#32336
An Exploration of Concepts of Community Through a Case Study of UK University Web Production 
The paper explores the interrelation and differences between the concepts of occupational community, community of practice, online community and social network. It uses as a case study illustration the domain of UK university web site production and specifically a listserv for those involved in it. Different latent occupational communities are explored, and the potential for the listserv to help realize these as an active sense of community is considered. The listserv is not (for most participants) a tight knit community of practice, indeed it fails many criteria for an online community. It is perhaps best conceived as a loose knit network of practice, valued for information, implicit support and for the maintenance of weak ties. Through the analysis the case for using strict definitions of the theoretical concepts is made.
Cox, Andrew M. Journal of Information Science (2008). Articles>Web Design>Community Building>Academic
#33265
Less is More for University Websites
Many university websites are poorly organized, and filled with out-of-date content that has been directly published from print. Delivering a better service to students and staff faces challenges because of decentralized management structures and concepts such as academic freedom.
McGovern, Gerry. New Thinking (2004). Articles>Web Design>Academic
#34368
The web, with its low barrier to entry and permeable social boundaries, is the ultimate medium through which to explore the finer points of the wisdom of crowds. You’re surrounded by online examples: Google’s search results. BitTorrent. The “Most E-mailed” stories on your favorite news site. Each is powered by wisdom gleaned from crowds online. You need a few things to enable online crowds to be wise.
Powazek, Derek. List Apart, A (2009). Academic>Web Design>Collaboration>User Centered Design
#34529
A graduate seminar in the theory and practice of structuring and designing information for web-enabled devices. This course emphasizes web standards, accessibility, and rapid prototyping.
Stolley, Karl. Illinois Institute of Technology (2009). Academic>Courses>Web Design>Information Design
#35629
On the web, write in small digestible chucks, which fit into the information hierarchy. To create your hierarchy, outline the website as you would for printed material. Then examine the site’s purpose and outline the main sections (e.g. words people use to navigate) and the links within those heads. Test it before it goes online.
Walsh, Ivan. I Heart Tech Docs (2007). Academic>Web Design>Writing>User Centered Design
