Maintenance Considerations

• Basic types of intranets
• Comparison with internet sites
• Symptoms of poor maintenance

Regardless of the size or complexity of an intranet, there are a number of characteristics that make maintenance simpler than on an external web site. Intranets are privately-owned versions of the Internet. Access is restricted and there is decreased danger from hackers, viruses and other potentially harmful intrusions.

A major difference between an intranet and the Internet is the company that owns an intranet can control the hardware and software throughout the network. Uniformity or standardization facilitates upgrading of browsers and troubleshooting by technical support. The external web site designer contends with a constantly changing menagerie of software, hardware and other factors from a seemingly infinite variety of users. (Tony Karp, March 1999)

The benefit to the intranet designer/maintainer is an ability to target a specific user base which will simplify design, testing and updating of content. In addition, the designer will be able to incorporate more "bleeding edge" technology because the site personnel will know what hardware and software are being used (at least by the majority of employees). These include Java, ActiveX and various plug-ins such as Macromedia Flash.

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