Before lifting the covers and getting your hands dirty implementing and web content management (WCM) web site, it is suggested that you get familier with what a content authors view would be managing the web site. Remember, the whole point behind WCM is to allow non-technical people to manage web site content, navigation etc without much effort, enforce a consistent look and feel through some type of template system, and to have approval and tracking on the content that the authors are generating. Therefore, it is recommended you become comfortable with the features and how content authors actually do this, assuming the SharePoint WCM site exists already. You want to make sure you understand how an author:
- Creates a web page, adds content to both field controls and web parts
- Set the schedule and other propeties for the page
- Previews the page, view version history
- Send the page for approval and allowing someone else to approve it
- Create summary pages with web parts which create summary / link information (content query, summary links, site structure etc).
- How to change the navigation of the site
- What other type of content does a author work with e.g. images, events, discussions, custom content types etc
Some of this can be understood by watching these 2 videos and reading the following white paper.
- WCM for content owners - video 10mins
- Creating content and page layouts - video 10mins
- Web Content Management WhitePaper
Designing and implementing a WCM solution on MOSS has many skill facets. There is the technical skills required to create custom master pages, page layouts, content types, setup and style content query web parts and more, but there are also the skills that people generally fail to acknowledge, and you should put some effort into understanding these. They are
- Information architecture (site structure and content layout which makes sense based on your audience)
- User experience
- Content author experience - what does the content authoring experience and functions look like (arguably the most important aspect, how do you you content authors actually manage the web sites content - DONT IGNORE THIS use case)
- Performance - page weight, caching, clever HTML/JSCRIPT design to ensure optimal user experience from a page load perspective
Let's start by pointing you to resources around the base technical knowledge to build a WCM site on MOSS.
Master Pages and Branding
For the most part, get your site design cut-up and created in pure HTML. You will then work this into your MOSS site. Yes, there are some considerations when creating a HTML site and then putting it into SharePoint, because somethings the design agency might come up with won't lend well to being in SharePoint e.g. navigation which is picture objects, SharePoint is better at managing navigation items (well the text of the navigation anyway) and text and not a graphic. You will soon learn what works and what doesnt.
It is recommended to not to try and change the out of the box master pages, but rather implementing your design on a brand new empty master page which you create from scratch. To do this combine your HTML design with a downloadable starter master page called minimal.master, you can get it here.
6 part series on creating master pages, page layouts for a WCM web site in MOSS
Page Layouts
lorum
Navigation
First, understand how navigation works in SharePoint by reading the following articles:
- Navigation in MOSS explained Part 1
- Navigation in MOSS explained Part 2
Then read the following blog article which explains how to customise the navigation in SharePoint, from branding to building your own navigation controls.
Content Query Web Part Customisation and Branding
lorum
Custom Developed Web Parts
lorum
Forms Authentication
Lorum
InfoPath Forms Services (for site forms)
lorum
Performance
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Tips
- Pescriptive Guidance for WCM on SharePoint2007
- Configure Anonymous access to SharePoint WCM Site