website revamp

Cantab.

Any opinions on the latest administrative innovation, namely www.tcd.ie

It looks like it was done by a rentacoder.

The Trinity College/University of Dublin identity crisis has gone beyond annoying and is now a real problem.

What was wrong with the "University of Dublin" and "Trinity College, Dublin" in the first place, I do not know.

There's an attempt to homogenise the rich identity of the university and its sole college, Trinity College. The people making these frivolous decisions have no appreciation of the College's unique history in Ireland, the British Isles and the world.

Those in power needs think long and hard about what the university of Dublin is, communicate this to all stakeholders in the university and put a stop to what's been going on in recent decades. The appalling online innovation that is www.tcd.ie needs to go back to the drawing board under the influence of someone knowledgeable.

godtabh

Whats wrong with the website? Looks fine to me

cianclarke

The old website looked an awful lot better, this looks pretty cheap and templatey.

It is however much better to navigate. TCD has had a pretty disgraceful history with websites though.
I wonder did the in-house web design office do this one, or was it subcontracted?

Bartron Prime

Cantab. wrote: »

Those in power needs think long and hard about what the university of Dublin is, communicate this to all stakeholders in the university and put a stop to what's been going on in recent decades.

If anyone can ascertain the 'true' relationship between the University of Dublin and Trinity College, Dublin please send your answers on a postcard to Dr. John Hegarty, Office of the Provost, House 1, Grafton Street, Dublin 2.

The College predates the Univeristy by nearly 300 years. It seems to have been grafted on. The Statutes are not the rules of the University but rather of both the University and the College. The exact relationship is unclear and the Statutes Review Working Party are currently looking at ways to clarify the position. Best of luck to them.... (That's a cue for you to post here xEducat)

I think the website is actually rather nice. It has a very 'clean' design and feel to it. It also seems to be rather easy to navigate. Now, once they standardise the template for Local websites, then I'll be a happy bunny. I also don't quite get what you mean by 'homogenise' the university's identity. It's the website of an entire institution so it needs a common feel. Also, as you point out, it's the website of the sole constituent colleg. So, logically, the 'Trinity College Dublin' brand (for want of a better word) should be the most prominent image. Well, in my opinion.

Cantab.

Bartron Prime wrote: »

If anyone can ascertain the 'true' relationship between the University of Dublin and Trinity College, Dublin please send your answers on a postcard to Dr. John Hegarty, Office of the Provost, House 1, Grafton Street, Dublin 2.

The College predates the Univeristy by nearly 300 years. It seems to have been grafted on. The Statutes are not the rules of the University but rather of both the University and the College. The exact relationship is unclear and the Statutes Review Working Party are currently looking at ways to clarify the position. Best of luck to them.... (That's a cue for you to post here xEducat)

I think the website is actually rather nice. It has a very 'clean' design and feel to it. It also seems to be rather easy to navigate. Now, once they standardise the template for Local websites, then I'll be a happy bunny. I also don't quite get what you mean by 'homogenise' the university's identity. It's the website of an entire institution so it needs a common feel. Also, as you point out, it's the website of the sole constituent colleg. So, logically, the 'Trinity College Dublin' brand (for want of a better word) should be the most prominent image. Well, in my opinion.

The chief herald of Ireland does not issue "brands". Branding is is a corporate notion that is being grafted on to academia. We ought to have a little more decorum and think about things before going off on a tangent of innovation that is far from the heart of the university.

The irony of all this is that in their quest to "standardize" and "templateize", they're only making matters worse! Also, the ones who have been granted this power of homogenisation and "identity realignment" are the very ones who don't have a clue in the first place!

Provost, Fellows, Scholars, are you listening?

blucey

Cantab. wrote: »

The chief herald of Ireland does not issue "brands". Branding is is a corporate notion that is being grafted on to academia. We ought to have a little more decorum and think about things before going off on a tangent of innovation that is far from the heart of the university.

The irony of all this is that in their quest to "standardize" and "templateize", they're only making matters worse! Also, the ones who have been granted this power of homogenisation and "identity realignment" are the very ones who don't have a clue in the first place!

Provost, Fellows, Scholars, are you listening?

Yes. I have no idea what you are on about, sorry. What about the new website dont you like? That its standardized? That there is a generalized awareness of TCD as a globally recognized "entity" (aka brand)?

Webmonkey

This looks like it was drawn in paint, brought into ms word and saved as html.

http://www.tcd.ie/Admissions/courses/index.html

xebec

Webmonkey wrote: »

This looks like it was drawn in paint, brought into ms word and saved as html.

http://www.tcd.ie/Admissions/courses/index.html

True.

But in general I like it. Now if only they'd make the local page a bit more user friendly, dunno how many times I've had to read through all the lists of links to find the one that I want.

