MARINE CORPS AIR STATION CHERRY POINT, N.C. — Webmasters for Cherry Point and 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing have diligently spent the last few months relocating thousands of documents, images and pages from the Marine Corps’ previous server platform to its new and improved version.
The migration is happening Marine Corps-wide to meet the requirements of Marine Administrative Message 069-11 which spells out the details, timeline and responsibilities for the transfer and management of all public websites currently hosted on the Marines.mil SharePoint platform.
In November 2009, the Marine Corps chose to shift its content management and hosting capabilities for publicly accessible Marines.mil sites to the services and facilities provided by the Department of Defense Public Web Program, said Mary Hill, 2nd MAW webmaster.
“This decision mitigates some critical budgeting and technical support issues for the Marine Corps and ensures the continuity and growth of all Marines.mil sites,” said Hill.
According to Hill, upon migrating to the new sites, each website will inherit an updated, templated Marine Corps design. The new blueprint ensures consistency, limiting confusion among installation and unit websites across the Marine Corps.
“This will help outside sources who are looking from one installation’s site to another know they are still on an official Marine Corps site.” said Hill.
Cherry Point and 2nd MAW’s websites went live in early August and are already showing signs of their seamlessness for Marines, sailors and civilians alike.
“This website is a lot cleaner and easier to navigate,” said Roxie Emunson, the family readiness officer of Marine Fighter Attack Training Squadron 501 at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla. “In the event an East Coast Marine has to access a West Coast installation’s website, they don’t have to relearn how to navigate it.”
The platform’s new search interface also makes it easier for users to find stories, images, and documents. At the same time, a cleaner upload interface makes uploading content a smoother process as well, said Hill.
The transition is expected to be complete by the end of this year. For more information, reference MARADMIN 069-11 at http:// www.marines.mil/news/messages/Pages/MARADMIN069-11.aspx