URL Naming Convention

Website addresses, or URLs, must meet the following standards:

  • They are as logical and clear as possible and make sense to people not familiar with SMU. E.g., registrar, not registr.
  • They are as short as possible, not exceeding 16 numbers and/or letters. E.g., dining, not diningservices.
  • They do not repeat “smu” unless it is necessary for marketing goals. E.g., wesley, not smuwesley.
  • They only contain letters, numbers, and the underscore and dash characters.

You may disregard these guidelines if they require a name that does not make sense. For example, campaignforsmu won’t make sense unless it has that name; smu is literally part of the name.

URL Conflicts

When two different groups or individuals want the same name, the issue will be resolved by the Director of E-Marketing, whose decision will be based on necessity.

Policies on Custom Aliases

  • A custom alias is an address that points to a page on your real site, and takes the format of "www.smu.edu/customalias". Custom aliases help users reach your content more easily and can be used to help market your Web site.
  • Only official entities and faculty members are eligible for custom aliases.
  • All custom aliases will be redirect aliases -- in other words, they will automatically redirect the user to your real site.
  • Custom aliases are free and guaranteed indefinitely.
  • Custom aliases must be used sparingly because they have a performance and administrative overhead. Therefore, a custom alias will only be set up when it is needed to facilitate or promote access to the site. Necessity is determined by the Director of E-Marketing.

Subdirectories

URLs must reflect logical web site organization, not SMU’s hierarchal structure.

If customers perceive a particular entity as a separate entity, or if customers regularly contact the entity directly, the entity should have its own virtual directory; its site should not be a subdirectory of its parent entity. For example, even though the Help Desk and Webmaster’s Office are both part of ITS, they should have their own virtual directories (www.smu.edu/help, www.smu.edu/webmaster); they should not be subdirectories of ITS (www.smu.edu/its/help, www.smu.edu/its/webmaster).

Other Conflicts

The Webmaster’s Office works with the Director of E-Marketing to resolve all “gray areas” and other non-technical conflicts.

Definitions

Central SMU web server: Any central web server whose name ends in “smu.edu.”

Official entity: Any entity that is wholly owned, operated, and sanctioned by SMU. E.g., Enrollment Services, Student Activity Center, Cox School of Business.

Unofficial entity: Any entity that is not wholly owned or operated but is sanctioned by SMU. E.g., Kilby Foundation, Student Senate, Alpha Phi Omega.

URL: The full domain name and path to any given web site or file accessible through the web.

Virtual directory: A path following the domain name. E.g., www.smu.edu/athletics, www.smu.edu/alumni.