Archive for the ‘Portals’ Category

Exploit code for Oracle 10g Databases

Tuesday, October 25th, 2005

Exploit code is being circulated that can crash both patched and unpatched Oracle 10g databases. The code, posted on the mailing list, exploits a buffer overflow vulnerability in certain versions of Oracle’s databases and could be used by attackers to bring down a database.

Read more at

Exploit code for Oracle hole surfaces

Exploit Code Released for Oracle Hole

Plumtree G6

Tuesday, October 18th, 2005

In one of my earlier posts I mentioned about “Plumtree getting ready to launch major new version” but not much information was available about the changes in the new release.

Plumtree recently released G6 which focuses on Seven Key areas:

  • Extensive infrastructure improvements
    • Unifies the Plumtree architecture for JSR-168 and WSRP portlet consumption.
    • Improved flexibility for content crawler configuration & performance, including
      threading and memory management.
  • Extended platform support, including Linux
  • Expanded development capabilities
    • Added an extensive array of new features to Foundation G6 that focus on developer
      needs and streamlining the development process.
    • Deploying applications via the Portal
    • Adaptive Tag Infrastructure -– Development Shortcuts
    • AJAX API – Advanced Application Interfaces
    • Portlet Debug – Resolve Issues Faster
  • Rapid customization & application deployment
  • Advanced security and permissioning
  • Easier access to key information
  • Simplified installation

Now its Oracle Portlet Factory

Friday, September 30th, 2005

Oracle recently announced the ‘Oracle Portlet Factory’ development tool to help organizations to build composite applications that handle data from various enterprise business applications like SAP AG, PeopleSoft, JD Edwards, Siebel and Oracle E-Business Suite applications. For example, Oracle Factory includes SAP adapter, along with drag and drop functional components, and integrated portlet development environment that will enhance building portlets from SAP application. Portlet Factory uses technology licensed from Bowstreet, a leading provider of portal-based tools and solutions.
Market is growing up with Portlet Factory tools with Bowstreet as the prime player. IBM has its own RAD tool which is pretty powerful. There is another similar RAD tool to be launched soon.

Oracle Unveils Portlet Factory

Oracle Portlet Factory to Enable SOA-Based Portlet Development

Oracle’s hot-pluggable middleware

Wednesday, September 28th, 2005

Oracle in their recent Oracle OpenWorld announced ‘hot-pluggable’ middleware architecture that will help Oracle applications to work within competitors portal and vice versa as long as they follow standards. Oracle middleware is architected as a suite of products which include Oracle’s portal, identity management, business integration, business intelligence, management products, developer tools, and directory.

Check out more details at

Oracle’s Pluggable Middleware

Oracle offers ‘hot-pluggable’ middleware

Sun Portal Server and Fatwire Spark pCM

Thursday, September 15th, 2005

Sun Microsystem and Fatwire Software announced an agreement to provide unlimited licenses use of FatWire Spark Portal Content Management (pCM) to all the new and existing Sun Java System Portal Server customers. This include Sun Java(TM) Enterprise System (Java ES) and Sun Java Application Platform Suite subscribers. This will help customers to access range of functions from within Java System Portal Server portlets, including:

  • Content Creation & Management which will allow business users to create and manage content from within the portal interface
  • Content Delivery which includes four pre-built reference portlets for content display and provides developer interfaces and documentation for rapidly building additional portlets
  • Administration that helps administrators manage asset types and publishing processes

Fatwire is able to successfully manage its own Spark CMS product even after acquiring divine Content Management system and now looking forward to grow its product in collaboration with Sun. But we need to wait and see how it affects Fatwire CMS.

Plumtree getting ready to launch major new version

Monday, September 5th, 2005

As Plumtree gets ready for its merger with BEA, it is all set to go ahead with its plan to launch new major Plumtree Portal software version 6.0. Though not much information is shared with respect to what’s new in the upcoming release the news is that it will include Plumtree’s broadest support to date for different system configurations.

Also, BEA has hinted that it will continue developing Plumtree’s software as an independent product line, and all Plumtree’s communications with customers so far indicate that product support won’t be interrupted.

Plumtree, though has been doing good but lately strugged in market against the other giants which often sell portal software as an add-on to customers buying from their broader software stacks.

The release is planned at its user conference next month.

Another Acquisition

Tuesday, August 23rd, 2005

BEA today announced to acquire Plumtree Portal software. Plumtree is a Java server based Portal combining portal, content management, collaboration, and integration and search technologies in one solution. Plumtree has various product suits:

  • The Plumtree Corporate Portal
  • Plumtree Collaboration Server
  • Plumtree Content Server
  • Plumtree Search Server
  • Plumtree Studio Server
  • Integration Services

Plumtree has proven itself from time to time though there has been some areas where Plumtree has not done particularly well. Some of those are

  • Cross-platform support: Though plumtree is moving into the cross-platform market, it falls short in cross-platform support in comparison to other players in market like Epicentric.
  • Cost: Standard gadgets cost extra in case of plumtree while some of the other players includes them with their standard packages.
  • Layout Design: Plumtree’s options for placing gadgets on the pages for layout design are nothing special; they simply let you choose a column for the content. Other portals, like Netegrity’s, are better than Plumtree’s in this area.
  • Structured/Unstructured Data: Plumtree only support unstructured data. But , a spokesperson for Plumtree, said Corporate Portal can support structured data since it tap into a wide variety of meta data.

Now with BEA acquiring Plumtree we need to wait and see how BEA strengthen Plumtree Portal and what impact it will have on Weblogic Portal Server.