I have been working with Susan Hart, Director of the Rushford Public Library, to develop a new website for the library. Website development is something I’ve always wanted to take a shot at, but without prior experience in web design and publishing, I contacted SELCO to ask what assistance they may be able to provide.

Tom Coffee, SELCO’s Software Development Specialist, recommended the SELCO-supported web authoring program called Kompozer. The Kompozer software is free and offers a host of useful features. There are four views to work within: normal, html tags, source code, and preview. As a rookie, this was very helpful as I was able to experiment in making modifications to the pages and immediately see the impact it had by clicking the preview tab. Kompozer also displays a line of html tags associated with the element you are working on at the bottom of the screen. Right click on it and a dialogue box of options opens where you can make any number of changes to the style of the element. For someone who is still learning html code, this is a great help.

In addition to offering support on the web authoring program, SELCO also provides some initial training on use of the software, works with you to get you started on your site, and offers assistance for any follow-up questions you may have as you proceed. Tom, along with Aurora Jacobsen, SELCO’s Information Services Librarian, set up a training session that included many tips and tricks on using Kompozer and editing key strings of html code. I was also provided a list of links on editing CSS (cascading style sheets), html code, Kompozer tutorials, and web design.

From there, Susan and I had fun assembling the content for the site and deciding upon a layout. We found a really neat way to display photos, using turn-the-page style photo books created in Photoshop Elements, and slideshows of PowerPoint presentations uploaded to an external site. We chose a template with a CSS and made modifications to it, a much easier approach than creating html code from scratch. When it came time to go live with the site, Tom provided a detailed set of instructions on how to log into the server and publish each page.

Our website project is a perfect example of a successful collaborative effort. It has been a very enjoyable experience to work with Susan to create the new website. Her vision for the library and what the site could be guided the entire project and made it completely addicting to work on. SELCO’s support was instrumental to the process, as I relied heavily on their expertise and was grateful for the assistance they provided in support of the project.

If you’d like to check out new Rushford Public Library site, click here or go to rushford.lib.mn.us.