Slightly off topic, but my dream for the next major version of openACS is possibly implementing sitewide categorisation. I think being able to categorise objects (articles, bboards, individual postings, calender items) would allow openACS to function more as a knowledge management system. At the moment, it seems categories are specific to individual boards.
One of the goals of the APLAWS project seems to have been to allow such categorisation of content based on a single meta-data standard for ALL local authorities in the UK. Sharing a single metadata standard allows for easier sharing of information.
More important than sharing a single metadata standard, is the ability to categorise all the information on a site. One of the bad thing about most organisations' websites is that they reflect more the internal structure of the organisation, instead of providing information in the way that users would look for it.
I see similarities on this board. We are looking to seperate users by skill ... advanced/intermediate/beginner, or by job description ... developer/designer/analyst. Whichever way we seperate the boards will be inadequate for a "site-virgin" looking for information because a thread started in one board will invariably interest an audience in another. Additionally, information exists in other areas as well, from wimpy points, to uploaded files. I know you can crosspost, but can we rely on someone doing this regularly?
Rather, I propose being able to implement categorise information based on one metadata set for the entire site. In this way, information (be it articles, news items, entire forums, individual bboard posts) can be tagged by target audience (designers, analysts), their competency (advanced, beginners) and the category (page design, advocacy, kernel hacking).
Information tagged in this way means users are able to search for it in a way that makes sense to them, which may or may not be the way this group sees things. As an example, I might search for all beginner level information relating to hacking the openACS kernel. Alternatively, I might search for advanced templating information.
