DoIT offers several services to help you publish websites at UW—Madison, including WiscWeb, the UW KnowledgeBase, Google Sites, and Web Hosting. Use this guide to compare the benefits and differences between them.
What are your website publishing needs?
This is an accordion element with a series of buttons that open and close related content panels.
Do you need a simple website for personal use?
Google Sites is the only campus option that hosts sites for personal use. It’s ideal for resumes, portfolios, class projects, or other smaller sites.
Google Sites are added to your UW Google Drive, just like other Drive files. You can create a site for free using default or custom themes, customize CSS, and review your site’s Google Analytics.
Are you looking to create a webpage for a student organization?
Student organizations should use the WIN platform to register new orgs and create webpages. Your org can publish content about your group’s purpose, contact information, gallery images, and upcoming events. You can also upload important documents, like forms or bylaws.
Visit the Student Organization Resources and Policy Guide site for more information.
Do you want to create, organize, and share a library of support documentation?
The UW KnowledgeBase (KB) is a great choice for building an online library of help documentation.
KnowledgeBase sites can contain both internal and external content. You can customize your homepage and site CSS, organize large collections of documents by topics and audiences, and share content with other KB sites on campus.
Do you want to create a site on a fully-supported platform?
Then use the WiscWeb WordPress service.
- The WiscWeb team manages WordPress and plugin updates, reducing the amount of work and technical experience needed to securely maintain a site
- Sites using the UW Theme provide users with a consistent visual and interactive experience
- The UW Theme is regularly tested and kept up to date with the current version of WordPress, web accessibility standards, and UW Brand
- Any issues found with the UW Theme are addressed as quickly as possible and typically added to the next release of the UW Theme
Do you have web development experience, or are you working with an external web vendor to build a custom site?
If you are looking to build a custom site or application at UW—Madison, we recommend using DoIT Web Hosting. While some hosting options have a monthly cost, DoIT Web Hosting provides database and Secure FTP access and allows you to fully customize CSS, install plugins (beyond the WiscWeb plugin options), and create your site using your preferred open source CMS or common technology stacks like MEAN, LAMP, .NET, Java, Ruby, and more. It’s the best option for working with a third-party vendor, especially if you’re planning to develop and use custom code.
For custom sites on campus, the unit that develops a custom design is responsible for maintaining it from that point forward, as well as ensuring continued compliance with the university’s minimum web standards.
While some sites and applications may be more complex and require customization, University Marketing recommends that most university websites use the UW Theme (our official university WordPress theme) on WiscWeb because…
- The WiscWeb team manages WordPress and plugin updates, reducing the amount of work and technical experience needed to securely maintain a site
- Sites using the UW Theme provide users with a consistent visual and interactive experience
- The UW Theme is regularly tested and kept up to date with the current version of WordPress, web accessibility standards, and UW Brand
- Any issues found with the UW Theme are addressed as quickly as possible and typically added to the next release of the UW Theme
If you’re unsure which service is right for you, contact us to get connected with one of our experts and discuss your project.
Help me choose
| Features | WiscWeb | Web Hosting | Google Sites | KnowledgeBase |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best use | Centrally-managed service for building and managing UW branded WordPress sites. Recommended for most university websites. | General hosting for more complex websites or applications that require customization and do not fit within the scope of WiscWeb. | Simple websites for personal use (portfolios, blogs, resumes) or short-term needs, such as promoting events. | Publishing internal or collaborative how-to and support documentation online. |
| Cost | Free | Free to paid options. View pricing section on the service page | Free | Free for UW–Madison, low yearly cost for other higher ed institutions. |
| Eligibility | UW—Madison faculty and staff can own and manage sites, Emeriti and students can edit. | UW—Madison community and contracted university affiliates (i.e. web consultants) | UW—Madison community | UW—Madison community and other higher ed institutions |
| Allows personal sites (personal blog, portfolio, class website, etc) | No | No | Yes | No |
| Meets minimum web standards and accessibility policies | Managed by WiscWeb team | Site owner responsible for ongoing maintenance and compliance of standards and policies | Managed by Google | Managed by KB team |
| UW branding available | Yes | Recommend use of UW Theme (official university WordPress theme) | No | Yes |
| Supported technology | Exclusively uses WordPress with the UW Theme. | Common open source CMS software (WordPress, Drupal, etc.), static HTML, Node.js, Java/Tomcat, Ruby on Rails, and more. | Integration with Google Drive and all Google apps | KnowledgeBase only |
| WordPress themes and plugins | Must use UW Theme and WiscWeb pre-selected plugins | Installed and maintained by site owner | N/A | N/A |
| Maintenance: Upgrades/Security | WiscWeb manages WordPress, UW Theme, and plugin updates | Site owner self-manages maintenance of hosted websites and applications (WordPress updates, etc)
Self-service cybersecurity scanner via Qualys API |
Managed by Google | Managed by KB team |
| Self-service and/or help desk support available | Yes | Yes | No | Yes |
| Customizable CSS | No, fixed number of styling customizations available at additional cost | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Google analytics | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Restrict access to certain pages or entire websites | Restrict access to specific pages only. Visit options for protecting pages. | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Database access | No | Yes | No | No |
| Secure FTP Access (SFTP) | No | Yes | No | No |
| Ability to integrate forms | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Sensitive/restricted data | No | Yes, available at additional cost | No | No |
| Testing environments | No, but can share public drafts with external users for feedback. | Yes, available upon request | No | Yes |
| Learn more | WiscWeb | Web Hosting | Google Sites | KnowledgeBase |
Recommended approach
WiscWeb WordPress service
WiscWeb is UW—Madison’s free, self-service tool for building and managing university WordPress sites. All sites using WiscWeb meet the minimum web standards and campus accessibility policies to create a more inclusive, secure, and user friendly digital campus.
Sites using WiscWeb are built with the UW Theme and hosted in the cloud for fast performance and high availability. The WiscWeb team releases new features and theme updates regularly and all sites receive these updates at no cost.
Recommended by Office of Strategic Communication
While customization is an option, the Office of Strategic Communication recommends using the UW Theme (our official university WordPress theme) on WiscWeb for most university websites because:
- The UW Theme is kept up to date with UW Brand and web accessibility standards and policies,
- Regular testing is done to ensure that the UW Theme is up to date with the current version of WordPress, and
- Any issues found with the UW Theme are addressed as quickly as possible and typically added to the next release of the UW Theme.
Additional resources
Get help
Still not sure what you need or can’t find what you’re looking for? Speak with one of our experts about DoIT’s website and web development services.