NAMBA Websites - the future

[David Santistevan]

Lately I have seen quite a few posts and comments about the NAMBA website(s) and I would like to open a positive discussion about what the membership would like to see and get from the website(s). I had lunch with Robert Holland last week and he ask my opinion, since I am in the biz, about where we might want to go with the website in the future. Here is what I would like comments on;

1) What do you current like about the website?

2) What resources on the website do you frequently need or access or would like to access?

3) Do you think the current website addresses the needs and provokes interest in NAMBA?

4) Would it be beneficial to have more active content from each of the districts or do you think each districts websites are enough?

5) What is missing that you would like to see?

6) Do you think the content of the site is dynamic enough to be useful?

7) MOST IMPORTANTLY, IS IT STILL RELEVANT?

These are just a few suggestions for feedback. I would like to keep this positive, I welcome critical review or comments as long as they are done in the spirit of helping to make it better. I hope to send a report to the board with a summary of what I learned here so we can see what Chris can do for us. Please, I will not tolerate anyone making disparaging remarks about any volunteer in NAMBA. Ultimately these people freely give of their time and resources for your benefit and ask for nothing in return.

P.S. For Joe Scarpino, we have duly noted your request for Subway coupons on the site.

Thanks,

D

 

[lohring]

A lot of the web site content has been lost over the years. None of the Nationals winners' pictures from the older events are available any more. The record of several past events that once were on the site are gone. This limits the sites use as a historical record.

Updating is slow and sloppy. This isn't because the people involved are incompetent or don't care, it's because they all have real jobs that take their time. They want to spend their free time racing boats, not playing with the web site. As an example of this the Propwash index wasn't up to date for a while and people couldn't find the latest issues. Fancy isn't what's needed. That's what got the web site into its current state.

It needs to be easy for volunteers in the organization to update. Maintenance shouldn't take a professional web master. Features like online dues payment and voting are nice, but let's focus on the basics. The site is a valuable reference. The rulebook and records sections especially need to be kept up to date. It seems to take a long time for the rule changes to show up in the rule book section. The content should filter through NAMBAs only paid employee, the executive secretary, who should be able to easily post the input.

In short, the site needs to be simple and straightforward. The online Propwash is a good example of a fancy solution that is slow and hard to read. It may be online, but you can't link to internet content from it. The best thing about the online Propwash is good color pictures. I believe we should be moving away from mailed information, but the on line versions need to be at least as good. Their format needs to suit smart phone, tablet, and computer screens and not the old printed formats.

Lohring Miller

 

[RonShaw]

Robert Holland and I discussed this very thing a few months ago. My suggestion, take it to an independent hosting and website company and treat it as the priority it is, and away from any one members responsibility. Websites have come a long way and with an easy admin portal and dividing responsibilities across the board, updates, additions, new pages, photo slide shows, membership portal, online store, and other options are so easy these days, no need for our NAMBA/IMPBA BOD or memberships in either organization, to go through the headaches they are experiencing today. 10 years ago yes, but not today. Requiring FTP, Dreamweaver, or reliance on someone else to make changes went away many years ago. If you can login, you can post/edit/upload/download and run a website these days, with very little training required. I think a website committee should be formed using the talent available within the general membership to fix the websites once and for all, case closed. I will be happy to be a part of this committee and assist any way I can. Others???????.....

 

[David Santistevan]

For clarification what both of you are talking about are CMS (Content Management Systems). IW is a good example of a CMS setup exclusively as forums. However most CMS system will do much much more. The point is that anyone without special training can update the content. The trade-off is that it will lose some small amount of the "Sex Appeal" but since our site is note about sales and marketing as much as it's a resource for the members I am not sure that matters.

 

[RonShaw]

BINGO!!!!! Sex appeal can come later. Right now we simply need full functional websites to handle the needs of both organizations and its members. Hit the "Easy Button"!!! It really isn't that hard these days. Nothing we need requires any special code or expertise that isn't readily available.

 

[TomMoorehouse]

Keeping my fingers crossed this topic does not go south. I do not enjoy suspending members and the middle of the night phone calls I get.

 

[Tom Foley]

I'm thankful for all the efforts presently and in the future ! Thanks guys (Gals ) . Merry Christmas !

 

[Samuel Hagan JR]

I'm not a NAMBA member but I like the fact that the master Hull roster is very easy to get to and is usually up to date. When ever I do any research on boat hulls the NAMBA site is the first place I go to.

 

[RonShaw]

LOL Tom,

Understood. Hopefully this thread will stay on point and we can all use our resources and ideas to pull together and help NAMBA and IMPBA achieve better website stability.

 

[David Santistevan]

Lohring,

You make a lot of good points. I would suggest though that in order to keep the site dynamic that a lot of sections should be maintained by different people thus taking a lot of the workload off any individual and allowing people closest to the topic engaged. However with that said, there are sections that I agree would and should be maintained by staff like rules book updates etc. I think that each of the National Chair should have their own page where they can post relevant information about their respective areas. For example Jay Stone as the National Gas Chair may want to have information about engine rules changes posted. I would like see a whole separate page(s) dedicated to the NATs both current and past as well as pages(s) for the historian, records etc I think there are a number of very important sections we could add. I would like to see resources like videos brochures and other tools to help the hobby grow as well as a maybe a section in the rulebook for generally accepted interpretation and application of rules.

Dave

 

[David Santistevan]

Do we have any CMS guru resources in NAMBA? I would be great to hear from you if you are.

 

[RonShaw]

David,

Plenty of CMS resources on the web. Its the way most websites are run these days when you need to assign multiple people to maintain and post on the site.

 

[lohring]

Allowing different specific people to post is probably a good idea for simple changes. However, it still takes someone to coordinate things. I think that was the problem with the Propwash index. I still nominate the Executive Secretary as the site administrator.

Lohring Miller

 

[Rokieboater]

The executive secretary has plenty to do with out adding additional work. We have a very good web-master. Just looking to change a few things up not change people.

Robert Holland

 

[David Santistevan]

Thanks Robert, Chris has done a great job for us for a long time and I expect that if he wants to do it, Chris will be the one doing it. It is important to understand that we are taking about the content of the website and not the website itself, which is exactly the point.

D

 

[Rokieboater]

I agree Dave,

Just did not want to get off topic and use the forum to nominate new people as Lohrings post suggest.

Robert Holland

 

[David Santistevan]

Thanks Chris Wittrig!

It is sad news that I announce that Chris Wittrig has retired as Webmaster for NAMBA after 10 years of dedicated service. His job has him on two coasts a lot of the time and it has taken from his family and boating which he loves so much. The work on the NAMBA website has become one of the many things that imposing on his time and his time with his family has become so precious. I would like to ask everyone to post their appreciation for the tremendous efforts and fabulous job he had done over the years. This is often time a thankless job without a lot of recognition and I would like to make sure he know how much we appreciate his efforts.

Thanks,

D

 

[DON MAHER]

Chris,

Happy Holidays to you & the family and Thank You for all the years of service you have given to the Namba members. Boy does time fly, seems like yesterday you were living here in So Ca.!!!

Don

 

[darby96]

David Todd Fleury who has just moved back to Detroit can do the job I have talked to him and can talk to you about his qualifications and also his thoughts. He just finished website for ml boatworks.. www.mlboatworksrc.com he is also working with me to update District9's. Check him out.