[WEB4LIB] RE: Web Page RFP/Specs

[Lynn Dennis]

Our public library has just launched a newly redesigned website for which we
did an RFI.

Just a quick history. I designed our original site 5 years ago and had the
sole responsibility of updating and maintaining the site.  It was something
I did in my spare time (at home) after having taken a two-day introductory
course in HTML.  I enjoyed doing it, but as much as I would have liked to, I
didn't have the time to keep up with the technology and the site was pretty
dull and boring :)  Last year, when the library decided that the site needed
freshening up, we formed a committee to do it ourselves but the library
received a unexpected windfall of $10,000 and decided to outsource the
project to a design firm.

We did an RFI that was fairly basic. It is a 6 page document; I'll be happy
to send it as an attachment to anyone who is interested.

We are happy with the end product. There are not a lot of bells and
whistles, but there are some interactive forms and some .pdf files that are
a nice improvement over what we had.  We are especially pleased with the
online catalog interface.  The site was designed in FrontPage2000 and the
design firm gave us hands-on training as part of the contract; a good thing
as I will still be doing all of the updating and maintaining.  Some of the
staff feels we could have done at least as good a job ourselves, and we
probably could have *given the time and the training.*  I've already made
some changes :)

As Mike Novak mentioned,
> you'd still have all the same hassles as doing it in house
> (arguments over style,
> content, etc.) except it would cost you a lot more and you
> would lose a lot
> of control.

Yes and no.  Yes, we still had the same arguments; yes, it cost a lot more.
I don't think we lost a lot of control.  The firm we selected specialized in
municipal web site; designing for people who wanted/needed a web presence
and were not real picky.  They learned a lot from us about libraries: we
knew what we wanted, we knew the current technology, we knew what our users
wanted, etc.  (The artiste was *extremely* offended when we rejected his
first design, which had a very Victorian feel; you could just hear the
"Shhh's" and see the prim, bun-topped librarian when you looked at it.)

So...take a look at the site; if you want the RFI, let me know.

Lynn
*************************
Lynn Dennis  (mailto:ldennis at roselle.lib.il.us)
Automation Coordinator/Technical Services Department Head
Roselle Public Library  (http://www.roselle.lib.il.us)
Roselle, Illinois
voice: (630) 529-1641; ext. 241
fax: (630) 529-7579
Alternate email: mailto:lynn_dennis at hotmail.com



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