Presentation given at the May 21st Refresh Detroit meeting about the process of redesigning the Wayne State Library Science Web site.

1. Refreshing LISP
Web Site
Nick DeNardis
May 21, 2008
Wayne State University
May 21, 2008 wayne.edu

2. About Our Department
• Mission: To raise the stature of the university
• 6 Full Time Employees, 3 Student Assistants
• Work on a charge back system with a few
exceptions, like an agency
• 250+ Web site launches, 25 sites in the queue
May 21, 2008 wayne.edu

3. May 21, 2008 wayne.edu

4. May 21, 2008 wayne.edu

5. Determining Needs
• Wayne State University Identity
• PromoteDegreeOnline Masters of Library
Science
New
• Expandable Navigation
• News / Event Promotion
• Use the pixel pattern someplace, it is on all
their print pieces
• Faculty Profiles
May 21, 2008 wayne.edu

6. Strategy
• Pullsize andsite with WinHTTrack to determine
its
down
current URL structure.
• Determine the current paths to the required
areas.
• Figure out wherenew site. can be “chunked”
together on the
the paths
• Remove all the useless stuff from the
homepage
May 21, 2008 wayne.edu

7. Our Process
• 1 Week Requirements Gathering
• 1 Week Navigation
• 2 Weeks Design • 4 Weeks Content
• 2 Weeks Programming
• 1 Week Review
May 21, 2008 wayne.edu

8. Research
• No access to current server/statistics :-(
• Best guesses based on phone calls/emails
• Other Library Science Programs
(Benchmarking)
• Any organization is better than their
current site
May 21, 2008 wayne.edu

9. Information Architecture
• Primary Audience: Prospective Graduate
Students
• User Centered Navigation
• Central spot for degrees and requirements
• Simple Folder Structure, forms, images, etc.
May 21, 2008 wayne.edu

10. Navigation
• Prospective Students
• (Alphabetical Sub Menus)
• Current Students
• Faculty and Staff
• Alumni
• About Us
May 21, 2008 wayne.edu

11. Page Layout
• Wayne State Header and Footer
• Mini News, Mini Events
• Promotions
• Create an Impact
• Appear organized, up to date
May 21, 2008 wayne.edu

12. Site Design
• Three mockups
• Choose one or piece them together
May 21, 2008 wayne.edu

13. Mockup 1

14. Mockup 1

15. Mockup 1

16. Mockup 2

17. Mockup 2

18. Mockup 3

19. Mockup 3

20. Mockup 3

21. Technical Implementation
• University Content Management System
• Multiple Content Editors
• XHTML 1.0 Transitional
• PHP & MySQL with static written pages
• RSS News
May 21, 2008 wayne.edu

22. They Choose Mockup
3
May 21, 2008 wayne.edu

25. Did we accomplish our
goals?
May 21, 2008 wayne.edu

26. May 21, 2008 wayne.edu

27. Questions
May 21, 2008 wayne.edu

28. Thank You
Nick DeNardis
May 21, 2008
Wayne State University
http://www.lisp.wayne.edu
May 21, 2008 wayne.edu