Wolfram Publicon, a new integrated software solution for composing sophisticated technical documents, is now available from Wolfram Research. Created for the growing number of academic researchers, students, and industry professionals who need to create or publish documents with technical content, Publicon produces platform- independent files that can be exported to HTML, XML, LaTeX, or custom Publicon formats. Publicon incorporates math typesetting technology with additional templates for chemical equations, special characters, and symbols to produce publication-quality documents. Mathematical notation from a Publicon document can be copied and pasted for computation in Mathematica, allowing readers meaningful and dynamic interaction with the text. Publicon is available for Windows and Mac OS X. The suggested retail price is USD $149. http://www.wolfram.com/publicon

Open Text Corporation’s FirstClass division announced the release of FirstClass 8.0, a major evolution of the company’s suite of integrated communication and messaging capabilities. The release includes both the FirstClass Business Edition and the FirstClass Education Edition, which is tailored to meet the requirements of FirstClass’ education customer base. FirstClass 8.0 new features include advances in system security and manageability, in performance and scalability, and in collaboration and customization capabilities. The new FirstClass Directory Services (FCDS) module facilitates the integration of FirstClass into corporate meta-directory environments including LDAP and Microsoft Active Directory. FCDS enables bi-directional user administration between FirstClass and meta-directories, as well as providing access to FirstClass directories from end-user client applications. FCDS also provides single sign-in support through external authentication. FirstClass 8.0 will be available on a wide variety of computing platforms, including Microsoft Windows (95, 98, NT, 2000, and XP versions), Apple Macintosh (OS 8, OS 9 and OS X versions), HTML/Web, and Linux. FirstClass 8.0 is available for free to all customers who are members of the FirstClass Support and Maintenance Program. www.opentext.com

Microsoft Corp. announced two new Web Part toolkits and a Web services toolkit for Microsoft SharePoint Products and Technologies that enable them to connect systems from multiple vendors using XML Web services standards. Available at no charge on GotDotNet.com, and complete with source code, the two Web Part toolkits represent additions to Microsoft’s array of XML Web Parts by facilitating the integration of Microsoft Office SharePoint Portal Server 2003 and Windows SharePoint Services sites with information line-of-business applications from SAP AG and other vendors. Microsoft’s WSRP Web Part Toolkit for SharePoint Products and Technologies leverages the Web Services for Remote Portlets (WSRP) specification created by the OASIS to enable developers to build portlets that interact with other portal sites regardless of the business system they use. The WSRP Web Part Toolkit includes a ready-to-install “consumer” component that displays WSRP portlet services provided by a variety of vendors within Web Part pages hosted by Windows SharePoint Services and SharePoint Portal Server 2003. Microsoft also is providing a WSRP Web Services Toolkit for SharePoint Products and Technologies that explains and provides examples for creating and deploying WSRP-compliant producer Web services. Microsoft also released its Web Part Toolkit for SharePoint Products and Technologies for SAP iViews. www.microsoft.com

Interwoven, Inc. announced that it is extending its e-mail Management solution to support businesses using Lotus Notes. The new E-mail Management for Notes solution is an addition to already available solutions for Microsoft Outlook and Novell GroupWise. Interwoven’s E-mail Management solution is based on Interwoven WorkSite 8, a collaborative document management system. The solution offers relief to organizations challenged with addressing records retention policies and removing the risks created by e-mail and documents disassociated and split between multiple repositories. The new E-mail Management for Lotus Notes solution helps provide for better records keeping and knowledge management by delivering distributed access to a virtual engagement workspace that provides a single view into the full scope of matter or project-related content. www.interwoven.com

Factiva announced the availability of search and tracking tools for customers of BEA WebLogic Portal 8.1. The new Factiva tools are designed to integrate with BEA’s portal via standards-based portlets. BEA WebLogic Portal 8.1 is designed to enable customers to integrate Factiva content using the JSR168 standard for portlet integration. This allows BEA’s customers to download and integrate business information from Factiva and other BEA partner Web sites into their own BEA WebLogic-based portals and wireless browser devices in a virtually plug and play mode. www.factiva.com

Open Text Corporation said it will acquire Artesia Technologies, Inc. “Close of the transaction is imminent.” The acquisition expands Open Text’s rich media integration and management capabilities as part of its ECM suite, and provides a platform from which to address the content management needs of media and marketing professionals. Artesia provides customer organizations and their marketing and distribution partners with the ability to easily access and collaborate around a centrally managed collection of digital media elements. Applications include: Production Asset Management – Content reuse and collaboration at the center of creative process for digital media content; Brand Asset Management – Control over and reuse of the digital media elements used in marketing campaigns; Distribution Asset Management – Streamlining the distribution of digital media and digital marketing materials to the supply chain; and Rich Digital Media Asset Management – Enhances content management and collaboration by extending search, retrieval, viewing and analysis to rich digital media content and its associated metadata. The transaction is not material to the financial results or operations of Open Text. The acquisition will be discussed during Open Text’s fourth quarter earnings conference call, scheduled for Tuesday, August 31, 2004. www.opentext.com, www.artesia.com

Endeca announced the immediate availability of Endeca ProFind 4.5, a new version of the company’s enterprise search and navigation platform. Endeca ProFind combines search, Guided Navigation and Content Spotlighting capabilities to help organizations integrate and take advantage of structured, semi-structured and unstructured enterprise data. Endeca ProFind 4.5 includes several new features designed to improve relevancy, customize the discovery process and further simplify administration and management. These features include: personalization, a seach application wizard, expanded relevancy ranking capabilities for unstructured data, enhanced classification and taxonomy management, new administration tools, and a new web-based interface to simplify administration and maintenance of Endeca implementations. Endeca also announced immediate availability of Endeca InFron 4.5, a new version of their commerce search, navigation and merchandising solution. www.endeca.com

Tablus, Inc. announced the latest version of their content security solution, Content Alarm 1.1. Content Alarm monitors all outgoing traffic at the network perimeter and accurately identifies sensitive content leaving the network in email or email attachments, HTTP posts, FTP transmissions and other traffic protocols. Content Alarm employs an advanced Linguistic Analysis Engine to determine if data leaving the network matches any content that has been designated as protected. Because Content Alarm monitors content transmission instead of document access, it can detect a wide range of violations, e.g., if paragraphs of a strategic plan are pasted into an outgoing email message. Content Alarm looks at all traffic exiting on multiple protocols, not just email. Completely non-intrusive and transparent to end-users, Content Alarm tracks email attachments, FTP file transfers, HTTP posts and more. Sophisticated policy tools support audits of all or only selected activities. For example, certain transactions, such as data transmissions to a specific destination can trigger an audit. Content Alarm 1.1 is currently available. www.tablus.com