First thoughts on sampleX.kmv.edu

A. We need to work on the design. [note: style|looks!=design] Some questions you need to ask while doing this:
1) WHY are YOU making this website?
2) WHAT does this website INTEND to DO?
3) WHO is going to USE this website? and HOW?

B. Style / Aesthetics: Needs work. We need to look like a college website. Credibility and authority are very closely related to aesthetics*. Since this is an .edu site, this is a VERY important issue. The important thing is to have the design (A) clean enough so that we can modify (B) independent of (A). One way to do this: Use XHMTL/CSS.

C. Use: Apart from being a brochure like everything else on the internet, does this have a purpose? e.g.: 1) attract international students? 2) establish an online identity for kmv? 3) foster intra-collegiate communication? Would like thoughts.

D. Maintainability: Who maintains the site? Does it die once it is up? or is there a web team?

I would appreciate if I can get thoughts / comments from whoever's involved. That includes faculty, if any. Once we have these ground facts covered, we can take this ahead.

Some links to see:

- http://www.mit.edu (see this every day, it changes!)
- http://www.simmons.edu/gradstudies/
- http://www.nid.edu
- http://drupal.org
- http://www.du.ac.in (to learn what NOT to do)

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(*'net's down here, or I'd link to a very nice study about this. But it's common sense anyway, you'd rather believe someone telling you about the missing coefficients in the theory of relativity if they look like Einstein than if they look like Britney Spears.)