WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN PUBLICATIONS AND APPLICATIONS?

Intranet publications are defined as those items that typically were printed on paper and distributed within a company. Policy manuals, telephone books, and organizational charts are all examples of publications.

With publications, it is important to keep several factors in mind:

On-line data design is not the same as paper data design.Present information in a way that is appropriate to your medium and your users' needs. Remember to recognize the difference between stimulators and expanders and use both. People learn by reading words and associating images with those words. This learning is made easier by indents, graphic markers, and putting data in color bars.

The worth of data depends on its currency. There is no excuse for outdated information.

An application on the Intranet is defined as the completion of a task by means of a program. For example, a manager should be able to complete a hiring by working directly on the Intranet,using a program that takes him step-by-step through the hiring procedures for his specific company.

An application will often be purchased from a vendor such as Seekersoft® or PeopleSoft® and then customized to fit corporate needs. At other times, an application will be so specific to a corporation that it must be created entirely internally. For example, a company that needs to track iridium purchases to file a report with the U.S. government would probably not find an appropriate application "on the shelf." Company personnel would have to create the application they need.

With applications it is important to keep several factors in mind:

Intranet applications should not look like mainframe applications. A major strength of the Intranet is that it lessens the need for "back-office" staff by bringing in a whole new level of user. Don't scare away your new users by ugly mainframe "retro" screens.

Demand a visual, intuitive user interface from your vendors. Vendors of off-the-shelf-programs for your Intranet will tell you their programs have an appropriate "look feel" . Usually they are refugees and interlopers from the mainframe world and wouldn't know a "look and feel" if they saw one. It will be up to you to demand the interface you know your users need for a successful Intranet.

Test your proposed purchases by having the actual users try them out. That's revolutionary, but why not be a Thomas Jefferson and demand a regular revolution to keep your particular corporate country healthy!

Bottom Line:

Pages are either Publications or Applications.

Publications are those items that have traditionally been printed on paper.

Make your publications reflect the medium. Use layout and graphics to enhance your message.

Update, update, update.

Take nothing less than an attractive,intuitive user interface from your applications. vendor.

Intranet applications are used to complete a task, such as a performance review, and involve programming.

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