Nehpets

http://www.tcd.ie/oldwebsitewasbetter

ah no, I like the website. Looks very template-y but much better navagation imo. I would love if there was a more constant design on all the department sites.

Webmonkey

Nehpets wrote: »

http://www.tcd.ie/oldwebsitewasbetter

ah no, I like the website. Looks very template-y but much better navagation imo. I would love if there was a more constant design on all the department sites.

That was the old site? - The new one is much better and pleasing to the eye imo.

Crash

cianclarke wrote: »

The old website looked an awful lot better, this looks pretty cheap and templatey.

It is however much better to navigate. TCD has had a pretty disgraceful history with websites though.
I wonder did the in-house web design office do this one, or was it subcontracted?

I'd agree with you on the first point - much worse visually, much much better laid out.

as far as I know, there is no web design per se done in house, and pretty much all actual web design work is tendered out. I know the CS department was going through a tender process for a redesign of the department pages there last year at one stage.

Cantab.

çrash_000 wrote: »

I'd agree with you on the first point - much worse visually, much much better laid out.

as far as I know, there is no web design per se done in house, and pretty much all actual web design work is tendered out. I know the CS department was going through a tender process for a redesign of the department pages there last year at one stage.

You'd think of all the departments in college...!

(I understand that CS professors have a lot more to worry about than HTML)

Bartron Prime

Firstly, this has been bugging me - It isn't the College's latest administrative innovation. That would be the brand new Faculties and the resultant Management Groups and the new COO.

There is actually a Web Design Committee. After years of allowing 'Academic Units' the freedom to do what they wanted with regards to internal web development, they have come to realise that doesn't quite work. So, they and ISS (and its relevant committees ah IPC and Finance if web design costs money..shock!) are working on Guidelines and a template. From what I can recall it's going to be more closely implemented on a Faculty level first (I.e. standardising the front-end faculty site) with the possibility of it then moving to School and other levels later.

Personally I think it's a very good idea to create a standarised look for the primary levels of the College. Right now it looks, well, embarassing. A certain department still links to the Faculty of Arts (Letters)! The concepts of 'standardisation' and the idea of stripping out the diversity of academic culture in a university are very different notions. In my opinion, there should a be a certain minimum of requirements that all College websites at 'Academic Unit' level should be required to satisfy. From a principled level things such as clarity, accessibility, ease of use, efficiency, ability to quickly access important information and ease of accessing other relevant parts of the greater College website are extremely important. On a content level, all 'Academic Units' should have sections on undergraduate, postgraduate, staff. contact us etc. I'm not saying that 'Academic Units' don't currently do that but it needs to be laid down and the way it's done significantly improved.

This 'standardisation' does not in any way endanger what people might see as 'College's identity'. Far too many times in this institution, a non-user friendly approach is chosen because an overly complicated approach is 'traditional'. Trinity's identity is based on excellence and innovation to maintain this excellence. If you think that this 'identity' should preclude the use of a 'standard look' because it seems to resemble what 'others have done' then I would strongly disagree. Sometimes others adopt an approach because that is the best way to maintain excellence. Therefore it makes sense for Trinity, as an institution whose identity is based on excellence, to adopt this approach. The 'University of Dublin' is still maintained on the website. As I have mentioned, it was the afterthought, grafted onto the College's identity. It has now become part of it, as has the machinations of the Universities Act, as will the new Academic Year Structure, modularisation etc...

The College website is more than just a website. It is the front-end for a vast network of smaller sites that interconnect. Much like our administrative structures, for too long they have simply been allowed exist haphazardly on the design level. This lackadaisical approach has become so ingrained people feel it's part of the culture. Well, it's not. Most companies and institutions recognise that most people are discouraged by a site that is not efficient and consistent. When I use a site, I like the idea that everything will be in the same place throughout. It's logical.

So, to end this rant as I should probably get back to that ARAM folder (ftses *shudder*), I really like the website. I think it will evry easily demonstrate to people the various different courses here , and why these courses are excellent. This should encourage people to come here. This will maintain our excellence. This is what our identity is centred on. Also, as I said, as the site for the sole constituent College, the site should prioritise Trinity over the 'University of Dublin'. Hell, 'University of Dublin' isn't the official name in legal/corporate documents but don't go there..

Also, it's a pretty picture of the Campanile. I like the Campanile. It's pretty...

g'em

Bartron Prime wrote: »

Hell, 'University of Dublin' isn't the official name in legal/corporate documents but don't go there..

hehe, "The Provost Fellows and Scholars of the College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity of Queen Elizabeth near Dublin (hereinafter called TCD)". I rofl'd heartily when I came across this the other day