Click here to receive your FREE subscription to Campus Technology
Features
Vanguard University: Streamlining Campus Web Publishing
9/26/2002
With Vanguard’s enterprise-class CMS package in place, I can now teach university staff and faculty “how to fish” rather than just “giving them a fish.” I have no concerns about bad HTML, rogue scripts, or someone inadvertently changing the look and feel of the site. I can turn people loose to build out the site’s content while I focus on building back-end and middle-tier features to improve the site for visitors, faculty and staff. Recently, I rolled out a new search engine and added hardware to handle increasing visitor traffic. I’ve also developed a custom press release application that functions seamlessly alongside the CMS.
While it’s impossible to overstate the difference to my job and the benefits to our Web site since the transition to our current CMS, the work is not yet finished. I have drastically reduced time spent training Web editors and the time it takes to update the site, but some departments are already “maxed out” with other work and don’t have time to perform routine site updates. The idea of a Web-centric marketing plan is also still percolating through the university. These two issues, and others, require further work so that the CMS fits better into our particular campus culture.
Content management systems provide powerful functionality for Web professionals to Web-enable people across an organization, allowing them to take a more active role in optimizing the value of the Web site. I will keep evangelizing about Web site value, while working toward a realistic content management process for faculty and staff. None of this would be possible without the CMS at our disposal. Everything has indeed changed.
|
Is it Better to Buy or Build? Building may be the right answer for some, especially if there’s concern about limitations associated with locking into a “do-it-all” out-of-the-box product. Custom-development, however, can take a substantial investment of time and money. If you’re considering the “build” option — whether in-house or via contract — be sure to evaluate the investment of time and money associated with developing a custom system and the flexibility it will offer in the future. Some CMS vendors now offer a “component-based” approach, where the CMS d'es not dictate the site’s infrastructure. Instead, the CMS is a building block for the site. This building block offers core CM functionality, then functions with the site’s business logic and other third-party components (for e-commerce, Web trends analysis, site/page speed, etc.). If you’re looking for an off-the-shelf system, remember CM systems vary widely. Carefully define the scope of what you need, then shop for a system rather than letting the shopping experience dictate a full line-up of “requirements.” Academic institutions often require a core set of content management functionality. Many CMS’s include features that you may consider “nice” but aren’t “necessary.” These tend to inflate the cost. So shop cautiously. |
Recommended Reading
- Cedarville U Sets Up SonicWall Firewalls
Cedarville University in southwestern Ohio has implemented SonicWALL firewalls to provide high-speed gateway firewall protection for its 3,000 students.
- Data Breach Strikes U North Dakota Alumni Association
The alumni association for the University of North Dakota has gone public with a data breach that occurred when a laptop belonging to a software vendor was stolen from a vehicle. The computer contained the names of 84,000 university alumni, donors, and others, according to coverage by the Grand Forks Herald.
- Tips for Selecting a Campus CRM tool
As competition for students increases, colleges and universities are looking more and more to customer (or constituent) relationship management software for help in remaining competitive.
- Intercast Networks Goes into Beta with Kazam Video Service at Internet2 Universities
Intercast Networks has redesigned Kazam, its student Internet TV and video service based on the company's VideoXpress platform. Following a spring semester alpha trial at Columbia and Purdue University, the company redesigned Kazam's interface based on student feedback and added additional content that caters to a student audience.
- Michigan State Managing MRI Images from Africa with Acuo Tech DICOM Services Grid
Doctors at Michigan State University have begun using the Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine (DICOM) Services Grid from Acuo Technologies to transport and manage magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) results from a hospital in Malawi, Africa in order to monitor the impact of malaria on children.
- IIT Delhi Delivers Services with Ingres Open Source
Administrators at the Indian Institute of Technology Delhi (IIT Delhi) have gone public with their installation of open source database management software from Ingres. IIT Delhi, one of seven leading institutes of technology in India, adopted Ingres Database to support administration functions such as grading, finance, human resources, procurement, and hospital administration.
