Hi Tom,
2 minute website answers...
A CMS is there to help you do what you need to, so that's where you
should start when doing a selection. Don't choose something because
someone else has it. That is only a way to discover possible solutions,.
not to assess them. Choose a system because it delivers your
organisational objectives for needing a CMS, so start with a brief of
some sort. Recommendations from other orgs are OK, as long as you
believe their objectives matched yours.
Also, no system does it all :)
so to the questions...
1. If you use a CMS for your site, which one do you use and would you
recommend it to us?
We use several. Our main site uses Squiz Matrix. It is very powerful on
a technical level and allows you to build complex sites with rich
features that allow re-use of assets. It allows a sys admin to do things
that you would ned a developer to do if building from scratch. The
software is open source. The costing model is based on paying for Squiz
time to set things up or train you to do so. The backend is not for
beginners, but is very powerful. The content editor tools are not as
advanced as the technical/admin features.
We also use Drupal a bit (historically more so) and Django (Python) for
some self-contained features.
2. When you started using a CMS did you do any development and
migration work yourselves, or did you use an agency. If the latter,
which one, and would you recommend them?
The first time we used a CMS was so long ago, no-one can remember, but
we have done many migrations. Bulk transfer of content is worth getting
the supplier to do, unless you have small number of pages. Spend your
time on deciding what templates work for you and testing migration into
them
3. Did the CMS work take place as part of a site redesign, or follow a
site audit?
Both. We replaced main CMS at our last site redesign.
4. How long did the project take?
Last site redesign was a beast. 2-3 years, but that was an exceptional
case with many thousands of pages and a complete rethink how the site
served users and a change of several systems. It is strongly recommended
not to take this long. The web change cycle is much faster than this
(mobile, tablet, etc)
Hope that helps.
two minutes? not quite. More like 20 :)
Andrew Lewis
Digital Content Delivery Manager
Digital Media department
Victoria and Albert Museum
South Kensington
London SW7 2RL
020 7942 2373
[log in to unmask]
Digital Media blog: www.vam.ac.uk/digital
http://linkd.in/andrewlewis
@rosemarybeetle ( https://twitter.com/rosemarybeetle )
>>> MCG automatic digest system <[log in to unmask]> 11/03/2014
00:14 >>>
There are 3 messages totaling 309 lines in this issue.
Topics of the day:
1. UK Press Release - #MuseumWeek
2. Courtauld Institute: 2 minute website CMS questions (2)
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Date: Mon, 10 Mar 2014 15:42:33 +0000
From: Mar Dixon <[log in to unmask]>
Subject: UK Press Release - #MuseumWeek
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Stewart
directly
(cc'd).
Sorry for cross-posting.
--
Mar Dixon
Mobile: +44 (0) 7800 539 065
www.mardixon.com :: @mardixon <http://www.twitter.com/mardixon>
www.culturethemes.com ::
@culturethemes<http://www.twitter.com/culturethemes>
--------------------
*Embargoed until 00.01 Tuesday March 14th 2014 *
*#MuseumWeek *
Hundreds of museums and galleries from across the UK and Europe will
come
together on Twitter later this month for the first ever #MuseumWeek, a
project that will connect people to artwork, culture, history and
science
in new and interactive ways.
#MuseumWeek will take place from Monday 24th March to Sunday 30th March
and
will give Twitter users direct and unparallelled access to some of
Europe's
leading museums and the people behind them in 140-characters bursts.
UK organisations already signed up include the Science Museum
(@sciencemuseum), the Natural History Museum (@NHM_London), the
Victoria
and Albert Museum (@V_and_A), the British Museum (@britishmuseum),
Eureka!
The National Children's Museum (@eurekamuseum) and Tate (@Tate).
The project also includes some of the UK's lesser-known, smaller or
more
specialist museums, such as the Roald Dahl Museum in Buckinghamshire
(@RoaldDahlMuseum), Cumbria's Pencil Museum (@PencilMuseum),
Pembrokeshire's Tenby Museum and Art Gallery (@TenbyMuseum) and the
Time
and Tide Museum (@timetidemuseum) in Great Yarmouth.
#MuseumWeek offers a real-time, behind-the-scenes look at
organisations
across Europe and the UK.
Participating organisations will include the hashtag #MuseumWeek in
their
Tweets for the week, meaning users can follow along on Twitter. In
addition, every day there will be a different theme including
#MuseumSelfies, #AskTheCurator and #MuseumMemories.
Some museums and galleries will also run their own projects to
coincide
with the week. Historic Royal Palaces (@HRP_Palaces) will be giving
users a
unique insight into a day in the life of Henry VIII, and hosting a
live
Twitter Q&A with the former monarch between 8 and 9 p.m. on Monday 24
March.
https://twitter.com/HRP_palaces/status/425995191615377408
The Natural History (@NHM_London) and Victoria & Albert (@V_and_A)
museums
will be partnering on a special #MuseumSelfies initiative at their
'Friday
Lates' event on 24 March
A full list of participating UK organisations can be viewed
here<https://discover.twitter.com/arts/museums>.
(https://discover.twitter.com/arts/museums)
Mar Dixon (@MarDixon), an expert in social media and museums and host
of
the @CultureThemes project, said: "Every day of the year museums and
cultural institutions across the world are using Twitter in exciting
and
interesting ways to tell the stories of their collections to new
audiences.
"#MuseumWeek will shine a light on these activities, giving a
real-time
glimpse into the workings of museums across the UK and Europe, 140
characters at a time."
