** Reply to note from K Fearon <[log in to unmask]> Tue, 17 Dec 2002 11:27:38 +0000
> I suppose the issue is how the statistics can best be provided via the web
> - if this is really the best way to present them. We have a lot of ours
> online (in static format not as databases) and find there are problems eg
> through scrolling down or along large tables and losing the headings. It's
> also time-consuming to produce annually, or rather, to re-work from excel
> spreadsheets etc.
It should be the dept/office that does the figures in the first place that
is brought up to the 21st Century to do the publishing. As far as
headings and similar disappearing you can always include an option for
your guest to download the data in CSV format. (Let them work out what is
CSV). All this information is half-useful if it is summarised enough to
make some sense. I would not loose my sleep.
Where it can be useful for web managers is to ask for all sorts of things
- that may or may not have any relevance to what is required - by baffling
senior management (The suits) with accronyms, jargon, and waffle. Ie.
That is the time to request your quad procesor Sun box to put Oracle on it
.. etc ... and then put 10 lines of an excel spreasheet in it.
;-)
Charles
PS. Having done the job of putting statistics on line (many moons ago) I
can tell you it is the most self-destructing experience. You break your
back, you do it and then noone looks at it anyway. As far as the suits go
they get their Secretary to print it out. If you decide to be clever and
analyse the data, then it is never the analyses they would have wanted ...
the data should support the conclusions!
==============================================
Charles Christacopoulos, Management Information Officer,
Planning & Information, University of Dundee, Dundee, DD1 4HN,
Scotland, United Kingdom. Tel: 44(0)1382-344891. Fax: 44(0)1382-201604.
http://www.somis.dundee.ac.uk/
|