The challenge:

As the field of ocean optics continues to expand, researchers and professionals from the field had a bold idea: Resurrect an out-of-print textbook and publish it to the web, creating a continually-updated resource that is open for additions and comments by other members in the field. The ultimate goal: To create the world's most updated, accessible, and comprehensive resource for students, practitioners, and businesses alike.

The solution:

Solid technology foundation:
With the authors' goals of an open, continually-updated resource established, RainStorm knew that a critical technology goal would be to ensure the site was as easy to maintain and add to as possible. Using the existing SiteTurbine content management system as a platform, RainStorm built a custom module for managing the book, giving authors a secure web-based software package to create chapters, sections, and pages. Central to the module is fully-integrated support for LaTex, a widely-used open source programming language familiar to scientists which allows for complex figures and equations to be written and displayed on the web.

Feedback from the field:
With a simple, powerful system in place for adding and editing the book, RainStorm added a commenting system to the public book, allowing members of the field -- allowing students, professors, and industry professionals to contribute to the text with their own findings and feedback.

Widely available:
In keeping with the goal of making the web book as widely accessible as possible, RainStorm designed and implemented a simple graphic design which places the content front-and-center. The site is cross-platform and standards-compliant, ensuring that it displays nicely on a wide variety of browsers and devices for as wide an audience as possible.