Jesse Ringham, Digital Communications Manager from Tate, said: "Tate's
presence on Twitter is crucial to engaging our global audiences in
on-going
conversations about art and creativity. @Tate now has 1 million
followers,
making the gallery the most followed museum on Twitter in Europe and
the
third largest worldwide.
"We're delighted to be joining this international initiative alongside
large and small museums and galleries from the UK and beyond."
---
*@stewartrussell <https://twitter.com/stewartrussell>*
Communications | Twitter UK
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Date: Mon, 10 Mar 2014 17:43:51 +0000
From: "Bilson, Tom" <[log in to unmask]>
Subject: Courtauld Institute: 2 minute website CMS questions
Dear MCG members
The Courtauld Institute of Art is migrating its website to a new CMS.
I'm hoping for feedback from those of you who, like me, work with
university as well as gallery or museum websites, but all feedback will
be welcomed. I'm just trying to gather some general information about
software vendors, and how you approached the project.
If possible, answers please by end of Wednesday 12 March.
1. If you use a CMS for your site, which one do you use and would you
recommend it to us?
2. When you started using a CMS did you do any development and
migration work yourselves, or did you use an agency. If the latter,
which one, and would you recommend them?
3. Did the CMS work take place as part of a site redesign, or follow a
site audit?
4. How long did the project take?
Is there any other advice you’d like to offer us?
Many thanks for your time!
--
Tom Bilson
Head of Digital Media
The Courtauld Institute of Art
Somerset House
Strand
London WC2R 0RN
Email: [log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]>
www.courtauld.ac.uk<http://www.courtauld.ac.uk>
The Courtauld Institute of Art is a company limited by guarantee
(registered in England and Wales, number 04464432) and an exempt
charity. SCT Enterprises Limited is a limited company (registered in
England and Wales, number 3137515). Their registered offices are at
Somerset House, Strand, London WC2R 0RN. The sale of items related to
The Courtauld Gallery and its collections is managed by SCT Enterprises
Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of The Courtauld Institute of Art.
This e-mail, including any attachments, is confidential and may be
legally privileged. It is intended solely for the use of the
individual(s) to whom it is addressed. Any unauthorised dissemination or
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disclosure of any information contained in them is strictly prohibited
and may be illegal. If you have received this e-mail in error please
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Date: Mon, 10 Mar 2014 13:59:31 -0400
From: Ashley <[log in to unmask]>
Subject: Re: Courtauld Institute: 2 minute website CMS questions
Hello Tom,
I worked for a historical society in America that produced exhibitions
while functioning as a special library. We migrated our data to
Collective Access and worked with developers to customize the system.
That being said, the two most underestimated parts of the project were
time spent refining the data (pre-transfer) and time waiting and/or
conversing with the data developers in order to produce the CMS we
wanted. Cost, surprisingly wasn't so bad because we locked in a project
rate with the developers.
Staff members did the data refinement as well as some volunteers but it
was such a crucial step in the process that having volunteers help was
limited. Because of restricted vocabularies and the necessity to check
original objects from time to time outsourcing this work was not a
possibility.
The project took a couple years from the point of needing time to write
grants and collect proper funding to the point of project completion.
I would recommend Collective Access simply because it is flexible
enough to fit many needs with customization.
I hope this helps.
Best wishes,
Ashley
Sent from my iPhone
On Mar 10, 2014, at 1:43 PM, "Bilson, Tom" <[log in to unmask]>
wrote:
> Dear MCG members
>
> The Courtauld Institute of Art is migrating its website to a new
CMS.
>
> I'm hoping for feedback from those of you who, like me, work with
university as well as gallery or museum websites, but all feedback will
be welcomed. I'm just trying to gather some general information about
software vendors, and how you approached the project.
>
> If possible, answers please by end of Wednesday 12 March.
>
>
> 1. If you use a CMS for your site, which one do you use and would you
recommend it to us?
>
>
> 2. When you started using a CMS did you do any development and
migration work yourselves, or did you use an agency. If the latter,
which one, and would you recommend them?
>
>
> 3. Did the CMS work take place as part of a site redesign, or follow
a site audit?
>
>
> 4. How long did the project take?
>
>
> Is there any other advice you’d like to offer us?
>
>
> Many thanks for your time!
>
> --
>
> Tom Bilson
> Head of Digital Media
> The Courtauld Institute of Art
> Somerset House
> Strand
> London WC2R 0RN
> Email: [log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]>
> www.courtauld.ac.uk<http://www.courtauld.ac.uk>
>
> The Courtauld Institute of Art is a company limited by guarantee
(registered in England and Wales, number 04464432) and an exempt
charity. SCT Enterprises Limited is a limited company (registered in
England and Wales, number 3137515). Their registered offices are at
Somerset House, Strand, London WC2R 0RN. The sale of items related to
The Courtauld Gallery and its collections is managed by SCT Enterprises
Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of The Courtauld Institute of Art.
> This e-mail, including any attachments, is confidential and may be
legally privileged. It is intended solely for the use of the
individual(s) to whom it is addressed. Any unauthorised dissemination or
copying of this e-mail or its attachments and any reliance on or use or
disclosure of any information contained in them is strictly prohibited
and may be illegal. If you have received this e-mail in error please
notify us by return of e-mail [or by telephone +44 (0) 20 7848 1273] and
then delete it from your system.
>
>
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> This email message has been delivered safely and archived online by
Mimecast.
> For more information please visit http://www.mimecast.com
>
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> ****************************************************************
> website: http://museumscomputergroup.org.uk/
> Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/ukmcg
> Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/museumscomputergroup
> [un]subscribe: http://museumscomputergroup.org.uk/email-list/
> ****************************************************************
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End of MCG Digest - 6 Mar 2014 to 10 Mar 2014 (#2014-49)
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