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Working websites
Working websites are the trucks and buses of cyber space.
Not as pretty as those Flash sports coupés perhaps,
but an awful lot more useful.
To be effective they have to be (among many other things)
accurate and up-to-date.
One way of making web site maintenance easier is to incorporate
sections which can be changed dynamically. It is possible
to retain the ultimate control of what is or isn't visible,
but spread the task of input and maintenance to those most
able to do it.
This is as important to small companies as it is to larger
ones. It is probably even more important for Intranet- than
Internet- sites. But it doesn't require fancy hardware or
expensive software.
This site (currently) includes two dynamic facilities:
The events list is automatically formatted and sorted —
only current or future events are displayed. Both lists incorporate
imbedded hypertext links and "mailto" tags where
possible. Each entry is protected by an originator-selected
password that is encrypted in transit. Publication authorisation
is retained centrally, but the originator of each entry is
able to see and edit his or her own submission.
Many companies balk at making everything freely downloadable.
They think that some information merits the exchange of at
least a name and a (valid) e-mail address. Automating
the process of e-mail dispatch is another way of retaining
a measure of control without adding to the workload. At the
same time that the required document is (automatically) dispatched,
another e-mail is sent to the site webmaster detailing the
documents requested and the name and e-mail address of the
person requesting them.
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