Mojo, this isn't an answer to your inquiry, but an opinion regarding CF and Macromedia, facing Zope. I don't have a working knowlegde of Cold Fusion, but I did bet on Dreamweaver since the very early stages of its development - meaning the beta versions-, when nobody thought Macromedia could succeed at building a killer web designer like DW is today, because it was engineered from sratch, and we all know that when an application is written like that, the obvious risk is that users get intimidated by knew GUIs, leading them to loose interest at their fancy features. Macromedia did succeed, and now Cold Fusion belongs to them. If I were to give a simple recommendation I'd say "just stay with Macromedia. They also know multimedia, and you'll count on internet media tools, tightly integrated to all your MM previous systems, when you need them." But I choose Zope. Not because it's a standard (it isn't), not because it's easy to learn (it isn't), not because its completely documented (it isn't), but because its object oriented architecture. Zope is a very smart framework to start the building of complex applications, because when you think of a new internet app, you always think of folders and pages, not tables and adapters. I'm also aware that this extraodinary buzz on Zope wouldn't be possible if it wasn't Open Source, so that's a bonus. I don't know CF but I'm sure that you couldn't blame on them because a simple feature isn't there, because that's the software you bought, keep it or leave it :) . On the contrary, because Zope it's open, you know you can modify it until it performs exactly the way you want it, even as a development tool. The only way I'd give CF a try is when it becomes open. Would that be possible, given the fact they've already given away the Flash format? Ausum Mojo Clark wrote:

This email I received from the head of our IS dept. explains my situation (posted with sender's permission after anonymizing it).

======================================================== As you are all well aware there has been a recent surge in the amount of

web

design work that staff has been seeking. This has brought to light the fact that we need to have a standard in web design software. I am referring to design software that takes us beyond the level of what programs like Dreamweaver and Front Page can do. I believe the two options we have here are Zope and ColdFusion.

Please put together a list of pros and cons regarding what you would like to use to accomplish some of our more intensive web design tasks. Send your lists to me via e-mail by the 26th of July and I will compile them into something that we can sit down and work through and come up with a decision on what our standard should be. I have checked to see if [the parent company] has a standard and it appears that they do not as they do not have a true web design group.

Due to the increasing amount of work, I would like to make a decision on this rather quickly so as not to delay the production of any projects. ============================================================

I've been a Zopista for about a year so I can address the benefits of Zope, but I am not knowledgeable regarding ColdFusion. What is driving the pro-ColdFusion push is our graphics department whose main web tool is Dreamweaver. They don't do dynamic web programming or database integration and it took some explaining to move the choice from Zope vs. Dreamweaver to Zope vs. ColdFusion.

I am looking for reasons why Zope is a better choice than ColdFusion. Any knowledgeable responses greatly appreciated.

I sense that using Zope would be a non-issue if the graphics dept. was assured that they wouldn't have to abandon their GUI-based design tools. Does anyone have experience collaborating with Zope where the non-programming graphics people are sharing the Zope interface? Have you been able to find a mutually agreeable arrangement?

There has been plenty of discussion regarding "Zopeweaver" but it sounds like integration is limited.

-mojo clark

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