[Zope] RE: Workflow and document management system in Zope

[Nicolas Pettiaux]

Dear Mr boulanger,

Under the suggestion of Jerry, I came to look at your contribution t the zope 
mailing list (I am really new at usins and experimenting ZOpe).

I am looking for a workflow (WF) linked to a electronic document management 
(EDM) system and a groupware email based (I have just happened to come 
accross aethera from the Kompany) that would be free software and preferably 
in Zope + Python. The WF+DEM system I am looking for need to be usable with 
only a browser (to be independant from the client ... that could be 
proprietary !), store its data into a postgresql database. It should be 
demonstrablable (at least showable into a proof of concept) within 2 weeks 
and be already installable and usable within 2 or 3 months. (I have obtained 
taoday that the date when we'll decide on the system would be postponed 2 
weeks from wednesday 24/1 to wed 7/2)
If I could find such a marvel, I may find the money to pay for it, at least 
50000 $ to start with (this amount is a rapid guess; I may give more precise 
amounts we could spend in the following week) 

The idea is to use that combination of tools INSTEAD of buying a closed, 
proprietary solution (that may exist but be expensive and really har to 
parametrize), that NEED to be linked to a SAP ERP system. 

All suggestions and ideas are welcome, also on the selection criteria.

(I happen to be responsible for the IT dept of the public institution that 
wants to buy such a tool, but be new in the place and do not yet know a lot 
about WF and EDM !)

Soon I may be able to give you more details about the requirements.

-- quoted from your mails -- 
   I am very interested in a general, fairly full featured  workflow system
   on top of Zope as opposed to using an external workflow product for a
   fundamental reason. While one could come up with a way of getting what I
   need with an external system, it would be messy. I need workflows to be
   explicit and versioned. We make use of ZODB to version content that end
   users generate. We don't make use of Zope's versioning but use or own
   hierarchical version tree which is easy to do in Zope. End users
   generate new workflows and revisit  past workflows. The user sees this
   versioning as notebook pages using a scientific notebook metaphor.

+ also 

http://www.ics.uci.edu/pub/endeavors/endeavors.html

See also the papers and the web-based workflow thesis at:

http://www.ics.uci.edu/pub/endeavors/docs/papers/

   It is much cleaner to use ZODB and ZPublisher to do all this instead of
   having a version tree in Zope and a bunch of correspondences to outside
   objects in an external workflow system. Thus,  there is a lot of value
   in having a fairly general workflow system whose representation and
   publishing uses ZODB and ZPublisher.

 By the way, if there are other folks interested in such a workflow
 system let me know. We may just bite the bullet and build one. I have
 who will do most of the coding in mind. 

> Especially I don't.  What are the deadline you may think about ? What would 
> be the developpement and support cost you or the people you can think about 
> may charge ? (added by Nicolas)

 What will be produced is a  Zope-based workflow system with a java thin 
client visual workflow/dataflow  editor. Right now I do not have the funding 
but folks with resources could speak now ;-).

> Here do I do it.

Thanks for your interest.

Best regards,

Nicolas


Regards,
Albert Boulanger
CTO
vPatch Technologies
aboulanger@vpatch.com
http://www.vpatch.com

-- 
Nicolas Pettiaux
Avenue du Pérou 29
B-1000 Brussels