First generation : static web sites

			In February 2001, Novadeck conducted a survey on the first 60 sites classified in the "B to B" section of Yahoo.fr. 78% of them had a static web site. Static web sites are built with HTML pages which describe both content (information) and design (colors, layout). To update these pages, the pages must be corrected with an HTML editor or directly in HTML, which requires a technical knowledge.Most SMEs do not master this knowledge, which means that it is not possible for them to easily update their site. This is a major drawback since it can only publish limited, unchangeable information. Besides, strictly no interactivity is available for the visitor's comfort nor for basic web marketing operations (such as profiling). It is a good way for small businesses to make their first steps on the web, but they can obviously not use it on regular basis to publish news or a products' catalogue.  Static  Publication mode Publication of static web pages Publication format HTML only Content management No Update frequency Very limited Design evolution By specialists Interactivity None Use Limited online presence (shop window)

A compromise: dynamically published sites

			According to the same survey, 7% of the sites are more evolved. Also made of static pages, they use interfaces more user friendly than an HTML editor, for instance through forms or objects inserted in the page and managed with mini-editors such as word processing or spreadsheets. Static HTML pages are dynamically published: content is published (more exactly, integrated into an existing page) and saved as an HTML file (content is then not saved in a database). Thanks to these interfaces, anyone familiar with graphical interfaces such as MS Windows can update the site, and to a lesser extent modify graphics. This solution has major drawbacks. In the case of an estate agency for instance, contacts details of an employee cannot be dynamically corrected in all the estate ads managed by this employee. Each ad must be corrected by hand. Besides, interactivity with the user is very limited and the visitor cannot intervene. Search and profiling functionality are more than basic. Lastly, in most cases, to opt for a new graphical template is not possible once the site has been published.  Dynamic publication   Publication mode Publication of static pages Publication format HTML, WML, etc. (independent from each other) Content management None Update frequency Low to medium Design evolution By non specialists (through integrated style sheets) Interactivity Through additional interactive modules (polls, forums ; etc.) Use First generation shop window site, but easier management

Second generation web sites: dynamic web sites

			5% of the sites are complex web sites: they are called "dynamic" because content and graphics are independent and because HTML pages are dynamically composed when displayed. This involves that changes of content or design are immediately applied. The web site content is stocked in databases which means that programs can be made to sort, search or select the content (for instance, "display on the News page the last 3 articles published"). Separation between content and graphics implies that pages can be displayed with no regard to the format or graphics. Authors and moderators of each piece of news are identified thanks to the users' rights administration. Content can also be personalized according to the visitors' profile or archived when at an expiry date. Companies that could afford the step towards second generation web sites had so far no choice but to use complex and costly content management systems (CMS). As a second generation web sites' construction platform, Everydeck offers non-specialist users the same added-value services as traditional CMS, but its set up is more efficient in terms of time and cost.  Dynamic  Publication mode Generation of pages on request Publication format HTML, WML, etc. generated on the fly from a single source Content management Yes Update frequency Unlimited Design evolution By non specialists (through integrated style sheets) Interactivity Interactive communication (marketing, customer or provider relationships, etc.) e-shops Use First generation shop window site, but easier management