Content 

Content determines the relationship to communications policy.  Web content for units with common 

functions, such as academic departments, could follow common policy guidelines.  For example, 

academic department sites might publish common content on degrees granted, program 

requirements, and faculty, enabling prospective students and faculty to quickly seek and find 

information. 

Structure 

Organization structure must accommodate web based information while promoting UC standards.  The 

personnel responsible for Web site structure are frequently technically skilled but unaware of the Web 

content nuances outside their own unit.  Administrative structures must be in alignment with the 

overall web site purpose to ensure accurate and coherent content.  For example, sufficient numbers 

and level of staffing are required to produce Web content that is accurate, coherent, and aligned with 

unit and campus policy. 

Logistics 

Logistics include the clear communication of enterprise level Web policies and identification that this is 

a top campus priority.  Working across organizational units is necessary to provide seamless Web 

content to both external and internal audiences.  For example, enrolled students need easy access to 

SIS, departmental policies and events, college advising, and financial aid.  Promoting campus wide 

common protocols, standardization of some things, but not others, etc. is necessary to develop 

seamless user Web interface. 

Recommended Action:  

We recommend that the Web Council develop a process for ensuring that content on the web is 

consistent across organizations. The ongoing Web Council should research and recommend one or 

more campus standards for content management systems and tools. Such systems have the potential 

to create an infrastructure that would move us towards the vision of integrated web services.  

Tools for Web Developers 

Findings: There are two types of web developers   web application developers and  static  website 

developers. These two groups use different type of tools.  

Web application developers create and maintain web pages that perform a service such as 

an e commerce application or an on line form to register for an account. For most web 

applications the most significant part is the back end system that drives the application 

rather than the web page, which is merely an interface to the system. Web forms often 

characterize web applications. 

Static website developers currently create and maintain the great majority of web pages.  

These static pages' primary role is to provide information rather than to provide a service 

per se.  Static web pages may not be terribly static at all: they may be updated daily 

and/or database driven but these back end issues are transparent to the end user.  In a 

static web site, the content on the pages and the organization of that content is key. 

Much of the web application development on this campus occurs in silos. Web application developers 

are often unaware of what their colleagues are doing, what components they could reuse from their 

_________________________________________________________________________________

Web Services Committee 

Page 16 

May 28, 2002