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 DHHS Redesign Project
Webmaster Notes
New Search Tool!
February 2007: DHHS now has a search engine that searches all known public websites
within the department (see the inventory
of websites). (A few stragglers will be added soon.) This is
a Verity search, and is a subset of the search found at www.nc.gov.
The code to place on your pages to institute the DHHS search on
your website can be found in this text
file.
Try to place the search in the upper right corner of your web pages.
If your website is coded with Dreamweaver library items, inserting
the
search
into
your
website
can be as simple
as
modifying
one of
these items. If each page is coded separately, consider only adding
search to your
top
level pages.
Now is a good time to clean up any orphan files you might have on
the production server. Also, if you have Acrobat files on the web
without title tags, consider adding the tags, since search results
display
the title tag. These are two good practices even
if you don't place the search on your web
pages.
All
DHHS pages
are
more
visible
now
with
the search
engine.
ITS Website Migration Coming Soon
February 2007: ITS is getting ready to migrate a good number of our sites from
the Windows 2000 server to a Windows 2003 server. The following websites
are affected.
- Any site that begins with www.ncdhhs.gov (or www.dhhs.state.nc.us)
This includes DAAS, DSS, DMA, OEO, DSB, MHDDSAS, OCS, Budget
and Analysis, Controller's Office, DHR, and Public Affairs (plus
any institutions and subsites that have a website that begins with
the above URL).
- DIRM
- DSDHH
- Murdoch Center
- DVR
- Forms and Manuals
ITS says that webmasters might need to make alterations
in their web forms and in Dreamweaver library items.
Look for specific
instructions
soon (before the end of February) on what the webmasters of the
above sites need to do to prepare for the migration. ITS has pledged
to give us sufficient time to make any needed
changes.
It's 2007: Do You Know How Accessible your
PDFs Are?
February 2007: The department’s commitment to accessibility is long-standing, but
webmasters have not always had the tools or training to comply. Acrobat
Professional is much more powerful in creating
accessible PDFs than Acrobat Standard, but not all webmasters have
Professional. Plus, using the accessibility features of Acrobat Professional
is a technical challenge with a steep learning curve. Furthermore,
often people who have no role in website creation and no knowledge
of accessibility concerns prepare PDF documents that end up on the
web.
Best practices for ensuring our PDF documents are accessible are
in the making. Online training is being created to help all
webmasters (and others who create PDFs for the web) learn the complex
process.
In the meantime, as a webmaster, be aware of the PDFs that
you are asked
to place on the web. If you are converting them into PDF format,
and you don't have access to Acrobat Professional, alert your
manager to the need. Most divisions currently have at least one
version of Acrobat Professional. Perhaps you can get access to it.
If others
give you PDFs for the web, ask them if any
effort was made to make the document accessible.
Learn all about making PDF documents accessible at the Adobe
Acrobat website.
If you're an expert in PDF accessibility and would be willing
to be a resource to other webmasters, email Lois
Nilsen.
If you have any thoughts on best practices, email Lois
Nilsen.
State of the Web
February 2007: This document, the State
of the Web, summarizes the status
of the comprehensive website redesign project.
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