To meet the educational and informational demands of a university program, Gridwork created a simple template system that could accommodate a wide range of content types. This site is in a constant state of evolution, with every new research project, or grant funded documentary, or academic conference, they needed a site that would bend and flex with minimal overhead.
academic research Center for Social Media
Dynamic Calendar
Managing a steady stream of events, with countless variables and a genuine need to communicate with the audience is no easy task. To help make the whole process easier for attendees and staff, we developed a simple workflow for loading new events, sending RSVPs, and dynamically aging events for maximum exposure to potential attendees.
Integrated Video
The Center for Social Media was fortunate to time their redesign just as Flash emerged as the preferred platform for delivering online video. By following in the footsteps of YouTube, New York Times, and countless others, they are able to quickly encode and deliver high-quality streaming video of events, documentaries and shorts without the poor quality, plug-in requirements and confusing navigation associated with video in the past.
Conditional Templates
Redesigning a site based on hundreds of flat HTML files—with dozens of potential variables and data models—required designing templates and an administration system that could handle pdf files, intertwined with class syllabi, very long research documents and short little director bios to promote upcoming events. Rather than require a custom input form for each section, we added numerous dynamic elements on each template which would hide or reveal themselves only when needed. This allows the CSM staff to learn one or two input methods rather than eight or nine.
Keyword Based Navigation
The final key element in bringing this site together is the site-wide keywording system based on the innovation of sites like Flickr and del.ic.ious. By quickly and easily grouping content based on simple keywords, we allow users to discover relevent, useful information across the broadest range of the site, and much more quickly than with standard search forms.