Land Information New Zealand

LINZ - homepage

Website: linz.govt.nz (site has since been redesigned) - view screenshots

Size: Mariner's section of website: 50 pages. 11 sub-sites: ranging in size from 5 to 72 pages

My professional status: independent web designer/developer

Website client: Land Information New Zealand

Dates: November 2005 - March 2006, May 2006, June 2007

Categories: Client liaison, Project manager, IA & UX, Website designer, Front-end developer, Govt web standards tester, Writing for the web, Content-loader, Old-school table layout, Other CMS, Government websites, Medium sites

Brief: initially contracted to redevelop and add new content to the Mariner's section of the LINZ website, which was housed outside the main site, and was not part of the CMS.

Then retained as an e-government expert to advise on the most effective way of converting PDFs to web pages - and how to create Word documents in the future which can more easily be converted to accessible web pages.

Designed and developed the LINZ Statement of Intent PDF into a sub-site, which was followed by the conversion of ten other key LINZ documents into separate sub-sites.

Hi Ali! First, the feedback from Comms was "I've had a quick check through this and I can't spot a single thing that is wrong. She is a machine." You can take it from that comment that Comms were absolutely delighted with your work.

Thank you also for the prompt feedback on your experience of doing the SOI, and how it might be streamlined, etc... As always, your work for us was amazing, and I'm particularly mindful of how busy you must have been at the time anyway. Thank you so much for doing such an excellent job.

Sally Tudhope, Senior Web Specialist, Land Information New Zealand

My responsibilities included:

  • Re-development of the Mariner's section of LINZ with all-new content and a new subnav
  • Advising the client on the best ways to create accessible, e-government-approved pages within the existing tables-based LINZ template
  • Ensuring that every template and stylesheet had been validated using the W3C Markup Validation Service and that it conformed to HTML 4.01 Transitional requirements (and consequent updating of the existing LINZ template)
  • Development of the Mariner's section into a fully-functioning set of pages, even though the section was not part of the LINZ CMS, so that the new pages could be user-tested
  • Adaptation and alteration of existing VBScript on the site, which imported database information and incorporated this into dropdown menus
  • Development of a new Mariner's section CSS stylesheet and associated includes
  • Addition of a range of accessibility features to the Mariner's section in order that it meet e-government guidelines
  • Testing of the site at all stages of the development process, ensuring consistency between Internet Explorer 6.0 and Firefox on a PC
  • Design of a new sub-site template in which to house a number of key LINZ documents (including the Statement of Intent, the Annual Report etc) which had previously only existed as PDFs
  • The design was based on the existing LINZ template, with a number of adaptations which allowed each sub-site to maintain the branding of the individual document while still staying true to the overall look and feel of the LINZ website
  • Development of the new sub-site template and development of a CSS stylesheet
  • Ensuring that each sub-site was as accessible as possible, within the constraints of the existing website
  • Testing of each site to ensure consistency in IE6.0 and Firefox on a PC
  • Proofreading of each site to ensure it was exactly the same as the printed version.

The LINZ website was a model of accessibility when it was first built. In the intervening time accessibility had become more sophisticated and the e-government guidelines had been developed. Although my initial contract was only for three weeks, this was extended to five months so that LINZ could take advantage of my e-government accessibility knowledge, and so that I could design and build their top 10 requested PDFs into separate sub-sites. I also advised LINZ on the best ways to use Word templates in the future so that it would be easier to convert these to HTML pages, rather than simply making PDFs.

Once I had completed my contract with LINZ, I continued to work with them from time to time as an external contractor.

I designed and developed the following sub-sites for LINZ:

  • A Guide to Tenure Review
  • Annual Report 2004/05
  • Briefing for the Incoming Minister
  • Customer Service Strategy
  • Find the Land Record You Want
  • How to Make a Business (Non-Land) Application Under the Overseas Investment Act 2005
  • How to Make a Land Application Under the Overseas Investment Act 2005
  • Statement of Intent 2005/06
  • Statement of Intent 2006/07
  • Statement of Intent 2007/08
  • Tenure Review Fact Sheet
  • Topographic Information Strategy 2005-2010