SM Year 4: Letter from the editor
As we begin our fourth year on the web, I sat and took stock of where we are and where we're going as a community and site. I'd like to share with you, the most outstanding community on the Web, some of the major developments of the past year from the editor's perspective. We all get lost in the day-to-day posts and news, so I think it's important to take stock (and give a few shout outs to those who work so hard on the site).
We had a major staff shakeup earlier this year and revamped our entire staffing model. "Moderator" and "Super Moderator" titles were retired. In its place we created the positions of Guru and Adjudicator. Gurus are experts in their particular area and have complete domain over their part of the forum. Adjudicators monitor the community, mediate when needed, and take out the trash (spammers). There's more to it than that, but that's the brief version. I think it's a model that's been paying off; we have an outstanding team assembled.
We also have some outstanding authors in our midst. Since the staffing shakeup, we've seen an incredible growth in front page content. Sledgehammer, drasnor, profdlp, and deicist have made great contributions with reviews and guides. lemonlime has had two standout articles on overclocking and the AM2 release (huge!). Thrax has stormed back onto the scene with the Bitter Crumpet and editorials, and has several more guides in the works. And, of course, how can we forget GooD's tower article? That brought us some outstanding exposure.
Our news team (Sledge, Winga, prof, GHoosdum, and Spinner) is doing an outstanding job as well, and we continue to make leaps forward. This morning Winga published our first regular, original news item on Computex 2006.
I'm also pleased to announce that CBDroege is releasing a science fiction serial starting this coming Monday. Look for the first part of 'Zeta Disconnect' to make six weekly appearances starting then.
We've been slowly but steadily increasing our coverage on Short-Media (as the publication of a science fiction serial would suggest). We're branching out more from product reviews into the commentary, column, guide, and analysis domains. I think this is a huge deal. This kind of content, with our staple reviews, will really distiguish this site from its peers.
Short-Media is one of the top enthusiast sites on the web without a full-time staff... and that's a credit to all of you. Our community sustains us and the front page grows us. If you'd like to get involved with front page content (whether that's writing news, doing product reviews, assembling guides, inking a column, or studying the technology industry) be sure to contact me and we'll talk.
The road ahead is looking brighter and stronger than ever; I expect great things from this place in the coming year.
-Matt
We had a major staff shakeup earlier this year and revamped our entire staffing model. "Moderator" and "Super Moderator" titles were retired. In its place we created the positions of Guru and Adjudicator. Gurus are experts in their particular area and have complete domain over their part of the forum. Adjudicators monitor the community, mediate when needed, and take out the trash (spammers). There's more to it than that, but that's the brief version. I think it's a model that's been paying off; we have an outstanding team assembled.
We also have some outstanding authors in our midst. Since the staffing shakeup, we've seen an incredible growth in front page content. Sledgehammer, drasnor, profdlp, and deicist have made great contributions with reviews and guides. lemonlime has had two standout articles on overclocking and the AM2 release (huge!). Thrax has stormed back onto the scene with the Bitter Crumpet and editorials, and has several more guides in the works. And, of course, how can we forget GooD's tower article? That brought us some outstanding exposure.
Our news team (Sledge, Winga, prof, GHoosdum, and Spinner) is doing an outstanding job as well, and we continue to make leaps forward. This morning Winga published our first regular, original news item on Computex 2006.
I'm also pleased to announce that CBDroege is releasing a science fiction serial starting this coming Monday. Look for the first part of 'Zeta Disconnect' to make six weekly appearances starting then.
We've been slowly but steadily increasing our coverage on Short-Media (as the publication of a science fiction serial would suggest). We're branching out more from product reviews into the commentary, column, guide, and analysis domains. I think this is a huge deal. This kind of content, with our staple reviews, will really distiguish this site from its peers.
Short-Media is one of the top enthusiast sites on the web without a full-time staff... and that's a credit to all of you. Our community sustains us and the front page grows us. If you'd like to get involved with front page content (whether that's writing news, doing product reviews, assembling guides, inking a column, or studying the technology industry) be sure to contact me and we'll talk.
The road ahead is looking brighter and stronger than ever; I expect great things from this place in the coming year.
-Matt
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Comments
I, too, am looking forward to the next year, Matt.
I'm lovin' this place. So great.
Indeed!
Not to mention this year we pushed out a ton of SMx rigs! Woot
Let's not forget or play down the incredible effort you put into this site and the long hours you spend keeping it looking good and running like a well oiled machine
I whole heartedly agree, excellent job General :solute: :Rocker:
I do not doubt that SM will have a very bright future indeed