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dotCMS 5.2 Delivers Personalization for Headless and Hybrid Content Delivery

Oct 07, 2019

dotCMS, the leading open-source Java CMS, has released dotCMS 5.2, which enables fully personalized content delivery for all content channels, including API driven headless SPAs.  dotCMS 5.2 also sports a simplified starter site, improved image editing with optimized Webp image delivery, form building that works headlessly, automatic workflow triggers, and relevant updates to dotCMS APIs. 

This release builds upon the marketer-friendly and NoCode foundations laid out in the pivotal releases of dotCMS 5.0 and dotCMS 5.1. Between them, those two releases brought about features and functionalities such as drag-and-drop workflow and layout editors, as well as Edit Mode Anywhere, all of which advanced dotCMS’s NoCode environment by enabling marketers and business users to directly and codelessly manage content, pages, and campaigns in a headless CMS scenario. By putting the power in the hands of the business users, dotCMS’s NoCode initiatives in the 5.x Series allow businesses to realize a faster time to value and show a clear ROI of their CMS.

Along with a slew of minor tweaks and fixes, dotCMS 5.2 brings the following key capabilities:

dotCMS 5.2 For Marketers

  • Personalized Content Delivery via API: dotCMS now lets marketers build rules and  personas and deliver personalized experiences to targeted audiences regardless of how they are consuming the content.

  • Simplified Starter: dotCMS has a new start site that includes the best practices for using the platform, and there's also the option for an empty starter site for those that are already familiar with dotCMS.

  • Better Image Editing: The image editor in dotCMS now shows the size and compression of images. There's also now support for WebP compressed images and the ability to resize or shorten animated GIFs. 

  • Revamped Form Building: The form builder in dotCMS has a new JavaScript library for forms and data collection and can be used in both traditional and headless implementations.

  • Automatic Workflow Triggers: Marketers can now assign a default action for new content if there's no first step specified. This ensures all form information and content in dotCMS is placed into a workflow when it's initially created.

dotCMS 5.2 For Developers

  • Enhanced APIs: dotCMS’s out-of-the-box APIs have been enhanced and updated to allow users to upload temporary files asynchronously, and then use them to set data when saving content via API.

  • Enriched API Reporting: In the API calls, clearer validation errors are now returned in the response to improve troubleshooting when building integrations with adjacent applications based on API calls.

  • New Starter Site: The new release comes with a revamped starter site based on a different, more generic theme with more best-practices already included to get your project going.

  • Native Support for WebP Format: When building Progressive Web Applications (PWAs), we see a growing need for the native support of the WebPi image format which can result in 30-45% smaller image file sizes at similar image quality. dotCMS 5.2 will support WebP out-of-the-box, next to the existing image formats (.png, .jpg). 

dotCMS CTO Will Ezell claimed that this latest dotCMS release was, “more proof that dotCMS is determined to continuously deliver marketer-friendly environments and developer-ready technologies that support cutting-edge customer experiences.”

For more on the latest dotCMS release, watch our webinar ‘What to Expect in dotCMS 5.2’ or try a dotCMS demo.

About dotCMS

dotCMS is a content management system that helps global enterprises with multiple brands, subsidiaries and franchises, manage, optimize and scale content across languages and channels. Brands such as Dairy Queen, Newell, Firstmac, Telus and Comcast have chosen dotCMS for its unique ability to manage thousands of sites and consolidate multiple CMS' onto a single, unified instance of dotCMS to streamline content operations across teams while saving money on platform costs.

dotCMS' hybrid approach to content management also means that companies have the choice to deliver content traditionally or headlessly. Headless developers can work within the front-end framework of choice, while still providing marketers with visual editing tools so they can go-to-market with their business-critical content and decrease their dependency on technical teams.