Christopher Hirt Daniel Wells the revolution Christopher Hirt Daniel Wells

Our Current Site Edited with Dreamweaver URLs are not understandable No real control over presentation consistency among multiple authors Creating dynamic content requires a programmer Content is *stuck* inside HTML page structure

Our Current Site Links must be maintained manually Making changes to a page’s content can by cumbersome Changing the same content across multiple pages is a manual process

With (a CMS model) Content is separate from presentation Content is managed via a single, consistent interface and stored in a database Content can be created / edited without knowledge of HTML (WYSIWYG editor / pre-defined content-wrapping templates)

With (a CMS model) Page organization is separate from content organization and storage Pages are ‘aware’ of other related pages Many other advantages…

The End Result We now have the tools to create a fresh, relevant website that can provide cutting-edge web services that our patrons will use.

Getting Started…

Exhibit A: Content Storage All site content is stored in an abstract Content Repository The Content Repository contains Content Objects of various Types (e.g. Basic Content, Research Resources, Staff Profiles)

Content Repository Content Types Content Objects

Manage Pictures Another Content Example

Browsing the Pictures Area

Exhibit A: Content Storage (cont.) Content Types determine which fields can be stored within individual instances (e.g. Staff Profiles would have a “Job Title” field, while Research Resources would have a “Call Number” field, among others)

Modifying Content

Exhibit A: Content Storage (cont.) Categories are used for any Content metadata which commonly spans multiple Object instances (e.g. Staff Profiles can be placed in various “Areas of Responsibility” Categories Any instance of a Content Object can be placed in any number of Categories for later processing and retrieval

Exhibit B: Content Presentation In many cases, content can be viewed alone (in the white area of our page), but in most cases it should be placed within a Page All Pages exist within a Page Hierarchy which gives form to the overall site

The Page Hierarchy

Exhibit B: Content Presentation (cont.) The Page Hierarchy automatically creates Each Page’s URL Links to related Pages from a given Page Each Page’s uniform navigation widgets (i.e. the page’s placement in the “tree” will generate useful navigation links to other pages in the same “branch,” including links back towards the “trunk” (the “breadcrumb” trail), links to neighboring “twigs” (the “siblings” box) and links away from the trunk (the “children” box)

Editing a Page

Exhibit B: Content Presentation (cont.) Pages may contain any number of Page Sections of various types Current Page Section types include: Basic Single (not to be confused with the Basic Content Object type), List, Navigation, and Advanced

Exhibit B: Content Presentation (cont.) The Single Page Section allows you to display a single Content Object

Page Section Types Single Section

Exhibit B: Content Presentation (cont.) The List Page Section allows you to display multiple items which fall within any combination of categories (e.g. list all “Research Databases” in the area of “Music”) List Page Sections are similar to what appears on the Subject Guides, but not predefined or limited

Page Section Types List Section

Exhibit B: Content Presentation (cont.) Lists can also be specified to display as complete items, summaries, or links, allowing the user to save space when full information display of each item is not necessary

Exhibit B: Content Presentation (cont.) Navigation Page Sections allow the user to display more links to the hierarchy than are supplied automatically (e.g. show the entire “Research @ Hekman” tree on one page) In addition, any given portion of the hierarchy can be displayed on any page regardless of relationship (e.g. show our “Policies” tree on a “Welcome” page)

Page Section Types Navigation Section

Exhibit B: Content Presentation (cont.) Navigation Sections are also highly customizable, allowing you to choose how much of the tree to show (depth), how many columns to use, etc.

An Analogy Close to Home… WebSite

Campus Layout / Environment Page Hierarchy

Signs / Maps Getting Around Campus Navigation Signs / Maps Getting Around Campus

Classes and Gatherings Pages

Majors/Minors/Grade Levels Categories

Student Body and Individual People Content Repository and Content Objects