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UIUC Library Web Orientation The do’s and don’ts of Web editing in the Library So What’s The Point? The purpose of this orientation is to familiarize students and staff with the protocol for creating and developing Library Web pages. Provided throughout the presentation are links to relevant resources that will help guide you through the Web development process. What this orientation will cover. What is the Systems Office and what do they do? Accessing your Library’s Web pages. The Library Gateway. The Proxy Server and Electronic Resources. Library requirements for Web pages. University requirements for Web pages. ADA Compliance. Design Tips Web Editors (WSYWIGs) Training and other resources. What this orientation is NOT. This orientation is NOT a class on Web design. Rather its purpose is to familiarize Library personnel with the systems and issues they will encounter while creating and updating Library Web pages. The specifics of Web programming and the use of certain Web applications will not be addressed. However, resources pertaining to training, policy, and protocol will be discussed. The Library Systems Office What we do and how we can help The role of the Systems Office. The Systems office is responsible for coordinating and developing Library systems including Web resources. The Systems Office is the Library Webmaster and receives problem reports pertaining to all Library Web resources and Library Web pages. When you should contact the Library Systems Office regarding Web issues Some examples : OOPS! You just erased your site and do not have a backup. (Retrieving files is a lengthy process which is why YOU SHOULD ALWAYS MAKE BACKUPS!) You just entered a new resource into ErEdit and you need to have it entered in the proxy server. Also, you have checked the proxy url and it returned a specific error. Your site is down and you do not know why and you have exhausted the possibilities. You need to grant permissions to users so that they can access the Web servers. You have special scripting or database needs. What the Library Systems Office does not do. Our primary function is the development and implementation and upkeep of Library wide systems. We do not consult or program for individual libraries except in special instances. We do not provide training for Web editors (see the section on training). Contact Information If you have questions about the Library web site, send an email to [email protected]. You may also call the Library Systems Office at 2444688. Note: Library web pages that do not begin with the URL: http://www.library.uiuc.edu/ ; http://web.library.uiuc.edu ; or http://door.library.uiuc.edu are not on the library webserver and are not controlled by the Library Systems Office. For example, the Africana Library web pages are on the server: http://wsi.cso.uiuc.edu/ We will try to answer questions about these pages, but policies differ from webserver to webserver. We will be happy to forward your questions and comments about nonlibrary pages to the appropriate library staff member. LIBWEB Listserv for help The library has an electronic discussion list (listserv) called libweb-l for library web contacts. The purpose of this list is to facilitate communications between the webmaster and web contacts. It can also be a great forum for asking questions of your peers and sharing interesting things you have found. People who work on UIUC Library web pages are encouraged to join this listserv. For more information about LIBWEB-L, please send email to [email protected] Accessing your Library’s Web pages Finding your Library's directory on the Webserver Login to UIUC Library When you log in to your computer (enter your username and password), make sure the domain in the bottom box reads "UIUCLIBRARY". If it does not, use the drop down menu provided to select the UIUCLIBRARY domain name and press <Enter> to log in. On the Start Menu, locate the "Windows NT Explorer". It will probably be under Programs/Windows NT Explorer. Double click on "Network Neighborhood" or "My Network Places" on Windows 2000, to begin searching for networked computers. You may have to first choose Entire Network, then UIUCLIBRARY, then Find Libgrenlil>[your library directory]. Some units have already been moved to cooper.library.uiuc.edu. If your unit has pages with url http://door.library.uiuc.edu, then you will be editing on cooper. Your library's Web pages will be in this folder. Example: webpages for Library and Information Sciences are in a folder called lsxweb and for Chemistry it is chxWeb. Moving Files The only means by which you can move files from your local directory to the Webserver is to place them directly using Windows Explorer or negotiating the Library’s directory structure. The Library does not support FTP access to the Webserver. This means that all Web