Chemistry International
Vol. 22, No. 5
September 2000
New www.royalsoc.ac.uk
(The Royal Society)
On 26 January 2000, the Royal Society relaunched its web site (www.royalsoc.ac.uk),
unveiling a new look with added features. This effort is part of the
current drive to help the Society raise its profile and respond better
to the needs of its increasingly diverse audiences. Harnessing the help
of the designers Synergy Communications, the aim of the redesign was
to make the site more dynamic and user-friendly while taking advantage
of developing web technologies and increased functionality.
The new site is now ordered with the end-user/audience in mind and
offers full navigation between the various sections of the site via
a navigation bar and link menus. Additional features of the new site
include a dynamic home page with a changing "face of science"
graphic, press release notices, and a daily update of science issues
in the media; a registration system enabling users to receive e-mail
updates of the Societys activities; easy access to downloadable
reports, media releases, and grant forms; and a secure, private area,
solely for the use of Fellows The Fellows' Room. This area of
the site is intended to provide information of specific interest to
Fellows of the Royal Society and includes a Discussion Forum. Future
developments being planned include a searchable media directory of specialists,
the transfer onto the site of some of the Societys vast library
and archive resources, and an education "subsite" aimed specifically
at school children and teachers.
The web site will play an increasingly important part in the promotion
of the Society and science in the future, and it is hoped that users
will find the new site both informative and easy to use. We welcome
any comments that you may have on the new look and structure of the
web site. Please direct them to the Web Manager ([email protected]).
This
article originally appeared in the March 2000 issue of The Royal Society
News, published by the Press and Public Relations Unit of the Royal
Society (6 Carlton House Terrace, London SW1Y 5AG, England, UK), to
whom we extend thanks for their permission to reproduce it in full.