< Previous Page | Contents

9. Recommendations

Of the topics listed in this document, highest priority should be given to the following areas:

  • Site structure

  • Page design standards

  • Selection of content management system strategy

  • Online databases

  • Basic metadata


One the site structure is agreed upon a parallel site can be set up in preparation of changing the main site. With navigational links determined, page templates can be designed. The structure of templates as well as several other aspects of the site may depend on the selection of a content management system. However, as new pages are constantly created, an early decision about CMS's and page designs will mean less effort to change pages in future. The introduction of online databases would also be useful to allow for better handling of data from forms pages.


Basic metadata has been listed above, as it will save future revisions of documents if certain metadata tags such as title and author can be introduced early into templates. Other organisation standard metadata can be included at a later stage by introducing into the template inclusions. It is this metadata that will be most difficult to define.


Many of the other web development strategies will flow on from choices made about issues such as CMS and databases and are not as urgent. Special note should be made of XML. At this stage the introduction of XML would probably require a high degree of planning and training. The technology has not matured sufficiently enough so that a major implementation could be performed without major disruptions. Limited uses may be possible and ongoing research done into XML's place within the ATNF.

< Previous Page | Contents

Software
Public