editing must be done from a machine on the Library’s domain with access to the appropriate directories. Quick access to Web space by mapping a drive. To map a network drive: Open Windows NT Explorer At the top of the page click on Tools>Map Network Drive Select the default drive letter that is given. Click on the "Browse" button to locate the folder for which you want to create a shortcut. Using the same path as above (libgrenlil>[your library directory]) Click on "Ok" Be sure to click on "Reconnect at logon". You will be asked if you want to restart the computer. Until you restart, the network drive will not show up in Windows Explorer. To access your "new" drive: Open Windows Explorer. Your drive will appear in the left pane and all drives are listed in alphabetical order. The Gateway Navigation Bar The Library’s Online Identity What is the Library Gateway Navigation Bar? The Gateway Navigation Bar is a navigational tool that provides easy access to critical Library resources while serving as the Library’s “icon”. The Gateway helps users identify official Library Web pages and to negotiate the extensive Library Web. *While the Gateway Navigational Bar is REQUIRED on all Library home pages, we strongly urge you to include it on all other pages in your library Web. How does it get on Library pages? From where does it come? The Library Gateway navigation bar is referred to as an “include”. Essentially this means that the Gateway navigation bar “lives” outside the code on your page. By inserting a few simple lines in your code, the browser will “pull” the Gateway navigation include and insert it automatically in your page. This means that you will NOT see the Gateway navigation bar if you are using a WSIWYG Web editor. (If you do see the Gateway navigation bar in your editor, you are probably in violation of Library protocol regarding the Gateway, more on this later). You can find instruction on inserting the appropriate code at: https://wwws1.library.uiuc.edu/webguide/navbarinst.htm What you may do with the Gateway. You may choose the “design” that best fits your Library’s page. The Library Gateway Navigation Bar comes in two “flavors”, horizontal and vertical. Code for including each of these can be found at: https://wwws1.library.uiuc.edu/webguide/navbarinst.htm What you may NOT do with the Library Gateway. You may not manipulate the Gateway Navigation Bar in any way! The Gateway Navigation Bar MUST be added to your home page using the “include code”. You should not pull the Gateway Navigation Bar code (for example from a browser window) and manipulate it and/or add insert it into your pages. (Remember that the purpose of the Gateway Navigation Bar is to provide consistency and to make Library pages easily identifiable.) You should not add to or change the Gateway Navigation Bar code in any way. Doing so may cause the Gateway to distort when viewed in certain browsers. Note: The Systems Office does check for compliance and since most Web problems are reported directly to us, we may make the necessary corrections to your pages. Library Web page requirements What no page can do with out. The Footer All Library Web pages should contain: a textual link to the UIUC Library Home Page http://www.library.uiuc.edu a textual link to the UIUC Home Page http://www.uiuc.edu a local email contact in YOUR library. Do not use "Library Webmaster" or any Library Systems Staff's contact information. All libraries should now have a form with which users can contact the library. Please contact the Webmaster if you have any questions about the form or how to link it from your site. a "Last updated" date with the initials of the person who last updated the page. For .html and .htm files you can use this line of code <!--#echo var="LAST_MODIFIED" --> to insert the last modified date from the web server. Remember, if in doubt, simply peek at other Library’s pages. All Library pages should be compliant with these guidelines. University Web page requirements What no page can do with out. Official University Web pages http://www.uiuc.edu/help/recommend.html Campus Logo Contact Information Navigational Links Avoid Duplication of Content Text Only Sites Date Stamp Keep Main Navigation Pages Small Follow Campus Policy and Procedures http://www.admin.uiuc.edu/cam/cam/iii/iii-1.html Don't Advertise Obey Copyright Laws Use Meta Tags Web Searches http://ljordal.cso.uiuc.edu/compass/talk/ Maintain a Quality Site Users With Disabilities Web page requirements Making pages accessible to everyone. ADA Complicity http://lrs.ed.uiuc.edu/access/ As a public institution, UIUC is required to comply with ADA regulations. These requisites govern how we approach our Web development and provide guidelines for making Web pages accessible to everyone. Quick Tips for Making Accessible Web Sites For Complete Guidelines & Checklist: www.w3.org/WAI Images & animations. Use the alt attribute to describe the function of each visual. Image maps. Use the client-side map and text for hotspots. Multimedia. Provide captioning and transcripts of audio, and descriptions of video. Hypertext links. Use text that makes sense when read out of context. For example, avoid "click here." Page organization. Use headings, lists, and consistent structure. Use CSS for layout and style where possible. Graphs & charts. Summarize or use the longdesc attribute. Scripts, applets, & plug-ins. Provide alternative content in case active features are inaccessible or unsupported. Frames. Use the noframes element and meaningful titles. Tables. Make line-by-line reading sensible. Summarize. Check your work. Validate. Use tools, checklist, and guidelines at http://www.w3.org/TR/WCAG (c) W3C (MIT, INRIA, Keio) 2001/01 Where to test your pages for accessibility. The following links are accessibility “checkers” and resources. W3 – http://www.w3.org/TR/WCAG Bobby http://bobby.watchfire.com/bobby/html/en/index.jsp Accessibility extensions can also be added to DreamWeaver and other WYSIWYG editors that will test your code for accessibility according to W3 guidelines. Accessing Electronic Resources The Proxy Server and Eredit The Proxy Server What is the Proxy Server? The Proxy Server is a intermediate machine that connects off-campus users to databases that are restricted to on-campus users. An offcampus users Web browser contacts the Proxy Server which, in-turn, communicates with the database’s Web site. This makes the off-campus user “appear” to be on-campus. More Information can be found at: http://www.library.uiuc.edu/proxy How do Library’s route their patrons through the Proxy Server? Patrons are routed through the proxy server when certain Online Resource URL’s are altered to contain the address of the proxy server. – See next slide The Proxy Prefix In order for URL’s to route users through the Proxy Server, the URL must contain a Proxy Prefix. The UIUC Library Proxy Prefix is: http://www.library.uiuc.edu/proxy/go.asp?url= A typical proxied URL would look like this: http://www.library.uiuc.edu/proxy/go.asp?url= http://www.nameofresource.com/science/jo urnal/12345 A resource must be listed in the Proxy Server! A resource must be listed in the Proxy Server in order to be proxied using the Proxy Prefix. If you check your proxy URL in the System’s Office provided checker (http://www.library.uiuc.edu/proxy/test/test.asp) and receive an error, you should report this error to the Systems Office as the Proxy Server needs to be updated with the new resource information. To check that a resource is appropriately entered in our database and servers you should: Search for the resource using ErSearch http://www.library.uiuc.edu/ersearch If the resource can be located and NEEDS to be proxied you can copy the URL from the search pages onto your Library’s page. Search for the resource using ErEdit http://www.library.uiuc.edu/eredit If the resource can not be found in ErEdit, it must be added. For help adding resources in ErEdit see: http://www.library.uiuc.edu/eredit/help.html Important reminders regarding the addition of new resources in ErEdit. In order for new resources to be proxied, there are two requisites that must be satisfied in ErEdit. 1. The resource must have a complete URL (including the proxy prefix) in the URL field. 2. The “Access Type” must be set to “UIUC - UIUC people (off-campus access using NetID or barcode)”. How can you tell if the Proxy URL will work? Is the resource configured at the Proxy Server? The problem with checking a proxy URL from your respective Library is that you will be doing so from an “on-campus” machine and therefore have access to most resources by default. Therefore, to check your proxy URL you must be considered “offcampus”. To circumvent this problem the Systems Office has provided a proxy URL checker at http://www.library.uiuc.edu/proxy/test/test.asp If you check your proxy URL in the System’s Office provided checker and receive an error, you should report this error to the Systems Office as the Proxy Server needs to be updated with the new resource information. Adding and Editing Electronic Resources Protocol and Courtesy with ErEdit What is ErEdit? ErEdit is a Web form that allows users to enter and update certain electronic resources in our databases. Without the appropriate resource entries the Library Search engines will NOT find your electronic resource and the proxy server will not grant access to the resource URL. It is imperative that entries in ErEdit be accurate in order to work with other Library Systems. ErEdit Courtesy see: http://www.library.uiuc.edu/eredit/help.html The Systems Office has made ErEdit open and available to anyone with the appropriate Web editing permissions in the UIUCLibrary domain. This means that anyone can edit, delete, or add resources