PUBLISHER’S CORNER by Richard Lamb
OK, so here it is, the Internet version of the Advance and the Outlook. The good thing about this format is that it is an immediate kind of a thing. What we type into the computer can be put out there right away, and readers can get to it without waiting for the mail or running to the store to get their favorite weekly newspaper. I like that. Judging by the volume of visitors to the site, our readers like it, too.
Preparing this site is a different mind-set than preparing a weekly newspaper. The online version is always a work in progress, as opposed to a newspaper with set deadlines and publication dates. The fact that it is always changing makes corrections and additions to stories possible. It is easy to see the advantages in that.
The site will not replace the newspaper, since so much more can be done in the space of a printed page. The Internet version will be a taste of the newspaper, with a few things only a web page can provide. We hope that people will subscribe to the newspapers, and view the site, but realize some will do just one or the other.
We have had many questions about when we were coming back to the Internet over the past five years. A few years ago, we were among the first wave of newspapers in Michigan to have a web site, and one of the first to recognize the fact that it was not successful enough to continue. This time it is different.
Instead of going with a national organization who billed out at national rates (but very fair, I might add) we are going it on our own. We are bravely taking technology by the horns and wrestling it to the ground, to overstate the facts.
My friend Denny Smolinski, a brilliant computer expert and recent master’s graduate in information services management (ISM), offered to bring his favorite hometown newspaper to the Internet. Basketball fans of the area might remember he was one of the best power forwards to ever suit up at RCHS, Alpena Community College and later Ferris State University. He said if he could beat me in a slam-dunk contest, I would have to let him design a web site for Presque Isle Newspapers.
Given my recent knee surgery, and the fact that he is much better than I am, I gave in. No, that is not how it happened, but I admit it was his idea.
He asked me to give him an outline of what I thought our web site should look like, what it should include, and a general theme. Keep it simple, I told him. Simple enough for our readers to load easily without waiting for huge graphics that slow things down, and simple enough for us to maintain without getting our own master’s degree in ISM.
Working quickly, he came up with a plan in less than two months. After a few changes, what we came u
It is our intention to update this site at least twice a week, adding items from both of our print publications. As our business index grows, we are certain that this site will be a popular place for those looking for information on Presque Isle County.
Take a look at the photo gallery. This is an extra that is only available here. We plan to use photos from sporting events, community functions or special surprises for this section.
Thanks for visiting the site, and thanks for the many kind comments I have received in the past couple of days about this web site.
Please visit us again soon.
