On 28 June 2010, 15 participants from various CIMMYT units and departments attended a one-day workshop given by the CIMMYT web team. Held at El Batán, the event covered the basic uses of Joomla—a content management system for websites and Intranets. Content management systems are designed primarily for interactive use, potentially by a large number of contributors.
With the new CIMMYT website, interior pages will be maintained by unit-selected managers and administrators with support from Corporate Communications. Additionally, the Intranet is now integrated within the new CIMMYT website and will be accessible to those with CIMMYT credentials.
The workshop was designed to equip these persons with the knowledge and tools to manage their unit’s information. Exercises covered uploading or updating information, inserting images and documents, creating links, and editing existing information. Participants also learned how to keep the website running smoothly by only uploading “clean” text and images of appropriate size.
Several participants said that the knowledge gained will allow them to manage web information in the future. A few requested additional training on menu and table management. To address these and other issues, more training sessions will be scheduled, including events for web section administrators outside of El Batán. The web team offered their ongoing assistance.
