Get with the In-Crowd: Create Your Own Student Chapter Web Page

"In the past few years we have seen a revolution in the World Wide Web and its increased access to almost every academic institution on Earth," said Phanikumar. "This brings people of common interests closer, and that is one of the main ideas behind a professional organization like TMS."

However, it is not enough anymore to throw together a web page to prove that your student chapter is technologically savvy. Once upon a time, a web site involved tossing together a few paragraphs of boiler-plate text and a couple of scanned graphics; today's better web sites are considerably more complex. They demand a unique blend of publishing, user interface design, and technology. To do a web site correctly, you have to be willing to do your homework both technologically and creatively.

Know Your Purpose
So what does it take to make a good web site? Content, content, and content-in concert with technology. Therefore, a careful designing and planning stage is essential. Your student chapter web page should start with a requirements definition that evaluates the real needs of your student chapter and how they can best be served through the web.

HOW TO DESIGN A SUCCESSFUL WEB SITE: MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE

Think visually: Group related information visually. Plan your use of photographs and other graphical devices intelligently. Ask yourself, "What do I like about this image? What does it say?" Your answers may prompt a new web page idea. Move information from left to right, top to bottom: Building a house starts with a strong foundation. Not so with a web page. A foundation is certainly necessary, but eye movement should start at the top left and flow to the lower right. Develop a multimedia approach: The web offers audio and video capabilities to enhance any presentation of information. Utilize databases: Develop simple interfaces for visitors to access the information. Search functions are one of the most powerful tools on the web. Keep your home/main page small: It should load quickly, under 15 seconds is the goal. This is especially important when the web slows down. Remember that yours is only one of millions of sites. Web surfers have short attention spans.

Before you make a commitment that you could "surf to regret," you may find it helpful to write a media kit, in which you describe your site's purpose as succinctly as possible as you would for a press release. Phanikumar lists five pieces of information that should be included in your media kit and eventually on your TMS chapter web page -- a note on the chapter's birth, member information, details of activities, graphic images of social activities, and information on how to join the chapter. Then, expand on the key concepts and subdivisions of your site. This page can become the template for further work.

Kevin Worth, a computer specialist, believes that defining a site's purpose is crucial. As one of the originators behind the University of Michigan's student chapter web page, Worth wanted to make sure that the web site's goal was clear.

"We wanted to make it known that it was a place for companies to come in and see our students, for our students to have pointers to job postings, and to keep people posted on the goings-on of the society," says Worth.

As you plan your home page, keep in mind that writing and graphic design must work together to give the viewer a quick idea of your purpose. Keep the central theme consistent throughout your site with the use of good graphics and navigational tools.

Customized color-coordinated banners, bullets, dividers, animation, icons, photos, and backgrounds can be very effective tools as well, but do not overdo it to the point of letting the look of the page interfere with your content. Know what you are doing and why.

Combining Content with Technology
The key to technology, as with content, is making certain that you have properly trained personnel either on staff or readily available to walk you through the constant changes that will be necessary for any web site to keep up with its rapidly changing environment. This was a problem for Jud Ready, the current webmaster of Georgia Institute of Technology's ASM/TMS student chapter web page.

"The original version [of our web page] was created in 1995. Due to a lack of involvement, the page was put on hold. For example, we had directions to a picnic that happened over a year ago," he says.

Home page of the ASM/TMS student chapter at the University of Michigan	Home page of the ASM/TMS student chapter at the Indian Institute of Science at Bangalore	Home page of the ASM/TMS student chapter at Georgia Institute of Technology

Webmasters like Ready advise to set some reasonable goals and objectives, and then establish a time frame for the project.

"I just sat down with pen and pad and started thinking of things I'd want to have easy access to, for example, job information, homework help, e-mail addresses of my classmates. Then I went about obtaining those items. It mostly boils down to a cut-and-paste of links, a few scanned images, and lots of surfing of the TMS and ASM websites," says Ready.

Keep in mind that a web page is not an opportunity to show off your technical prowess. Use the technical aspect to support and enhance, but do not let it overpower the other aspects of your work, because this will increase the download time and stretch the patience of your visitors. Colored or textured backgrounds, oddly colored text or links, and a preoccupation with appearance over content are sure signs of a "first generation" web site. Instead, strive to create a distinctive, clean, professional look. And, most important of all, be sure to match the look and feel of your site to your target audience.

Updating and Maintenance
Once, your web site is up and running, you can sit back and relax, right? Wrong! Properly managing a web site is an ongoing, ever-evolving process. You should monitor your site by conducting spot checks to make sure it is accessible at all times. Verify all the links in your site on a regular basis to ensure that they lead where you want. You also have to consider the operations aspects of the site, such as guaranteeing response time and availability.

For your student chapter, keeping the information current can be difficult. Karl Palm at Washington State University took over the TMS student chapter web page a year after it had been established and faced some updating issues.

"Improving the appearance was of first interest. Using the school's free Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers web page, I was able to download backgrounds used in designing the page," Palm says. "Adding new links, updating the officers' page, creating and maintaining an events page, and creating a short list of links to companies who hire materials people was also needed."

Worth notes that the turnover of chapter officers was a problem at the University of Michigan's web page.

"The new officers are slow to learn about all of the great things having a page can do for the society, so each year there is a rocky start," says Worth. "For instance, after I graduated, the page remained 'as is' for a month or so until the officers got the hang of their new duties."

Finding a place to put the web site created another updating problem for Worth.

"When the page first started, the only disk space we had available was the personal space allocated to the two people making the page. This made updating the page very difficult, since access was limited. Since then, the university has allowed student groups to rent disk space from them, at a minimal monthly charge. When the department bought its own web server, they allowed us to have space on it at no charge, as long as the page was well-maintained," said Worth.

Finally, refer back to your original strategic plan in your media kit. Is your web site meeting the goals you set up for it? If not, what can you do to change that?

Looking Ahead
Webmasters believe that the wave of the Internet's future lies in the further development of multimedia. The web already offers audio and video to enhance any presentation of information.

"In the near future, I would like the students to put on Quicktime movies of speakers who come in to the weekly luncheons, resumes of students looking for employment, and our weekly newsletter," says Worth.

Meanwhile, a calendar of events, minutes of officers' meetings, and links to materials science and engineering companies are in the works for the Georgia Institute of Technology's page. Whatever you decide, Worth encourages student chapters to start building a web site as soon as possible.

"Most other student societies had web pages, and we felt like we had to in order to be a worthwhile organization," he says. "So just dive right in! Ask for help whenever you need it. People tend to be very free with advice because everyone wants as many high-quality web sites as possible."