UB Information Technology

Design and Content Guidelines

As an Web Developer, you are welcome to contribute anything you like to Central Campus Web Hosting Server. However, for the service to be useful, it needs to be consistent in appearance and content, good looking, easy to read and use, and legal. Therefore, the Central Campus Web Hosting Server Implementation Group has produced a set of guidelines you should follow.

1. Authorization. The information you place on the Central Campus Web Hosting Server represents your organization. Therefore, you must have the explicit authorization from your department to be a Web Developer, and the documents you put up should come from official sources. "Unofficial" information will only confuse or mislead users.
2. File Formats. Documents should be in the HTML format. Other document formats, such as plain text, PostScript, and PDF versions are optional. Graphics should be in GIF or JPEG. Video clips should be in MPEG or Real, sound in MP3 or Real format.
3. Copyright. No copyrighted documents may be included on the campus server without permission of the copyright holder. The University at Buffalo owns the copyright to all documents held on the Central Campus Web Hosting Server unless a given document explicitly states otherwise.
4. Permissions. Any information that belongs to other people (e.g., personal data, pictures, graphics, documents) should only be included with their permission, even if it is not explicitly copyrighted.
5. Commerce. Central Campus Web Hosting Server may not be used for commercial purposes. Some enterprises which ultimately benefit the University may be included upon approval by the Central Campus Web Hosting Server Implementation Group.
6. Maintenance and Currency. You, as an Web Developer, are the owner of the documents and services you provide, and are responsible for maintaining those documents and services. If information is timely (i.e. it changes every month or semester), you must keep it up to date. If information becomes seriously outdated, it will be removed by the Central Campus Web Hosting Service Staff. If you do not feel that you or your organization can make such a commitment, you probably shouldn't be an Web Developer.
7. Metadata. Web Developers must provide identification of their documents by including certain information somewhere on each page. These fields include:
   • Document title (at the top of the document)
   • Document status, e.g. "draft", date of last revision
   • Name & email address of creator, last revisor, or current
   contact person
   • Date of creation