texas state & magnolia - case study

Texas State & MagnoliaTexas State & Magnolia

About Texas State UniversityAbout Texas State University

30,000 Students 3,500 Faculty and Staff 5th largest university in the state ~350 distinct websites

30,000 Students 3,500 Faculty and Staff 5th largest university in the state ~350 distinct websites

Life on campus before CMSes

Life on campus before CMSes

Every site looked different

Most were poorly designedand constructed

Sites hosted on whateverequipment the departmenthad, usually under a desk

Lack of people to maintain them

Every site looked different

Most were poorly designedand constructed

Sites hosted on whateverequipment the departmenthad, usually under a desk

Lack of people to maintain them

Our usersOur users

Majority of universitystaff are not comfortablewith computers

They want a site thatmakes them look greatbut actually only tookfive minutes

Majority of universitystaff are not comfortablewith computers

They want a site thatmakes them look greatbut actually only tookfive minutes

Early CMSesEarly CMSes

WebGUI - Our standard for user friendliness

Vignette - Our standard for user hostility

Blackboard - Introduced a lot of content management concepts

WebGUI - Our standard for user friendliness

Vignette - Our standard for user hostility

Blackboard - Introduced a lot of content management concepts

The Big ProjectThe Big Project

In 2004 we realized our campus needed an easy and readily available way to build and maintain web sites

Our focus shifted from creating single web sites to building a system the entire campus could use

In 2004 we realized our campus needed an easy and readily available way to build and maintain web sites

Our focus shifted from creating single web sites to building a system the entire campus could use

What our users neededWhat our users needed

Easy to use - very important Common look and feel Central management

Easy to use - very important Common look and feel Central management

Information ArchitectureInformation Architecture

Created standard navigation for four types of university web site

Two major benefits: Sped adoption of the CMS Discouraged users from trying to come

up with their own navigation styles

Created standard navigation for four types of university web site

Two major benefits: Sped adoption of the CMS Discouraged users from trying to come

up with their own navigation styles

Selecting MagnoliaSelecting Magnolia

Very informal process

Hybrid Open source / Commercial

Availability of support

We saw that Magnolia shared our priorities

Very informal process

Hybrid Open source / Commercial

Availability of support

We saw that Magnolia shared our priorities

Technical ImplementationTechnical Implementation

Set up multiple sites in one

installation

Integrated with other systems

Reused our existing caching

system

Set up multiple sites in one

installation

Integrated with other systems

Reused our existing caching

system

User ImplementationUser Implementation

Introduced it to users early for feedback

We were adamant that we were not forcing anyone

Added features for the power users

Introduced it to users early for feedback

We were adamant that we were not forcing anyone

Added features for the power users

Info SessionsInfo Sessions

A session for new users

Tell them what it is, and what is isn’t

Demo

Site best practices

A session for new users

Tell them what it is, and what is isn’t

Demo

Site best practices

Training & DocumentationTraining & Documentation

Single two hour session to teach the basics, then another two hour session for advanced topics

We wrote our own documentation for end users

Single two hour session to teach the basics, then another two hour session for advanced topics

We wrote our own documentation for end users

The GoodThe Good

Easy to use Efficient - Few servers required,

easy to develop Plugin architecture Upgrades, after the version

management was introduced

Easy to use Efficient - Few servers required,

easy to develop Plugin architecture Upgrades, after the version

management was introduced

The BadThe Bad

Synchronization between author and public instances

Backups and recovery of data Accessibility, particularly for blind

users End user documentation

Synchronization between author and public instances

Backups and recovery of data Accessibility, particularly for blind

users End user documentation

User ResponseUser Response

97% of our users said they would recommend the CMS to others

User survey results gave us a lot of useful data

Word of mouth helped adoption rate

97% of our users said they would recommend the CMS to others

User survey results gave us a lot of useful data

Word of mouth helped adoption rate

GrowthGrowth

Now hosting 240 sites On the first day of classes this Fall,

we served 327,332 pages

Now hosting 240 sites On the first day of classes this Fall,

we served 327,332 pages

Live sitesLive sites

Questions?Questions?