Training

1
Training web site content managers
In the use of Zope and Plone content management
systems at Birkbeck, University of London
2
Birkbecks web presence

• c.500,000 pages requested by c. 50,000 visitors
  each week
• Technologies
• Zope
• Plone
• Static HTML
• PHP / ASP

3
Zope/Plone web sites _at_ Birkbeck

• 60 Zope and Plone sites including
• Corporate web presence
• 13 out of 17 schools
• 9 out of 10 departments
• Library
• Numerous institutes and research centres
• Migration from static HTML and other technologies
  to Zope/Plone over the last 6 years

4
Content Managers

• Between 1 - 16 content managers per site
• Average of 2 - 4 content managers per site
• Mainly administrative staff (departments
  schools)
• Some academic staff
• Estimated turnover of content managers - less
  than 5 per annum

5
Training An opportunity

• Promote a positive attitude to
• Devolved content management
• Zope/Plone
• ITS
• Troubleshoot
• Content issues e.g. location of course materials
• User specific software hardware issues
• Departmental workflow issues
• Management issues

6
Training An opportunity

• Promote good web practice
• Accessibility
• Usability
• Promote good web design
• Information structure
• Presentation (branding house style)
• Establish feedback network
• Establish and maintain positive relationships
  with individual content managers

7
Training Our commitment

• For individual content managers
• Additional training
• Training refresher sessions
• Troubleshooting specific issues
• Requirements reviews for existing sites
• Design updates
• Utility updates

8
Training and the development cycle

• Gather requirements
• Agree specification
• Build site on development server
• Test development site
• Content migration input on development site
• User acceptance testing
• Sign-off
• Production roll-out and handover
• Review

9
Training required for

• Gather requirements
• Agree specification
• Build site on development server
• Test development site
• Content migration input on development site
• User acceptance testing
• Sign-off
• Production roll-out and handover
• Review

10
Training required for

• Gather requirements
• Agree specification
• Build site on development server
• Test development site
• Content migration input on development site
• User acceptance testing and sign-off
• Production roll-out and handover
• Additional training
• Review
• Refresher training

11
The learning curve

• Content migration creation
• Comprehensive understanding of the site structure
• Ability to create and maintain all content types
• Steep learning curveSignificant progress
  required in the initial stages so that the
  content manager can efficiently carry out all
  tasks
• Maintenance of content
• Ability to edit existing documents and files
• Possible requirement to create new documents,
  files, etc.
• Flat learning curve Skills acquisition may be
  gradual, so that reasonable use is possible at
  early stages with a relatively light amount of
  training

12
Training content

• Training sessions
• Between 30 90 minutes long
• One to one in situ
• Small groups in situ or a training room
• Large groups 5 in a training room
• Training support material user manual
• Computer based training aids

13
Training sessions

• Logging in
• Moving around the folder/site structure
• Editing documents
• Inserting links, anchors and images
• Creating new content
• Manipulating the sub-menu structure
• Loading files and images
• Managing the news box
• Publishing content

14
User manuals

• Bespoke manual for each site based on a standard
  text

15
Computer based training
16
Summary

• Training provides the opportunity to
• Promote the application
• Illustrate the principals of good web design
• Identify potential problems
• Establish a feedback network
• One-to-one refresher training and pro-active
  support may be required for intermittent users.