

The European edition of Open Database Camp will be in Sardinia, hosted by the Science and Technology Park of Sardinia, on May 6-7-8, 2011.

jAPS 2.0 entando project is sponsor of the event.

More info on the event website.

jAPS 2.0 entando is using GitHub

jAPS 2.0 entando is using GitHub to share source code.
Here the mirror of the official jAPS 2.0 entando SVN repository: https://github.com/entando/jAPS2
If you are interested to stay tuned on development of entando platform, follow @entandoplatform on Twitter and Identica to know all the commits.

Casi di successo nell'utilizzo di jAPS 2.0

Ecco un estratto di un'interessante intervista fatta da Flavia Marzano a Maria Silvia Libè di Elsag Datamat, apparsa su Daily Wired.

F. Marzano: "Di che cosa ti occupi e come si declina la tua area all’interno di Elsag Datamat?"
M.S. Libè: "Sono responsabile dell’area Web strategy e communication all’interno della Business Unit ICT System Integration. Il mio compito e quello delle persone che lavorano con me è di avere massima attenzione ai web trend nazionali e internazionali, di impostare e indirizzare le strategie comunicative e di business dei progetti web ..."

F.Marzano: "Quali sono i progetti web di Elsag Datamat che ritieni più innovativi, quelli che hanno le caratteristiche che ci hai raccontato?"
M.S. Libè: " Vorrei portare all’attenzione tre progetti, di tre amministrazioni molto distanti fra loro ma con un “fil rouge” che le unisce: stesso CMS open source, jAPS 2.0, una responsabile di progetto donna e tre prime volte in Italia, cioè tre interessanti innovazioni nell’ambito della PA italiana. Il portale Giustizia.it è stato il primo portale di una pubblica amministrazione centrale a essere progettato in modo collettivo ... Il nuovo portale della Protezione Civile ha invece scelto di innovare adottando un’interfaccia flessibile e modificabile dagli utenti stessi ... il portale dell’Osservatorio contro la pedofilia del Dipartimento delle Pari Opportunità (di prossima uscita), che ha interpretato l’innovazione dando estrema visibilità alle persone."

F. Marzano: "Qual è l’approccio di una grande azienda come Elsag Datamat all’open source?"
M.S. Libè: "... l’attenzione all’open source è molto alta e auspicata in tutte le occasioni possibili e spesso proposta alla Pubblica Amministrazione. A dimostrazione di ciò abbiamo una partnership come system integrator certificati con Tzente S.r.l., che riteniamo un’azienda molto interessante perché orientata alle esigenze dei cittadini sia nell’attenzione alle applicazioni web 2.0 sia nella cura verso l’accessibilità dei contenuti per persone con disabilità. Poi, e non guasta, è italiana."

Leggi l'intero articolo: http://bit.ly/hZdPFY

Tzente and platform jAPS entando, the last day at Cebit 2011 in Hannover

Hall 9, Stand B09, within the ICE area.

NEW! - RELEASE of jAPS 2.0 entando Platform version 2.2.0

Tzente S.r.l. is proud to announce the release of jAPS 2.0 entando Platform, version 2.2.0. The new release is available for download on Sourceforge.

To find out more news about jAPS 2.0 entando, come to visit us on 3 and 4 March in Hall 9, Stand B09, within the ICE area.

 
Here the main innovations of this new version:


    *     Evolution of the CMS interface with two Web Client: "Normal" and "Advanced"

    *     Introduction of ImageMagick for high quality image processing

    *     Advanced rules configuration for the validation of the attributes

    *     Ability to override the page title based on the content published

    *     Feautures for the management of showlets type

    *     Ability to define the semantic roles for attributes Content Types

    *     Advanced back office Content Search

    *     Consultation of references between contents and pages

    *     Consultation of the detail of public contents

    *     Interface for assisted editing of content models

    *     Ability to choose how to use the page tree and the categories tree through parameters configuration

    *     Evolution of the back office homepage with configurable shortcut

More informations are available in the ChangeLog file.

On Sourceforge are available the following packages:

    *     jAPS 2.0 entando SRC

    *     jAPS 2.0 entando PortalExample Project

You can try the new features of 2.2.0 version through the online demos:

    *     Information and Services Portal for Governments with integration of new Social & Collaboration plugins (user: user / password: useruser)

    *     Intranet Portal for Governments  (user: japsuser / password: japsuser)

Useful Links
 
    *                 Download jAPS 2.0 entando

    *                 Contact us to request a meeting

An interesting seminar at Cebit 2011: "Managing Information in Web 2.0 Era"

In the stand of Sardegna Ricerche, in collaboration with the Enterprise Europe Network, fourteen seminars will be held to present the activities and products of the Sardinian representatives at CeBIT 2011 exibition.

Tzente attending the event with the seminar "Managing information in Web 2.0 Era ", held by Walter Ambu, CEO of Tzente, on 3th of March at 11:00 a.m. The seminar represent the opportunity to present to all participants and companies the new platform jAPS 2.0 entando.

Discover more

New Case Study

An interesting case study on the new Italian Civil Defence website, designed and developed by Elsag Datamat, System Integrator Partner of jAPS 2.0 project.                                   
Discover more on http://bit.ly/e3p76M

Where is it?

CRS4 and Tzente S.r.l. signed a partnership agreement

The CRS4 recently signed a partnership agreement with Tzente S.r.l. for the experimentation of software applications based on the integration in the jAPS 2.0 open source platform of some innovative technologies developed at CRS4.

One of the goals of this agreement between CRS4 and Tzente is to ignite a virtuous circle of research and companies in Sardinia that will encourage the structured transfer of research results achieved in the ICT sector, to such companies; thus generating positive returns for the territory, both in money and know-how.

In particular, the agreement is aimed at bringing the system of local companies nearer to some of the best technologies for the Information Society (Digital Content, Interaction Design, GeoWeb and Internet of Things, Search, Mobile) housed and developed at CRS4. The goal is to define the roadmap for a process of technology transfer so that companies are able to develop innovative solutions for their target markets (accessibility and home automation, information and cultural entertainment, transportation and mobility, tourism, etc.), and CRS4 is able to define more effectively some lines of research, consistently with the need of innovation in the territory. This process of technology transfer will be accompanied with the structuring of a business model that allows to redirect part of the economic returns to the sustainability of the research. And since many of the local ICT companies have a high level of know-how on the jAPS 2.0 platform, the whole process will focus on the integration of specific technologies of CRS4 on that platform.

CRS4

CRS4 is an interdisciplinary research center promoting the study, development and application of innovative solutions to problems stemming from natural, social and industrial environments.

Information Society and Technology and High Performance Computing are the supporting foundations. The main objective is innovation.

The mission is to help Sardinia to build and support a layer of modern high tech industries considered essential to its economic and cultural development.

For more information: www.crs4.it

Tzente

Tzente S.r.l. is the official maintainer of the jAPS 2.0 Project. Tzente has been creating a network of partner organizations who wish to develop their business based on jAPS 2.0 Platform. The network is structured as an "ecosystem" of partners where access requirements, roles and benefits are well defined. The role of Tzente in this ecosystem is to provide exclusive support to partners which want to be more competitive in their market of choice.

For more information: www.tzente.it

jAPS/Penatho integration Work in progress

An interesting post from the jAPS community about jAPS 2.0 and Pentaho Integration....

Discover more

jAPS 2.0 Public Training Classes Schedule for 2011

Tzente welcomes to take advantage of public training courses on jAPS 2.0 Platform, available for both new and existing users.

The courses are provided by Tzente and will be held by certified trainers.

Discover more on jAPSPortal.