in our databases. Resources are typically the responsibility of the sponsoring Library. You should notify the resource contact (Listed in the Contact field of the ErEdit page) if you suspect errors with their entry. Any changes made to a resource entry will be recorded as being made by you (see the footer of the ErEdit page). You are responsible for notifying the contact regarding your changes. The contact should ALWAYS be informed when changes to their resource are made. ErEdit Protocol http://www.library.uiuc.edu/eredit/help.html You should be intimately familiar with how ErEdit operates and what it does BEFORE attempting to edit resources. http://www.library.uiuc.edu/eredit/help.html You should let the Systems Office know immediately if you have a resource that returns an error in the Proxy Test. http://www.library.uiuc.edu/proxy/test/test.asp (Remember, when a patron in Chile can not access a resource they call us, not you!) Designing for the Web Function vs. Form Web Concepts Function before Form. While we do not wish to squash the creative process, we must first consider our audience and meet the Library and University our obligations. Make sure that any additions you make to your pages are ADA compliant and that they are absolutely necessary to your Library mission. Considerations for Design You should consider the following when designing for the Web: Avoid duplication. Often Libraries provide several links to the same resource. Links should be thoughtfully placed to provide the greatest usability. Duplication not only wastes space, it serves to confuse your users. Content should be considered above aesthetics. Avoid letting imagery supercede content. Patrons want the facts and should not have to scroll around your Library’s icon in order to reach the content. Images are nice, just make certain they load quickly (compress them). Remember we are “above average” when it comes to network speed. Most users off-campus are at a disadvantage when downloading Web content. http://www.widearea.co.uk/designer/compress.html Be certain of your needs before adding “flash”. We will not allow you to run custom scripts on our servers. Are you compliant? Web editors and WYSIWYGs What to use to edit your code Web editors The Library Systems Office does NOT support ANY proprietary Web editor. Web editors can be had for a licensing fee (charged to the ordering library) and the Library Systems Office will install the software on your Library computer. The most common Web editors (WYSIWYG) in use around the Library are Dreamweaver and Frontpage. A complete listing of available Web editors can be found at: https://wwws1.library.uiuc.edu/webguide/edito rcomp.html Training Sharpening skills Where to find Web help. The University provides free training in Web development to both Staff and Students. XtremeLearning provides online or downloadable courses on everything from authoring a resume to C++ programming. You can register for training at: http://www.uillinois.edu/xtremelearning/ For a fee training: The best source for instructor led training that we've found on campus is through the FAST-3 courses. These courses are offered by the Office of Instructional Resources. Recent course offerings include: Web & HTML Workshop, Web Page Design using HTML, Front Page, and Dreamweaver. These courses are open to anyone, but the individual is responsible for registering and the department must cover any course fees. Other HTML Resources HTML goodies - http://www.htmlgoodies.com/ This is an excellent site that provides HTML primers and tutorials for both basic and complex HTML. The guide is straightforward and in plain English. A Beginner's Guide to HTML http://www.ncsa.uiuc.edu/General/Internet/WWW/HTMLPrimer.html Brought to you by NCSA, this is a very good tutorial for those just starting to learn how to create web pages. W3C's HTML Home Page - http://www.w3.org/MarkUp/ The World Wide Web consortium (W3C) is an international consortium of companies involved with the Internet and the Web. The organization's purpose is to develop open standards so that the Web evolves in a single direction rather than being splintered among competing factions. The W3C is the chief standards body for HTTP and HTML. This site is best used if you want to know more of the nitty-gritty details behind HTML. HTML Pocket Reference by Jennifer Neiderst. Published by O'Reilly in December, 1999. This pocket reference delivers a concise guide to every HTML 4.0 tag. It also contains detailed information on the tag's attributes as well as browser support information. Please note: this is designed as a reference tool and will not tell you everything about HTML. Website Structure and Maintenance Common questions answered Where can I test my HTML code / identify errors? The W3 provides an HTML validation service at: http://validator.w3.org/ You should remember to