Looking backward and forward

Those narrow islands of functionality will exist at the same time a CIO is pursuing an organizationwide, one-size-fits-all approach. The big solution will probably be beyond the financial, managerial and technical capabilities of the organization. A smaller solution-whether on premises or in the cloud—may be appealing because it is lightweight, agile and at a price point that a department can handle. As a result, point solutions will be in demand. Asserting that one should "embrace XML," "embrace open source" or "embrace SharePoint" is seductive. Embracing is easy, making certain technical systems and methods work in an organization that has to solve tough problems right now is expedient.

Exalead

Certain information challenges are what one technology executive at Exalead described as "ungovernable and unmanageable." The idea expressed is that some executives conceive of big ideas but lack the resources to deliver. In the wake of the big idea, point solutions proliferate. Instead of fewer chimneys or what some U.S. executives call "information silos," there are more "pockets" of information. Exalead, to its credit, offers what the firm calls "search-based applications." The idea is that a particular problem such as tracking orders is constructed using what the organization has. The Exalead approach ensures that search is part of the solution, not an afterthought.

In the last year, few organizations have been able to integrate disparate functions smoothly. Hewlett Packard acquired Autonomy, a leader in search and content processing. Now HP must find a way to mesh the Autonomy technology and sales approach with that of a hardware company. Integrating Autonomy's multiple information products, solutions and technologies with its new owner will be a difficult task.

Missteps can even plague a technologically adept firm like Google. This summer, Google delivered to Oracle e-mails that appeared to have been inadvertently included in discovery materials. When a search-centric company like Google cannot locate and filter documents, one knows there may be more to information retrieval than meets the eye.

Challenges ahead

XML itself, therefore, is not a problem. XML is just a convenient hook on which to hang some realities. In 2012, ignoring the past may lead to some cost overruns and reinventing wheels. Janus, therefore, is a useful touchstone. By looking back, it is possible to discern the history of a silver bullet. GML, SGML and XML were intended to resolve problems associated with content, repositories, slicing and dicing information and business processes. Markup languages have not and may not be up to the job. This is not to say that XML cannot solve certain information problems. I am not sure history supports the assertion that XML solves most information problems.

Janus looks forward. Implementing solutions that tackle 21 e-mail systems—or make the data locked within a legacy system unknown to recent computer science graduates—requires hard work. Janus is a reminder, not of silver bullets, but of the technical, management and business challenges digital information presents today. Promising solutions to today's information challenges requires that one look to the past and then to the future. Envisioning a new world is different from creating it.