Managing Editor Inc. (MEI) announced the availability of version 5.1 of the K4 Publishing System, a professional publishing solution for Adobe InDesign-based workflows. Featuring support for regional editions or multi-version publications, e-mail notifications of assignments, virtual layouts for issue planning integration, and object rules for connecting digital asset management systems, version 5.1 expands the range of workflow setups with K4 and provides better overall integration into publishing enterprise environments. In K4 version 5.1, each frame in an InDesign document can contain multiple variations of text, images, ads or multimedia content. For multi-language publications, each set of text frames can contain a different language variant. K4 version 5.1 allows data from ad layout and asset management systems to be sent to K4 directly via XML as object rules. K4 can read and interpret these rules to build layouts and/or place objects dynamically, then send back information about the placed files and page statusas well as JPG previews of InDesign pagesto the integrated system. Object rules for images or multimedia objects can be sent to K4 from asset management systems or image databases in the same way. K4 Publishing System 5.1 is available for Mac OS X and Windows XP/2000/2003. Its TCP/IP-based SQL database can run on OS X server, Windows XP/2000/2003 server, Linux and Sun Solaris. www.maned.com

Vignette Corp. and Access Distribution, a General Electric company and a value-added distributor of complex computing solutions announced a distribution relationship whereby Access Distribution will make a mutually agreed selection of Vignette solutions available to its reseller partners. With the agreement, Access Distribution will add Vignette portal and collaboration solutions to its portfolio of enterprise application software solutions. Access Distribution will also offer service, education and maintenance programs to its newly recruited authorized resellers throughout North America. Vignette solutions will augment existing products and services offered through Access Distribution’s Sun Business and Enterprise Solutions groups. Adding Vignette solutions to its portfolio helps Access Distribution as it furthers its move into the enterprise applications software market space, which was announced in December 2004. www.vignette.com, www.geaccess.com

Belus Technology announced Version 1.5 of XStandard, a WYSIWYG editor for Windows and browser-based content management systems (IE/Mozilla/Firefox/ActiveX). The new version of XStandard brings significant performance enhancements, including a loading time for the editor that is five times faster than previous versions, and under half a second on the average computer. Version 1.5 of XStandard also introduces a unique “Heartbeat” feature that ensures content is not lost when editing sessions are “timed out” and authors are forcibly logged off their content management system. By sending regular “pulses” to the server, the Heartbeat ensures that Session state remains open for as long as authors need to complete their work. Whatever the author’ skill level, XStandard always generates clean XHTML Strict or 1.1. http://xstandard.com

McLaren Software and FileNet Corporation announced the general availability of McLaren Enterprise Engineer for the FileNet P8 Enterprise Content Management (ECM) platform. McLaren Enterprise Engineer is a suite of configurable, out-of-the-box applications for the management of all forms of engineering content. The suite of applications is designed to meet the business requirements of organizations in process manufacturing, oil and gas, utilities, government, and design & construction sectors, as well as other organizations operating large production facilities and similar assets. Enterprise Engineer is designed to accelerate the business processes associated with engineering content, such as drawings, correspondence, procedures, specifications and other related documents. www.mclarensoftware.com, www.FileNet.com

IBM has launched a broad array of software and technologies. The new technology and services are designed to give organizations the choice and flexibility to build the “front end” of their collaborative solutions – on a variety of client devices, from PCs to mobile devices. Along with new enhancements to Lotus Notes and Domino, IBM is introducing new WebSphere Portal and Workplace solutions. These three product families form the core of IBM’s collaboration portfolio. The new version of Lotus Notes and Domino, WebSphere Portal and the Workplace platform are designed to help organizations extend the reach and value of their back-end systems and all play a key role in increasing collaboration and productivity for employees, customers and partners. In addition to new software enhancements, IBM is also introducing new Workplace development tools, enhanced business partner programs and a new hosted solution that allows customers to leverage IBM collaborative software on demand. New products include: Notes and Domino 7, Workplace Collaborative Services, IBM Web Services for Remote Portlets (WSRP) Self-Service Validation Site, IBM Workplace for Business Controls and Reporting (WBCR), and more. www.software.ibm.com

PaperThin, Inc. announced the availability of CommonSpot Content Server version 4.5, the company’s Web content management solution. This major release introduces expanded authoring features like rich text editing for Mac, collaborative authoring and email review, a Web Services-based content import facility, a taxonomy module, and several features that benefit organizations with a large-scale Web presence. Several new features have been added that directly benefit content authors. Full authoring and administrative functionality is now available under any Mozilla-based browser, including Mozilla 1.7, FireFox 1.0, and Netscape 7.2. Content can now be authored, published or approved on the Mac, Windows and Linux platforms. Additionally, CommonSpot 4.5 supports collaborative authoring, enabling content authors to view ‘Work in Progress’ by other authors, and if authorized, take ownership of the content for further editing. A new ‘Email Review’ feature has also been added. A Web Services-based content import facility now available enables developers to initially populate a CommonSpot site with content from external sites or systems, and allows for the ongoing consumption of syndicated content. Additional enterprise level functionality introduced in CommonSpot 4.5 includes a transaction/audit log which provides the ability to track all contributor actions and events to better comply with audit trail regulations. Full UTF-8 support enables organizations to publish content in any language including multi-byte UNICODE languages. www.paperthin.com

CM Professionals, a group of content management professionals from around the world, elected its first formal Board of Directors. The new Board roster includes: Ann Rockley, President; Erik Hartman, Vice President; Seth Gottlieb, Treasurer; Samantha Starmer, Secretary; and Frank Gilbane. The election marks a kind of coming of age of the organization, which was formerly launched in October, 2004. Now with more than 250 members from around the world, CM Pros is expanding rapidly. The new board – which take the reins from an interim board – will be charged with converting a variety of strong program ideas from members into active initiatives. Early accomplishments include a resource gallery, active mailing lists, and a successful member “summit” in Boston, USA. CM Professionals is the premier community of practice for people involved with managing content for electronic and other media. CM Professionals collects, develops, organizes and provides access to knowledge about content management through online resources, email interaction and face-to-face summits. By identifying, refining, publicizing and advocating for respected content management practices and models, CM Professionals educates and fosters interaction among content management professionals, enterprise leadership, product vendors and university educators. www.cmprofessionals.org