[MR] Event Calendar - Unofficial site - How to make it work

[Lady Scott]

I have to add my two cents here because I feel it is
important.  As a Canton Web Minister, I would love to
just do our Canton's things, but contributing to the
larger picture is essential for the information to be
widespread in a timely fashion.  Just a Canton site is
work.  Think Baronial level and Kingdom level and it
double and triples, easily.  Nottinghill Coill has
their own calendar.  But by the time one added to a
Canton web site, a Baronial web site and so forth, the
time and repetition get redundant.  Then, there is the
"reminder" services that can be used which may
generate at least one reminder from each source,
bogging down the E-lists and personal E-mails.
 
Lord Jonathas is correct.  Web sites are
time-consuming and a volunteer job, as are all of the
officer positions.  But, they are vital to getting out
the information needed with the least time and cost.
 
His "unofficial calendar" is excellent.  Last year, we
linked our Canton web site to it because it often had
MORE information than Spike.  Primarily, I believe,
this comes from having active links to web pages and
maps rather than the simple page that is shown on
Spike.
 
Spike well serves its purpose generating a text only
page which works well for quick loading, especially in
dialup situations.  If the Autocrats and/or their web
ministers create more indepth pages AND provide that
link to the Chronicler, it normally referenced in the
Spike text which can be cut and pasted into a browser
window.  

And it never hurts to shoot the web link to the
E-lists, just title it something recognizable like
"Web Site Address for ____ event".  That is generally
where we find our information to link on Jonathas'
"unofficial" calendar.
 
"UN-Spike" (as I call it), the "unofficial calendar"
that Jonathas as created is easy to use and accessible
to the Autocrats without creating unneeded access to
the OFFICIAL site, which should remain just that-- for
record-keeping purposes.  It is not and OFFICIAL event
until it is posted on SPIKE.  UN-Spike gets updated,
WHEN WE HAVE TIME, from the various E-mails posted to
the E-lists; however, one has to be subscribed to the
lists to get the information for posting.  Sometimes,
that is weeding through a 100 E-mails in a day which
may equate to scanning through subject lines and
deleting things that do not apply!  And if the Subject
line does not elude to a specific event need, like
"Updated info for such and such", it may never get
read.
 
Perhaps each Canton, etc. Web Minister receives all
the  event/web information for their own events and
posts it to UN-Spike, then it never hits the Barony
and Kingdom plates thus reducing the work they must
do.  DEMOS are also publishable, as Jonathas said, so
more coverage can also be made in this area.

I would be willing to host a Web Minster roundtable
for streamlining data input and output.  I do not mean
building web pages, but establishing the paths so that
events are not missed.  The Autocrats do an incredible
amount of work.  Without the events, what would we do?
  Please let's get the information as complete as
possible and available on the web, as a supplement to
the Acorn and Spike.
> 
> Graciously,
> Lady Scott
> 
> 
> 
> --- James Kriebel <James at Kriebel.cc> wrote:
> 
> > Several Years ago I did create an "unofficial"
> > calendar.  It is indeed still on line and
> available.
> >  But it needs the support of the Autocrats to
> > thrive.
> > 
> > Before I give the address, I do need to say that
> the
> > site is designed to allow the Autocrat of an event
> > to enter the event information and the host group
> to
> > have a web page for the event with full details. 
> > Basically it was a centralized listing of
> > independent event websites, and had no effect on
> > whether or not an event was "Official" or
> registered
> > in the Acorn.
> > 
> > For the past year Lady Alexandra Scott of the
> > southern reaches of Atlantia and myself in the
> > northern reaches have been attempting to put up
> > events as we discover a website for them or they
> are
> > posted on the Merry Rose.  And I must thank her
> for
> > her efforts on this.  But with the support of the
> > host groups and event autocrats this "unofficial"
> > calendar could be so much more useful,  and fill
> the
> > gap that many have been complaining about.
> > 
> > As we have both been very busy with the holiday
> > season, it has recently died on the vine.  That is
> > to say most of the events we had discovered have
> > past, and we have not had time to go searching for
> > more to post.
> > 
> > So here is a challenge to all Autocrats... If you
> > would like your event posted, fully fill out the
> > form at the bottom of the "unofficial" calendar
> > page.  It will be posted very shortly after you
> turn
> > in your information.  Think of it as free
> > advertising for your event *way* in advance of the
> > Acorn publishing.
> > 
> > A couple other features which this calendar
> has....
> > 
> > It keeps the past events for 2 months as many
> events
> > add photos after the fact and some like to have
> the
> > information available.
> > 
> > It also has a separate calendar for DEMOS.  As
> demos
> > don't typically have web pages created for them,
> > this does not require one, it provides a text box
> to
> > enter the demo information in.  And like the event
> > calendar it keeps the past 2 months Demos
> available.
> > 
> > All that said, here is the address:
> > http://calendar.duncarraig.net
> > 
> > As always, suggestions to improve the "unofficial"
> > calendar are always welcome.  Please feel free to
> > add links to this site or any pages on it, the
> whole
> > reason it exists is to spread the information and
> > get us all to more events!!
> > 
> > Enjoy,
> > Jonathas
> > 
> > 

=====
Lady Scott

Alexandra Scott de Northumberland #148950
Argent, a stag statant with a chief azure, an increscent between two mullets of six points Or
Canton of St Georges, Nottinghill Coill, ATLANTIA


		
__________________________________ 
Do you Yahoo!? 
The all-new My Yahoo! - What will yours do?
http://my.yahoo.com