The Feasibility of a Content Management Approach for the Delivery of the University of Waterloo Library's Public Web site
- July 11, 2003
- Project Name:UW Library Web site Review
- Project Manager: William Oldfield
- Project Sponsor: Mark Haslett
- Timeframe: July to October 2003
Context:
The Library's Web site was originally published in 1994 by the nine-member Internet Resources Committee. The main site currently includes roughly 11,600 documents (not including images and other supplementary files). The WebOps group was formed in 2001 to manage the day-to-day technical operations of the Web site and to act as a resource for staff contributing to the Web site.
The Web site has grown in size and complexity and much progress has been made in managing it. Some significant parts of the site are delivered dynamically using a database-backed ColdFusion server. Staff have been trained in the use of Dreamweaver, but for the 11,000 pages mentioned above Dreamweaver is still largely used to manage the site page-by-page: each Web page is created and edited as an individual entity and each page mixes content, design, and functionality.
This handcrafted approach means that considerable technical knowledge is required to be able to publish even a simple page on the site and this requirement can only increase as new technology and standards need to be applied to the site, such as university-wide design standards which include W3C industry standards such as XHTML and CSS and standards for accessibility for people with disabilities. Understandably many staff are not inclined to or lack the time to master the technology required to contribute to the site. Their job is to run the library, not to be Web technology experts.
The WebOps group has much of the required know-how but can't apply it effectively because it finds itself increasingly preoccupied with sweeping the entirety of a large site for problems which are continually creeping into the site.
The Library's Web site, to remain effective and to capitalize fully on progress already made, needs to move away from the handcrafted approach toward separating the creation and maintenance of the content of the site from its presentational design and its technological functionality. This would allow the entire Library staff to contribute to the vitality of the site's content and free the WebOps team to apply its expertise to larger issues of site design and functionality.
Project Purpose:
The disciplined separation of content from the presentation and delivery of that content has become known as content management. Content management is designed to facilitate the efficient publishing of information. Many software tools have been developed to provide an infrastructure for content management. A comprehensive, end-to-end tool for content management is frequently called a Content Management Systems (CMS). However, implementation of content management includes considerably more than a hardware and software infrastructure, and a significant issue is how that infrastructure meshes with the work-flow of the people who create, maintain and publish content.
The purpose of the study is to determine the feasibility of automating the production of the Library's Web site.
- identifying where the functioning of the Library and its service to its patrons could be improved substantially by application of content management techniques to its Web site
- learning how modern Web sites can be created and managed more efficiently than the traditional handcrafted method and what the costs and benefits are of alternative approaches
- analyzing the specific problems entailed in publishing the current site
- analyzing the requirements of the Library in managing content to be delivered via the Web
- analyzing how a work-flow consistent with the Library's current functioning could be formalized to allow a suitable automation of Web site production
Reporting/Deliverables:
An interim report, with recommendations, will be submitted to the Project Sponsor by the end of September 2003 and will be reviewed by other groups including DLCC, WebOps, and ISMC. A final report will be submitted by October 31, 2003.
Project Scope:
Includes:
- introducing review group members to the principles and challenges of content management applied to Web sites
- developing a clear understanding of the three phases of content management: Asset Management, Transformation, and Publishing
- clarifying the purpose and audience of the Library's Web site
- investigating how others (particularly academic libraries) have made use of a content management regimen and the fruits of their experience
- identifying the various work-flow processes currently used in the creation of the Library's Web site
- identifying the resources required to implement the recommendations
Does Not Include:
- implementing any content management recommendations of the Review Team
Resources Required:
Review Team:
- Web Maintenance: Marian Davies, Wish Leonard, Douglas Morton, Jim Parrott
- WebOps: Marina Wan, Esther Millar
- Library Systems: Chris Gray
- IST: Stephen Markan, Pat Lafranier
- Information & Public Affairs: Jessie Rodgers
- Project Manager/Facilitator: William Oldfield
Assumptions, Constraints and other contextual issues:
- The UW Library Web site currently includes roughly 11,600 documents (not including images and other supplementary files). More than a dozen people participate in the creation and maintenance of the Web site Any content management infrastructure to be effective must be able to handle this size of Web site and the variety of workflow scenarios that are used by those maintaining the site.
- Any system must comply with W3C industry standards such as XHTML and CSS as well as standards for accessibility for people with disabilities.
- Any system must comply with Campus guidelines and standards regarding UW web sites.
- Any proposed content management tools should fit within the Library's existing computing environment.
Benefits:
- simplify the workflow and possibly lighten the work-load that the Web site currently represents to all staff involved in its production
- allow the entire library staff to make timely contributions to the content of the Web site without the need to be Web publishing experts
- ensure up-to-date and timely information is delivered from all pages to users
- to provide a consistent and easily navigable site to facilitates use
- free the Library's Web team from assisting in micro-management of the site contents and allow them to concentrate on improving the design, architecture, functionality, and versatility of the site
- allow the Web site to be more flexible in responding to change by managing many aspects of design and functionality on a larger scale rather than at the level of individual Web pages
- provide a potential model for other campus Web sites
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July 13, 2005
