Publishing for the web
Publishing for the web thus can be defined as the process of transforming the author’s work into a set of web-readable pages, ensuring that the content:
- has a consistent look and design
- is suitably sized for easy downloading
- is formatted in a fashion that allows the user to select his preferred screen and window sizes
As a note, it must be recognized that, in the present state of the web, it is very difficult to ensure that a given layout will appear in the same manner on all possible target computers, operating systems, browser types. Very large sites often format their content in function of the properties of the visitor. For smaller sites, this is too complicated and conservative page layouts that do not exploit all possible possibilities are better suited. The downside is that the pages will indeed look a little different depending on the parameters described above.
A last possibility to solve this difficulty is to essentially replace the browser by a plug-in that performs all visualization functions within the main browser window (Macromedia Flash for example). While this certainly solves part of the problem, this solution requires that the plug-in be available and present on the computer. The data used by these plug-ins is usually in binary format, instead of the ASCII text used by HTML files, thus making an automated production of the Flash files more difficult. This family of solutions will not be discussed further here.
Should there be any difference for the author ?
Should authors give up the freedom to modify their documents at any time in order to have them published on the web ?
In fact, there is no reason why web publishing should be any different from electronic publishing. Indeed, as table 1 shows, it is often highly desirable that web documents be modified and enhanced, since they have an inherently larger flexibility than traditional means, even than electronic documents. To achieve this result, it is necessary that the author be able to modify his document at any time, just like for now ordinary fully electronic publishing. A solution that requires the whole process of figure 4 to involve a series of specialists brings in effect the publishing process back to the times of classical publishing with its delays and higher costs.
| Type of document | Time of delivery | Need for actualization |
| Printed book | At publication | Low (occasional new editions) |
| Printed report | At publication | Low to medium (client may require modifications, authors may propose a revised version) |
| Electronic report | When sent to the client | Low to high. Documents can be revised regularly, as for example periodical financial reports |
| Web document | Every time the client asks for it | Low to very high. Some documents may never change (literature, reference works), but otherwise the client expects the latest, most up-to-date version of the document |
Table 1: Type of delivery and frequence of update for various document types
So, why is it still so difficult to have material published on the web in a fashion that suits at the same time authors and web technicians in charge of operating web servers? Indeed, this situation is peculiar and without good reason, except for the fact that even today many people do not have a clear picture of the web publishing process as outlined above, and that a whole class of “web-specialists” does its best to protect its privileges and responsibilities.
As a note, not really applicable to e-learning projects of a modest scale, let’s mention the widespread development of Content Management Systems (CMS) that strive to offer to the general public a “simple” access to web publishing. Although this type of solution can be helpful under specific circumstances, it must be underscored that this class of software only offers a restricted subset of web functionalities, requiring in essence more web-savvyness to achieve special results than traditional web publishing tools.