choose “HTML 4.01 Transitional” before submitting your URL. The returned statement will tell you exactly in the code (by line number) where your HTML code is erroneous. You should always check your code before calling the Systems Office for help. Is it possible to find out how many people have access my Web pages? Currently, the best way to get statistics on your library's pages is to go to the transacts.asp page in your library's web directory and follow the instructions provided on the page. The Webserver no longer supports counters because they can consume significant Webserver resources, particularly when used to excess. As a result, the transaction logs are the only available method for ascertaining the number of hits to your pages. Please keep in mind the following: The transaction logs do not record what users do on any particular page, they only note that the page has been visited. Frequently library staff (i.e. Systems Office or Reference) will have the need to access your pages, so the number of hits you receive for any particular page might be skewed. Please link to the following URL. https://wwws1.library.uiuc.edu/transacts/transacts.asp On this page there is a field to enter the URL route you want to check. Be sure to enter your units directory name in that field. Example: To check the Chemistry Library transactions you would enter the /chx in the box so it would read: http://www.library.uiuc.edu/chx What is the difference between a default.asp and index.html page? The "home", "default", or "main" page in your directory is the one that the user will get if he or she just types in the directory name and does not specify a filename. For example, if she typed: http://www.library.uiuc.edu/ahx/ then that would retrieve the page: http://www.library.uiuc.edu/ahx/default.asp Why default.asp? Our webserver has made extensive use of .asp (active server pages) and we therefore chose the default.asp as the main default page for our system. Different systems will have different names for the "home" page. Our old Webserver used the name "default.htm" and then "default.asp" to retrieve this page. But recently, June 2002, we changed our design and the default can now be index.html or index.htm and it will still look for default.asp. This also works on subdirectories. If the user types in: http://www.library.uiuc.edu/mdx/books/ then she will retrieve the "default" page in that subdirectory (assuming that there is one). What is an ASP page? How does it differ from an HTML page? An ASP page can be edited almost like any other HTML file. While the file extension for an HTML page is either .html or .htm, the extension for an ASP page is .asp Basically, the "asp" extension tells the Webserver that there is a combination of HTML code and scripting code in the file. ("ASP" stands either for "Active Server Page" or "Active Server Platform," depending upon the source consulted.) If you "View Document Source," only the HTML code will be displayed. If you open up the same web page from your web share directory using Notepad, you will see both the scripting code and the HTML code. For this reason, if you use Netscape or FrontPage to grab the web page directly from the Web (rather working from a backup copy on your hard drive) and then press the Edit button, you will not be editing the original ASP page, the one containing both types of code. What are the options for editing an ASP page? FrontPage generally preserves the ASP code when you edit although it has difficulty with certain local database pages, provided you opened the page in the Editor by specifying a filename, rather than a URL. If you save your web page temporarily as an html document and then edit in Netscape, it will convert all the ASP code into plain text on the screen. This code will be visible to everyone, rather than being hidden. When editing ASP pages, it is best to use Notepad or another plain text editor. Otherwise, you will need to copy and paste all the ASP code back into your file after editing in Netscape. How often should I check the links on my web pages? You really should check for dead links on your web pages at least a couple of times every semester. This can be done by hand or by using link checking software. While such software is not usually available for free, a search on http://www.yahoo.com for "link checking software" yielded over 2100 hits. Some of these pages provide a demo version of their software that you can use to check your site. Additionally, the library's Webserver has the capability to check links and we do this for all units twice a year. We would recommend checking them yourself more often to expedite matters. How can I make my pages better indexed? Use an informative, descriptive title. Almost any search on http://www.library.uiuc.edu/sitesearchg.asp will bring up web pages with the title "Untitled" or "test.htm" These titles