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Publication policy

Most organizations consider the way they present themselves to the outside world to be a matter of the utmost importance. Material published on the Web can make a positive contribution or otherwise to an organization's image, so most organizations will need to establish a coherent strategy on matters such as the scope, style and substance of Web documents. It may be decided that Web documents need to go through the same kind of rigourous vetting procedures as any printed material published by the organization before their release is authorized, perhaps having to be passed by an editorial board.

Web servers can be configured to allow individuals to make their own pages available. When individuals are part of a wider organization, if they have carte blanche to say what they like how they like, this can have an impact on the way the organization is perceived by outsiders. This facility can usually be disabled. It is up to the organization to determine whether it is appropriate to allow individual access, and if permitted, what guidelines to set for the type and style of information that individuals make available. Some organizations require their employees to include a statement disassociating their views from those of the organization, or it may be that employees need to be briefed about what is acceptable. Where staff are allowed to make their own pages available, it may be decided to provide formal training in Web document design, ways of adhering to house style, organizational confidentiality, and so on.

Spinning the Web by Andrew Ford
© 1995 International Thomson Publishing
© 2002 Andrew Ford and Ford & Mason Ltd
Note: this HTML document was generated in December 1994 directly from the LaTeX source files using LaTeX2HTML. It was formatted into our standard page layout using the Template Toolkit. The document is mainly of historical interest as obviously many of the sites mentioned have long since disappeared.