2009

Content Management Systems in Libraries: Opportunities and Lessons Learned

Jonathan Blackburn, Eli Neiburger, Karen Coombs (absent due to illness) Jonathan Blackburn was formerly employed as the “web guy” at Florida State University (FSU). He currently is the Product Analyst at OCLC. Blackburn explained why a content management system (CMS) would be useful to create library websites: They’re good for collaboration and efficiency, though they can result in an incoherent representation due to collaborative work. CMSs matter to libraries because they can leverage library staff and potentially reduce costs. Uses and applications of a CMS include a public-facing website, staff intranet, digital library (asset management), and one-off projects (events, programs). If your library wants to try out a CMS for the first time, events or programs are a great excuse to see if a CMS is the right fit for your organization. CMSs create unique challenges for libraries. They need to allow for different “types” of content (hours, events, databases),…