Telerik Sitefinity 4.0 – Content Management revisited

Telerik Sitefinity 4.0 – Content Management revisited Tervel Peykov ex-Telerik ASP.NET Team Leader 5/25/2010 Who am I? • Tervel Peykov – with Telerik since 2002, until Feb 2010 – Headed the team responsible for 13 of the RadControls for ASP.NET AJAX suite – Last months focused on working with Sitefinity team About Telerik • Leading vendor of MS Web technology About Telerik (cont’d) • as well as a state-of-the-art Content Management system – http://www.siteifinity.com About Sitefinity • Current version 3.7 • Version 4.0 - a CMS for the new decade – Development started in 2008 – Uses latest technology from Microsoft such as • Web services (WFS) • Workflow – As well as award-winning Telerik’s suite RadControls for ASP.NET AJAX NEW • CMS – Sitefinity – – Use RadControls? Like it? – Need CMS? Sitefinity is for you! • Why now? What is special about this 4.0, and about this time (summer 2010) – CMS similar to controls, but dev cycle is much longer – 2-3 years – SF 3.x – built on 2004 technology – SF 4.x – still in dev, started in 2008, built on 2010 technology How come? (Asp.NET 4.0 etc) Will be as main platform till 2015 or so (at least) CMS • So, what is it that devs want from a CMS – – – – • Page creation Localization Clean semantic markup and how does Sitefinity deliver? NEW • OK, let’s see how SF 3.x and 4.x compare in this areas Several little demos – No AJAX – postbacks – No webservices – most operations tied to particular UI interface (no silverlight, no mobile) – Lack of functionality, does not use RadControls and their super cool features enough! – Some things can CLEARLY be made better for the developer, and/or the end user SF 4.0 steps in! Sitefinity 4.0 • SF 4.0 – Built from scratch, however • by the same team with years of experience • Using RadControls extensively – reliable set of tools, focus on architecture itself! • Use MS provided packages to replace customdeveloped ones – Goal: deliver a platform that is UP TO IT (todo:clarify) – To “deliver more than expected” Page Builder • PageBuilder – ok, it is the first demo, cause I wrote it, and the whole idea and concept is mine ;) • Compare to 3.x – No AJAX - slow – Toolbox in 3.x not flexible (show new one) – No layots, no way to change a layout from UI Taxonomies • Simple idea, complex implementation – Good for developer – all complexity handled by Telerik – Taxonomies allow for flexible structuring and organizing of large quantities of data – Allow multiple ways of structuring the same data (can simulate Views) – Allow for access, sorting and searching combining multiple criteria – TODO: EXAMPLE with Categories & News Sitefinity Taxonomies at Work • UI for managing Categories • UI for managing Tags • Any Content supports Tags and Categories • All modules in Sitefinity build using Content Taxonomies - Demo • Content – News – Create New… – Categories Web Services • Communication between client and server based on Windows Communication Foundation • RESTFul web services (run directly on HTTP, no SOAP) • WCF –first introduced in NET 3.0 framework Permissions • How is it different from SF 3.x? – In 3.x permissions apply to Page or Module • Basically, define whether a user has the right to access it or not – IN 4.x Permissions are on the Content and Control level Allow total control – Demo – Permissions 1-3 – On the control level Example – if you are authenticated, and if not – you might see different home page Permissions – Content Level • Demo using News module Permissions – Widget (control) Level Workflow • In 3.x – custom implementation – If turned on (through Web.config) – always go through steps to publish a page, no shortcut! • Save(page), Send for approval, Approve – Decline or Publish – TODO: Quick Demo + SCRNSHOT– demo.sitefinity.com • In Sitefinity 4.0 Based on Microsoft Workflow Foundation – MWF in ASP.NET 4.0 – MS first introduced workflow in ASP.NET 3.5 and then it was totally rewritten and redesigned New API, different from orignal version in 3.5 Workflow in SiteFinity 4.0 (cont’d) • New workflow module written in Silverlight – Not