What is a Web Content Management System?

A web content management system (WCMS) is a tool that allows you to easily publish your content to the web, without the technical expertise. There are many WCMS tools out there. UCSC selected Hannon Hill's system called Cascade for our Campus WCMS.

Here are a few of the key benefits of the Campus WCMS:

• User-friendly interface accessed from any computer with Internet access (i.e. you can log in from any computer) No software to buy or install

• Design templates are built in for a consistent look and feel

• “Versioning” means your past versions are archived and available

• Built-in accessibility

• Automatic link checking and spell check features

• Integration with Campus authoritative content: Campus Directory, Course Catalog, and Class Schedule feeds and campus news from Communications & Marketing

• If the WCMS application is unavailable for any reason, your site is still up and available

• Built-in site preview – see it before you publish

How the Campus WCMS Works

The Campus WCMS is an application that runs in the UCSC Data Center. When you publish your content using the application, it is posted to public-facing web servers (see a technical diagram). Here are a few things users should know about how the Campus WCMS works:

• You don't need any additional software, other than your web browser

• Your changes are never visible by the public until you hit the "Publish" button

• If the Campus WCMS has an outage, your website is not affected - the public sites live on a separate web server

• You are not responsible for updates to the campus web designs or technical upgrades - these are managed for you by the service team

Watch The 3.5 Minute Introductory Video: