Next Year`s Web and How To Get There

Transcript Next Year`s Web and How To Get There

Next Year's Web and
How To Get There
"If I were you I wouldn't start from here!"
Brian Kelly
UK Web Focus
UKOLN
University of Bath
[email protected]
1
Structured Documentation
Store web resources in a
rich structured open
master format
Why: To overcome HTML
deficiencies
Barriers: Lack of
standards. HTML
provides little structure
How: XML
Familiarisation:
Jumbo browser
See also
http://www.textuality.com/xml/
2
Web Visualisation
http://www.dynamicdiagrams.com/
Visualisation of a web site
to aid end user navigation
Why: To make navigation
easier for end users
To provide tailorable
views (e.g. only show
"personal home pages")
Barriers: Lack of
standards. Proprietary,
licensed software.
See also WebCutter at
http://www6.nttlabs.com/
How: Web Collections
HyperNews/get/PAPER40.html
Familiarisation: MAPA,
NetObjects Fusion
3
Better Searching (1)
Why: Time wasted in
searching
Barriers: Lack of
metadata standards.
Lack of tools
How: Dublin Core
Familiarisation: Read
UKOLN resources at
http://www.
ukoln.ac.uk/
metadata/
Take part in pilot
4
Better Searching (2)
Application of
heuristic techniques
in searching
Why: Time wasted in
searching
Barriers: Lack of
organisational
guidelines
How: Heuristics.
Consistency in URLs
across institution
Familiarisation: Ahoy!
5
http://ahoy.cs.
washington.edu:6060/
A Manageable Web (1)
Use of metadata for site
management
Why: Site metadata on
authoring tools,
authoring methods,
document types, ..
Barriers: Lack of
standards
How: Dublin Core,
PICS, XML,...
Familiarisation:
UKOLN metadata
work
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Metadata to assist with
following requests:
• Find all pages
created using
Internet Assistant v1
• Find all pages which
use Jscript
• Find pages where
author = {find author
from departed-staff}
A Manageable Web (2)
Use of server side
management techniques
Why: Single copy to
minimise maintenance
Barriers: Performance,
cost of software, Unix
How: Server side
includes,
Familiarisation: MS
Active Server Pages,
Netscape Suitespot,
PHP/FI, ...
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<If useragent=netscape1.1 then
else if useragent= …>
This resource is copyright ...
Adding code / text to static
HTML resource:
• complex
• difficult to maintain
<#If useragent=netscape1.1 then
else if useragent= …>
<#include copyright-1.txt>
Server side management
tools:
• HTML resource clean
• easier to maintain
<SCRIPT LANGUAGE="JavaScript">
<!-- Hide this from JavaScript-challenged browsers
var FirstSlide = 1;var LastSlide = 17; var CurrentSlide = FirstSlide;var ImageWidth = 708 - 8;
var ImageHeight = 520; var CurImageWidth = ImageWidth; var CurImageHeight = ImageHeight;
/* This function concerts numbers to strings
*/ <HTML><BODY >
<A HREF="JavaScript:parent.
function CvtNtoS(iNum)
ItemClicked(1, 0)"> An Introduction to
{return ("" + iNum);}
/* This function prefixes strings with the correct # of 0's */Metadata </A> 
<A HREF="JavaScript:parent.
function ZeroFill(iNum, iDigits)
ItemClicked(2, 0)"> UK Web Focus
{ var sNum = CvtNtoS(iNum);
</A> <A HREF="JavaScript:
while (sNum.length < iDigits)
parent.ItemClicked(3, 0)"> Early Days
sNum = "0" + sNum;
of the Web (1) </A> 
return sNum;}
HTML><BODY >
/* this function handles the setting the navigation buttons.
<base target="_top">
The name of navigation control is used here so change it if it is renamed
*/
<A
HREF="JavaScript:
function ItemClicked(iIndex, iNoteOnly)
parent.OutlineExpand(0)"><IMG
{var sIndex = ZeroFill(iIndex, 3);
SRC="collapse.gif" BORDER=0
var sNoteHref = "note" + sIndex + ".htm";
ALT="Collapse"></A>
var sSlideImage = "img" + sIndex + ".htm";
<A HREF="JavaScript:
if (!iNoteOnly)
// not active X, update image and nav btns
parent.OutlineExpand(1)"><IMG
frames["SlideImage"].location.href = sSlideImage;
SRC="expand.gif" BORDER=0
frames["Notes"].location.href = sNoteHref;
ALT="Expand"></A>
CurrentSlide = iIndex;}
Demise of Tags
Demise of text editor
for authoring
Why: HTML will be too
complex
Barriers: Inertia. Too
many tools!
How: Recommendations
on authoring tools
Familiarisation: Front
Page, Netobjects
Fusion, ...
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Richer Hyperlinking