do not give the user any useful information. The title that appears between the <TITLE></TITLE> tags will appear at the top of the browser. In Netscape, the title appears in white lettering in the blue bar at the top of the screen. The title is different from the filename or from the header. For example, look at the web page: http://www.library.uiuc.edu/announce/resource.htm The title of this page is: New Resources at the UIUC Library. The filename is resource.htm. The header which appears between two <H2></H2> tags is: New Resources. Use meta tags. The search engine uses <META> tags to present information. Specifically, it uses these four tags: <META NAME="DESCRIPTION" CONTENT="Use this form to search the International ALA Archives."> <META NAME="AUTHOR" CONTENT="T. W. Cole"> <META NAME="KEYWORDS" CONTENT="query, search, ALA, American Library Association, archives"> <META NAME="SUBJECT" CONTENT="search form for International ALA Archives"> It will use the description as the entire abstract in the results listing. It doesn't actually show the user the other <META> tags, though there is probably a way around this. If you don't use the <META> tags, then it gets interesting. It lists the title in between the <TITLE></TITLE> tags, any information in the "alt" tag part of <IMG SRC...>, and regular text, all pretty much in the order it appears on the page. Should I remove outdated pages from the Webserver? Why? It is important to remember when designing web pages that users will find your pages in a number of ways. Some users may start at your home page and work their way carefully through the other pages in the orderly fashion that you intended. However, other users will be using search engines to access your pages. This is especially likely with the search feature available from the main Library web page [http://www.library.uiuc.edu/sitesearch.htm]. We do receive email from users wondering about broken links or outdated information on web pages that are not linked from any other web pages at UIUC. Remember - if a page is on the Webserver, it is accessible to the world. Special Projects Advanced Topics Special Scripts (CGI, Perl) All CGI scripts must be approved by the Library Webmaster and the Network Analyst or appropriate System Administrator. You may write your own CGI scripts or we may be able to modify an existing script to meet your needs. Most CGI scripts used at the Library are written in Perl, though other languages are possible. You may also want to explore alternate methods of making active content on your web pages, such as PHP or ASP instead of CGI. Database creation and access At the moment, the Library Systems Office cannot provide widespread support for creating databases and access to them via the Web. However, the Systems Office must be informed of any such projects that are to be mounted on the Library Webserver. Some questions to consider: What format is the data currently in? Plain text (ASCII)? Microsoft Access? Who will be the primary user? Staff? Undergraduate students? Graduate students? Who will update the database? How often? Do you need to allow access for simultaneous users? What fields need to be searched? How will searchers enter information? Entering free text? Or selecting items from menus? What should the search results page look like? Should it display one record at a time? All matching records? How will help be accessed? If a person retrieves no records, what should the error message say? What is the projected size of the database? Creating a form for an email account and generic email accounts Currently, all libraries should have a generic email account and email form for their use. These forms allow users to contact the library without providing the library contact's personal email address. Since forms tend to rely heavily on the use of a mouse, be sure to provide an email address or alternate contact method for users. If you have any questions about these forms please contact the library webmaster. If you have a special need for a form, you can design one then contact the Library Webmaster so that a CGI script can be modified to work with your form. CD-Rom accessibility If your library purchased a CD-ROM there are two options for sharing the contents of the disk. The first is to mount it locally on a PC in your library, but keep in mind that this will restrict use to users who are physically in your library. Alternately, the resource can be placed on the CD-ROM server for wider access. Before you contact the systems office, please find out if a Web-accessible version is available. Many vendors are now providing this service and it is generally much easier to implement than the CD-ROM version. Please investigate any licensing (single- or multi-user) or access (restricted by IP, global, etc.) issues before contacting Systems. NOTE: not all CDs can be mounted successfully.