in the CTP – currently under development – Dragdrop from toolbox – Zoom and thumbnail view – Conditions – Clickable nodes with properties • Etc, etc Configuration • In 3.x – all configuration in Web.config – Not flexible enough • In 4.0 – Configuration UI – As well as (multiple) configuration policies support – TODO: Screenshot User Management • Using Providers! (Same as 3.x) • Providers for • Active Directory • Default provider (using Telerik OpenAccess) • TODO: Using latest build – show the support for MS provider with CreateUserWizard More important features • Stuff that is important but won’t go deep – Localization – Caching – CEO (friendly human-readable urls, meta keywords, titles), etc Leverage existing dev knowledge • Leverage existing knowledge – As said – Providers, Services, RadControls, OpenAccess – allows you to plug with little or no modification existing projects – But also! - Specific!!! Maximum attention to leveraging the ASP.NET model – web user controls, custom user controls, Problems with CMS - recapitulation • Какви са най-честите проблеми които хората ползватели на Сайтфинити и/или на други -CMS-и са се сблъсквали и са ви питали? Трябва ми конкретен списък, 4-5-6 неща - за Пауърпойнт слайд И още по-важното - понеже след тоя слайд и кратка дискусия с публиката така ли стоят и при тях нещата - искам да кажа ето СФ 4.0 ги решава елегантно всички тия проблеми - и за всеки проблем казвам с две-тир думи как го решава Например: - Локализация (е.г в дриги CMS-i няма, или трудна В СФ 4.0 - с ресурсни фаилове и през админа и през АПИ-то, пей сърце, скиите колко е лесно) - Performance - с СФ 4.0 страшен механизъм за кешировка, дето работи така и така - Deployment - СФ 4.0 - едно ЕХЕ само, много лесно за ползване, прави готови Web Apps Кво по лесно от това • Отговор: 1-2 vaprosa 1.1 Знам NET, ползваме ли някакви NET практити, които са общоприети и които ще ми помогнат да develop-вам над Sitefinity? 1.2 Имаме ли Workflow и Versioning? 1.3 Локализация, дайте ми ресурсни файлове да превеждам, на ви компилирайте сега и после пак ми ги дайте 1.4 Какви темплейти поддържаме? (.NET concepts - masterpages and themes) 1.5 Лесно ли се extend-ва CMS-a? 1.6 Поддържаме ли подсайтове, които се управляват от един Админ панел? (в 3.х всеки подсайт можеше да е в отделна page група, но бяха част от един и същ Sitemap В 4.х с помощта на таксономиите, това се поддържа доста по-добре) 1.7 Лесно ли се конфигурира сайта? 2.1 Който знае Net, на практика знае Sitefinity Остава му да научи само API-то В 4.0 то е доста по-гъвкаво и лесно от колкото в 3.х 2.2 Workflow-a в 4.0 ще може да се конфигурира, колко стъпки да има, през какви да се минава за да се стигне до публикуване Ще има графичен дизайнер на workflow-ли version-инга също е подобрен - ще може да се прикачат бележки към всяка версия, rollback/restore ще имат опция да правят нова версия вместо да затриват всички стари За съжаление тази точка не може да се види в момента 2.4 Проблем при 3.х беше, че веднъж направеният темплейт не може да се промени Например, имам страници които ползват темплейт A, искам обаче на една страница да имам допълнителен placeholder, ако променя темплейта ще променя всички страници Сега това се решава с Layout контролите, на това нещо страшно много се кефят 2.6 Може да им покажем с таксономиите как освен че могат да имат субсайтове, как могат да категоризират целият content, изображения, т.н 2.7 Вече да, чрез новият Configuration editor My message • My message - Try SF now! – Implement common scenario Be it user management, be it porting/plugging a module you have Hit a problem Take a couple screenshots, put down your scenario and the steps in writing – send it over to Sitefinity devs & support Quick answer is guaranteed • Who has contacted Telerik support before? – It is not the products, but our support – best in the industry - that made our brand Same attitude you got for RadControls and other product suites – same will get with Sitefinity We are looking forward for you to help us tune & adjust Sitefinity to developer scenarios while it is still in its final phase of development OK?