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Project Case Study - Dynamic Content Portal for Industry Association

The overall purpose of the project was to redesign a database driven dynamic version of the existing site including migration of existing content on the site to the new site design and provision of adequate documentation to facilitate adoption of the new application within the organization. In summary, at a technical level, it was largely a comprehensive content management system with role based access rights and user forums. The client was a technical society within the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. Its main activities are running several technical conferences and journals to facilitate technology development of the field of control systems engineering.

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Contents

	Project Description
	Capability Analysis
	Technology Architecture
	Tangible Benefits

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Project Description

The overall purpose of the project was to redesign a database driven dynamic version of the existing site including migration of existing content on the site to the new site design and provision of adequate documentation to facilitate adoption of the new application within the organization. In summary, at a technical level, it was largely a comprehensive content management system with role based access rights and user forums. The project objectives are listed below:

The site must be oriented to, and cater to, the needs of our audience. User-oriented menus, navigational aids, and a search facility will make it easier and more intuitive for our members and other visitors to find the information they seek.

The site must have a consistent look and feel throughout, with a singular theme and consistent navigational aids.

The site must use Linux/Apache/MySQL/Perl/PHP technology and be able to reproduce the functionality of the current Web site.

The site must be truly interactive with BB/Forum interfaces.

It was looking for an internal application to track its web design projects in terms of milestones, tasks, contacts and documents. This work was done manually and application was made projects easier to control and co-ordinate within MAKIBIE.

The client was looking for a vendor that can pull this all together and develop a comprehensive Web site plan that will give us a consistent "look and feel" and position them to proceed with a number of purposes other than simply providing information.

Most importantly, the client wanted a site designed from our users' perspective. They were looking for a plan that gives a consistent "look and feel" to the site. In fact, they would like the choice of several "themes" or "metaphors" that would provide the feel of a common thread to the system.;

Client was looking for a plan that provides a simple and intuitive way to navigate between screens, a design that is easy to keep current and maintain, and a blueprint that recommends the technologies to use in developing the system and recommends the size and qualifications of staff needed for maintaining it. Client was needed a design that facilitates communication between the society and its membership. Client needed a plan that provides for collecting information from our members and allows members access to selected data stored in the system. Client needed a plan that will provide a secure system that can handle secure transactions.

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Capability Analysis

There was two parts in the application. One was the front end site that accessible to the members based on access rights and the second was the admin panel where the super user or a few select managers can control the content of the site as well as track the communication among members and between the members and the society.

The front end site requires the following capabilities from the view point of a site visitor:

Cross browser compatibility was supported for a consistent look and feel of the site across browsers necessitating use of only basic HTML and JavaScript capabilities that are common to most popular browsers like IE or Netscape or Mozilla or FireFox, so that users can comfortably see the site on windows, Macintosh or Linux clients.

Members can choose between a light weight text site (low bandwidth like dialup) or a media rich site (better connection like DSL or Cable or T1)

Display Links on top bar and side navigation bar each leading to an index of contents, which can be clicked to view the details including text and graphics as per the context

Ability of members to register and login on the site to see a "My Account Page", where a specific member can send offline messages to other members or participate in discussions on open forums or do a live chat with other members.

All content could be indexed and classified as per the committee structure into which members are organized. Hence private and public committee forums and custom micro communities of members who wish to form a group (both public / private) was supported

Members can sign-up for a newsletter in one or more of the specified categories

All dynamic features of the site was supported with a wizard based help navigation

Users was having a basic version of a live chat feature so they can interact with other online users or society representatives on the site using instant messages

Journal and Magazine indices was appear on the site in a professional tree layout

Each page of the site had allowed a user to forward the HTML content by e-mail to a friend or to own e-mail ID provided at the time of registration

Home page of the site can have a featured section or an opinion poll or recent news or highlights that the site visitors had notice upon opening the site.

There was a my favorites menu for each members, where the members can add certain links of the site to a list and use this list to reach those links quickly

There was a suggestion box, where members can fill a form and give their ideas for improvement

There was an inquiry form where the casual site visitor can ask a question and specify an e-mail ID on which a reply can be sent, if required

The editor login had given to area editors or section editors or conference webmasters and they had selectively got the following capabilities based on granted access privileges in the administration part of the site:

Ability to register and sign-up

Ability to delete any objectionable content in forums, if any such issue arises and in case there is a complaint

Ability view and respond to messages from members or groups or committees

Ability to define a newsletter by choosing a template and uploading text and images

Ability to define a workflow among editors to edit and finalize a newsletter

Ability to create multiple newsletters classified by category

Ability to define a survey and view survey results, which can then be published on the main site in the survey or opinion poll channel of the site

Ability to define the content of the header graphic or side graphic or logo or background image on the site and define a workflow among editors for editing and final approval of content changes

Ability to define new topics for general, committee specific and micro forums

Ability to allocate members to various committees or micro groups with any member belonging to one or more committees or groups

Ability to define the links and sub index in top bar and side navigation bar and provision of text and graphic content for each of the links and sub links using a content management tool

Editor rights can vary as per the privileges defined by the site administrator

The site administrator (overall web master) is a super admin user who has a master login for the administration area of the site and has the following capabilities:

Approve registration of members, committees, micro groups and editors

Define access privileges for editors

Define workflow for editing and approval of content among editors related to site content or polls or newsletters

Define and edit featured articles, highlights or recent news that appear on the home page

All rights provided to editors

Ability to do a shadow login and view the site like any specific member or editor to validate access privileges

Administration of messages, inquiries or suggestions and ability to edit the profile or access password / access privileges of any member or editor

Click here to submit your project requirements to Option Matrix, India.

Technology Architecture

We used basic centralized web architecture with a Linux Server running MYSQL 4 and Apache as web server with PHP 4 as server side scripts and Java Applet for basic live chat feature. Cross browser compatibility was a key consideration in HTML and JavaScript compatibility to level 4 of HTML as per W3C guidelines.

Cross browser compatibility was largely ensured through use of XHTML 1.0 and HTML 4 compliance. All application testing was done in Firefox which has a more restrictive implementation of HTML / JavaScript and this ensures that it runs well in IE browsers too. Any cross browser issues were debugged during module testing. Optimistic locking was used in database operations to improve concurrent user performance. Extensive use of stored procedures eased network traffic and database performance.

Tangible Benefits

The new site was oriented towards, and catered to, the needs of the members. It provided user-oriented menus and navigational aids that made it much easier and more intuitive for clients to locate information

The new site had a consistent look-and-feel throughout, with a singular theme and consistent navigational aids. We have pages that are static and seldom change, and we have information and services that change frequently

The new site was truly interactive with interfaces built-in to allow members to voice their opinions on current events and to e-mail elected officials.

We created a site that is designed from the users' perspective, not from the perspective of the society or the organization's internal structure.

Click here to submit your project requirements to Option Matrix, India.

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