IMS5401 Web-based Systems Development

1. IMS5401Web-based Systems Development Topic 3: Development for the web 3(e) Evaluation and site maintenance

2. Agenda • Designing for site maintainability • Site maintenance • Maintaining content and CMS

3. 1. Designing for site maintainability • Any collection of information usually loses currency and value if not regularly up-dated • Rate of declining information value will vary according to site purpose - one day out of date? one month out of date? ten years out-of-date? • (Contrast with typical IS; remember the Y2K problem?) • Design of all sites must take account of up-dating needs

4. Types of up-dating requirements • Common problems: • Out-of-date (incorrect) information • Out-of-date (incomplete) information • Out-dated site style • Out-dated technology • Falling behind web and organisational ‘standards’ • ‘Dead’ site links • All of these may severely reduce the ability of the site to serve its information purpose

5. Implications for design • Any responsible site developer must include consideration of up-dating needs in their site design • ‘Elegance’ and sophistication of design may have to be compromised to cater for up-dating considerations • In particular, take account of expertise of people available to do the up-dating work

6. 2. Web site maintenance • Several possible types of maintenance need: • Maintaining content • Maintaining design • Maintaining technology • Distinguish between routine (on-going maintenance) and major reviews • Need for and frequency of maintenance should be assessed at the time of site design • Design may have to be modified to keep in line with maintenance capabilities

7. Maintaining site content • ALL web sites run the risk of their content becoming out-of-date or incorrect • Likelihood, frequency and extent of content change is an important design issue • If not planned properly, up-dating content may become a new web development project in its own right • Up-dated content (modify existing) - relatively simple issue • Adding new types of content - may be much more complex

8. Maintaining site design • Fashion and its importance - look and feel; their impact on site usability and appeal • Changing web ‘standards’ • User expectations • Compatibility with changing organisational standards (logos, publication standards, etc)

9. Maintaining site technology • Hardware considerations • User computers - monitors, capabilities • Access speeds - bandwidth • Software considerations • Browsers • Plug-ins • Standards • Mark-up languages • Scripting languages

10. Site maintenance tasks • Site design and content should be regularly reviewed and evaluated against user needs • Frequency of site reviews should be determined by the nature of the information need it meets • Reviews should include input from relevant groups such as: • Users • Graphic designers • Content experts • Technical experts • Should provide a clear picture of what has to be done and by when

11. Site evaluation • User response is harder to gauge than in ‘normal’ systems • Hit rates and other useless statistics • Evaluating site usability AND user satisfaction • Serious site evaluation • Audiences and their needs • Focus groups • Market research • See people like Jakob Nielsen for ideas and methods for evaluation

12. Site evaluation outcome • Measure objective features of site usability (eg WWW guidelines, etc) • Get a picture of subjective user response to site content and site usability • Provides basis for extension, enhancement and amendment of site and site content (or perhaps abandonment of site?!)

13. Who manages site and content maintenance? • The team which creates a site will probably cease to be responsible for it after site installation • So who is responsible for maintaining the site and its content? • Can the site design enable users to ensure that site content remains suitable (see CMS below)? • For how long will the site design remain suitable? • Note that post-installation problems should be a major factor in initial analysis and design!

14. 3. Maintaining content and Content Management Systems (CMS) • Promises to automate processes for up-grading web site content (and design) • Can also provide editorial control over content management • Some key possible features (uses): • Make authoring easier • Enable faster up-dating (maintain currency) • Enforce standards/consistency • Enforce approval process • Monitor; audit trails/roll back

15. Content Management Systems(diagram adapted from Ellis, 2002 at www.alistapart.com/stories/cms1 Designer Design templates Up-graded Content Editorial control Web server Content templates Content provider Content ManagementSoftware

16. CMS Industry • Has become a multi-billion dollar industry • Huge range of products, prices, features and claimed capabilities • Examples include • Vignette • Interwoven • Microsoft Content Management Server • Macromedia Contribute • etc

17. CMS Products • Have a look at www.cmswatch.com • Note: • Quantity of products (>1000) • Price of products ($0-300,000+) • Monash example: TeamSite (Interwoven) • 129,000 files (expect increase to 500,000 files) • 337 changes per day (April 2005) • 68,000 changes since Sept 2004

18. How well do CMS work? • They promise … the world • They deliver: • … something? • … at what cost? (money, time, effort, expertise) • … and it works … how well? • Anecdotally, much dissatisfaction for many users … but maybe some happy users? • Still developing; will improve; will it ever deliver what it has promised? • Base your expectations on what it actually does, not on what it claims