Richer forms of hyperlinking
Why: Increased functionality
Barriers: Lack of standards
How: XML, Javascript
Familiarisation:
SoftQuad HiP,
http://www.w3.org/
XML/
Reference
Tutorial
See further instructions
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English
French
XML-Linking
Multi-way links
Link destination:
• Replaces existing
document
• Included inline in
document
• Displayed in new
window
Resolve link at:
• document load
• user action
An Accessible Web
Web resources accessible Technologies
to people with disabilities
• Style sheets:
Why: Equality. Spinoffs
control over appearance
for "temporarily ableneeded by designers, but
with end user ability to
bodied persons"
change appearance (not
Barriers: Lack of
achievable with images)
standards, lack of
• Aural style sheets:
awareness, misuse of
e.g. rendered
HTML
as LOUD voice, or pause
before phrase,
How: WAI, Institutional
<DT>, <DD> rendered using
policies
male / female voices,
Familiarisation: WAI
columns in tables using left
pages
and right stereo channels
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HTML Developments
End user control
over layout, better
printing, ...
Why: Increased
functionality
Barriers: Lack of
standards
How: CSS, HTML
4.0 (Cougar)
Familiarisation: IE
4, Netscape 4
HTML 4.0 (Cougar)
• Document Object Model
(DOM):
APIs (application program
interface) for HTML/CSS
elements. Provides a
programming interface for HTML
(hooks for Javascript, etc.)
• Forms:
Improved forms
• Printing:
Better control over printing
• Layout:
Absolute positioning of HTML
elements, layering, etc
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Increasing Use Of Java
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Expect to see increasing
use of Java:
Why: Provide extra
functionality on client;
Minimise support load
for desktop applications
Barriers: Performance
concerns (real and
imaginary - cf XMosaic)
How: Standard web
browser
Z39.50 clients are being
Familiarisation:
http://www.gamelan developed using Java
.com/
A Customisable Web
End user choice of preferred
formats (HTML or PDF, GIF
or PNG), features (frames or
tables), languages, etc.
Why: Choice for the end
user, deployment of new
features
Barriers: Lack of standards,
misuse of HTML
How: TCN, Cookies
Familiarisation:
http://tips.iworld.com/
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Replace this with use of
cookies or transparent
content negotiation
Maths
Mathematical formulae
on the web.
Why: Needed by
scientists, images of
formulae are slow and
have no semantics
Barriers: Lack of
standards
How: MML, XML, Java,
ActiveX
Familiarisation:
http://www.w3.org/
MarkUp/Math/
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A Quicker Web
More effective use of
scarce bandwidth
Technologies
• Caching:
Essential!
Why: The web is too slow!
Barriers: Limitations of
• HTTP/1.1:
New protocol is more cacheprotocols (HTML, HTTP)
aware, and avoids problems
How: Caching, HTTP/1.1,
(e.g. stale information) which
HTTP/NG, Education,
have occurred in the past
Charging!
• HTTP/NG:
Familiarisation:
Proposal for new protocol
Monitoring web pages,
• Style sheets:
Internet magazines,
Avoids need for large images
for design effects
attending workshops
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Collaborative Tools
Use of collaborative and
conferencing web tools.
Why: Provide rich
collaborative tools
Barriers: Lack of locking,
notification systems,
HTML deficiencies
How: WebDAV work,
Cougar
Familiarisation: Amaya,
http://union.ncsa.
uiuc.edu/HyperNews/
get/hypernews.html
16
Push Technologies
Use of push
technologies.
Why: Push information,
teaching and learning
services to end users
Barriers: Lack of
standards, bandwidth
concerns
How: CDF
Familiarisation:
Pointcast
IE 4
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Conclusions
• The web is still developing rapidly
• Conformance to standards is
important
• Institutions will have to continually
monitor new developments
• There is a real danger that the costs
in providing web services will increase
when chasing new developments
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Next Year`s Web and How To Get There

Transcript Next Year`s Web and How To Get There

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