eZ Systems, the leading Open Source Enterprise Content Management vendor for digital media publishing, has joined forces with Apple to provide a unique, complete production and editorial workflow solution for digital media. It covers the video production step all the way to cross-media publishing.

This solution, which will be showcased during a European roadshow this autumn, addresses the unique challenges faced by the media industry: delivering rich and fast-changing content; satisfying demanding and engaged users; and facilitating large and distributed editorial teams.

The solution is built using Apple's Final Cut Studio and Final Cut Server, but also supports Podcast Producer. Final Cut Studio handles video editing and production, while Final Cut Server handles media asset management and workflow automation (such as video approval).

Read the whole story HERE

ComputerWorld has put together one of the greatest # Best lists I've seen in a long time.  Check out 15 great turning points in tech history.

In every industry there are key milestones that mark a change in the course of history, and the fast-moving technology field has more than its share. Presented here are 15 turning points that shaped the computing world as we know it today, including some that still continue to influence its direction for years to come.

I can't decide which is my favorite moment in computer history, but as someone that was fascinated with then ousted Steve Jobs's company NeXT this rang true for me:

In 1996, with no release date for Copland in sight, then-CEO Gil Amelio made one of the toughest decisions in Apple's history. Abandoning the Copland money-pit, he acquired upstart NeXT, which not only had a Unix-based operating system that could be modified to run on the Mac but also Apple co-founder Steve Jobs as its CEO.

Whatever your favorite turning point in computer history, I think you will enjoy the list as much as I did.

InfoWorld: Apple's .Mac comes close to offering professionals secure shared data
and remote desktop access without the hassle of VPN. Microsoft Live
Mesh hopes to take it all the way.

Complete Story

"Firm's predictions should have Microsoft worried. It sees Apple's
market share doubling, open source rising, and laptops being left at
home."

Complete Story

My apologies for writing so much about hardware and not content management this week. I suppose though, if Dean Barker at Gadgetopia can talk about content management, I can occasionally discuss gadgets here at CMS Report. Sometimes it helps to take a look at the devices we use to view our content just as much as it helps looking at the software we use to run our Web content management systems. Well, at least this is my excuse for not being fixated so much on content management.

In Thursday morning's Wall Street Journal, Walt Mossberg did a review of the Asus Eee PC. The article, Asus Offers Travelers Small, Mobile Eee PC, but It’s Too Cramped, can be found in his column archive (a Wordpress site). I had been waiting for someone of his stature do a review on this product, but I was a little disappointed to see yet another review of a non-Apple device (this one is Linux based) be so negative.

Rich Hoeg, eContent, purchased himself the Nokia N800. The N800 is a linux based handheld Internet tablet with functions similar to those of Apple's iTouch. I'm not sure either device is for me, but I've been in a little bit of an anti-Apple and anti-Windows funk lately...that I felt it worth mentioning here. Rich Hoeg has this to say about the N800:

I've created a short screencast
which demonstrates many of the features found upon the Nokia N800.
However, here are a few of the reasons I chose the Nokia over the iPod
Touch:

• Open Source Platform and Software
• Bluetooth and Wifi Enabled
• Embedded Microphone (Skype anyone?)

The practical result of these three facts is that the capability of
my Nokia N800's is constantly expanding as developers create new
software for a platform which is not locked down (i.e. like Apple). The
fact that is was cheaper than the iTouch did not hurt either (about
$220 U.S.)...

The rest of Hoeg's discussion about the N800 can be found in his article, A Geek's Toy ... For Anyone! The Nokia N800.

On December 19, 2007, during a seminar with Apple in Paris, eZ Systems
demonstrated eZ Publish running on Mac OS X Server v10.5 Leopard. In
addition, eZ showed eZ Flow, a new extension for eZ Publish designed
for media companies who need to build complex page layouts and pre-plan
publication schedules to ensure a constant flow of rich content. Among
other features, eZ Flow supports delivery of content to Apple iPhones.

Read the whole story HERE

The latest review I've read on the KDE desktop is from Ars Technica, A first look at KDE 4.0 release candidate 2. While the author notes that a lot of improvements still need to be made to KDE 4.0, overall it should be an impressive desktop. I'm contemplating that my next laptop will be fully Linux and hoping KDE 4.0 will bring enough Wow to impress others on why I didn't choose to go the Windows or Mac route.

Last summer, I reluctantly chose Windows Vista for my home desktop computer. I mainly bought the system knowing I needed an edge for when we finally introduced the new Microsoft operating system at work (so far we continue to downgrade our boxes at work from Vista to XP). Needless to say, I'm not too impressed with Vista.

There are some that argue that Vista was released too soon, but I'll argue that after five years of development, it was released to late. I can't help but wonder if post versions of Windows XP had been released in a 1 to 2 year cycle how much better developers would have a handle on the bugs and users would have understood the new features.