APLAWS Content Management System What is content? Content is a resource Content -articles -reports -pictures -audio - Call each of these a content item

APLAWS Content Management System What is content management? Create the content Store the content Retrieve the content Publish the content Archive the content Manage the content end - to - end

APLAWS Content Management System What is content management? Create content Need systems to manage content Authors - write and produce content Update and change content - editors Describe the content - meta data Keep track of the changes Display the content in the right format Share the content with others

APLAWS Content Management System What is a Content Management System? Stores the content in a database Templates are separate from the content Set of editing tools Workflow can be set up between authors, editors and publishers

APLAWS Content Management System What can a CMS do? Enable self-service Produce consistency Avoid web publishing chaos Help show relationships between content Provide powerful site administration tools Enable same content to be published differently Allow a site to grow in size more effectively Keep track of changes Display different content to different people

APLAWS Content Management System APLAWS CMS Accessible Personalised Local Authority Web Sites Open Source Pathfinder Project Partners - London Boroughs of Camden, Newham, Lewisham, Bromley, Harrow, RNIB, Age Concern, Sun Microsystems, Oracle, Red Hat Linux

APLAWS Content Management System APLAWS Workstreams Content Management Information Architecture Meta Data Usability and accessibility

APLAWS Content Management System Information Architecture Survey of all London Boroughs Web Sites Some with common architecture - but not all Over 500 differently described links Home page links Different ways to describe things - - jobs, vacancies, employment Consistent top level navigation

APLAWS Content Management System Information Architecture A - Z of local authority services Category list Top level set of categories Common elements on a page - latest page update - owner of page - privacy, disclaimer, copyright Common set of URLs - eg

APLAWS Content Management System Meta Data e-GMS - e-Government Metadata Standard e-GMF - e-Government Metadata Framework meta data - key elements to describe content APLAWS metadata list Use of category list and metadata APLAWS has a metadata tool key elements CMS - automate meta data

APLAWS Content Management System Accessibility and Usability e-GIF - e-Government Interoperability Framework Accessible web sites Sites that are easy to use Make site accessible - easier for everyone Use of Templates XML and XSL - create text only version… …but the graphic version is also accessible Research - elderly people in Camden visually impaired users in Bromley and Newham

APLAWS Content Management System Creating a business case May have 100 html pages - may have 1m CMS - easier to increase size Will cost money Potential long term savings Users and staff In Newham, looked at current method - lots of staff going on html authoring courses - 10k over 1 year. How effective? Lot of money going to design which wasnt corporate Work out savings if staff save 15, 30, 60 mins a week Compare costs of user of web, letter, phone call, face to face CMS = higher set up costs, lower running costs reduce risk

APLAWS Content Management System Implementation Cultural change –information strategy –corporate standards and guidelines –govt guidelines –content plan –teams of people? –Technical culture of the organisation?

APLAWS Content Management System Lessons …! One year is a short time in IT development… user evaluation different way of working - costs of web production identified evaluation of pathfinders? What happens next to the products? Its not all about technology - describing and organising content

APLAWS Content Management System Potential... Council tax online? Creating online communities Enabling community publishing Showing relationships - library catalogue and community info Get the users involved from the start = free consultancy Enable effective publishing for non-technical authors Share data more effectively across organisations Share data more effectively within organisations Share and capture data more effectively between users and organisations..

APLAWS Content Management System Resources