New web site will have everything minus the ink, the smell, the clutter

 To the many readers of www.cynthianademocrat.com, changes are coming and they’re coming quickly.

In fact, visit our website this weekend to see our new look.

We are hoping this new design will be more reader friendly. It has some opportunities for readers to become involved with their hometown newspaper’s website. There will be a pet of the week feature. Readers can submit photographs of their pets and we’ll choose which one gets a place of honor for the week.

Readers will also be able to continue to post calendar items.

There will be a forum for public comment. This forum will not be a free-for-all. There will be a topic of discussion and readers will be able to weigh in. Anyone familiar with our previous web sites will remember the message board and our current poll question. The forum will be somewhere in between the two.

The key to all of this is that readers will have to register with legitimate information to be able to navigate through the website. 

There will be videos and slide shows. There will be blogs from both the newspaper staff and possibly a few community writers that we will be enlisting over the next few weeks. If you are interested, give me a call.

There will also be a list of community links. If you have one you want included on our page, call me for that, too.

From a veteran newspaper person, I have to admit that I much prefer reading a newspaper and getting ink on my hands. I like the weight of the paper and even its smell. I like having a newspaper on my coffee table or counter. However, if I’m going to the web for news, I want it to be easy. I don’t want to click here, click there and then scroll back in search of a story only to find out I have to type it again and go through the entire process all over one more time.

Our new design is simple. However, don’t let the simplicity fool you. We will be working hard to keep the news fresh.

While I’m certain I’m not alone in my addiction to ink, web sites are here to stay. We want you to be driven to ours knowing that’s where you’ll find your answers.

Then, give me some feedback. I’m reachable at bbarnes@cynthianademocrat.com or at the office 234-1035.