Alan's writing about what he calls "repository folly," where people get so hung up on the "R-word" that they forget about what's important. Metadata becomes king, content and users fall through the cracks.
I couldn't agree more. Metadata, and the "R-Word" should be merely tools, serving specific roles, building to a well defined goal. They shouldn't be the whole widget. Nobody in their right mind would care about either.
I think it's got to be all about getting compelling content created and used. Everything else becomes means to that end. Including CAREO, Pachyderm, the iApps, etc...