mvtimes.com is new this morning
Posted January 5, 2006
Martha's Vineyard Times posted an expanded web site this morning, offering increased interactivity for mvtimes.com visitors.
The address hasn't changed, and the new site includes everything in the print edition of the paper, as has been the case in the past. But, the newspaper is posted in the form of a live facsimile of the print paper, including ads, online and live, plus enhanced archive services.
"Beginning this morning, with ads or news stories containing an e-mail address or a web site link," Times editor Doug Cabral said yesterday of the new digital edition of the paper, "the links will be live, and readers can click for more information or to be directly in touch with advertisers. It means that the barriers have been lowered for readers who want to find their way to information in addition to what's in a news story, or readers who see an ad that captures their attention. Readers can take direct and immediate action, which is a power that the web makes possible."
In addition, the site's home page will include regular news updates, along with a reader forum, an expanded web cam page, a real estate transaction archive, an obituary archive, a new interactive bargain box, and new advertising opportunities for the paper's advertising customers.
"The redesigned site will retain many of the distinctive features that visitors favor on mvtimes.com," said Amy Simcik Williams, the online editor of the newspaper, in a statement announcing the web site changes. "But it will be expanded next week with new functions to inform and interest readers and to accommodate the new digital edition."
The new digital edition will be fully searchable for news, graphics, and ads. Text may be enlarged for easier reading, either online or offline as a PDF. Online readers will find advertisements precisely where they are published in the print edition. And visitors may enlarge the ad, print it, or link to the advertiser's web address, if it is included in the print ad.
The digital edition also offers two connection speeds for either dial-up or broadband service. Other advantages are search and personalization features as well as page view options and table of contents listings.
"The digital version of the newspaper will display best in Internet Explorer," Rick Mello, The Times web administrator who built the new site, explained last week. "Other browsers, such as Netscape, present slight variations in appearance, special effects, and features."
Advertisers may choose web links with or without descriptions and logos, tile and poster ads, and opt to sponsor a popular destination, such as the movie page on mvtimes.com.
The new mvtimes.com offers top navigation, allowing visitors to conduct concise searches without scrolling and find favorite pages quickly with "jump to" links. Updated directories and the obituary and real estate transaction archives, all permit easy searches. And the reader forum invites visitors to discuss a new topic or join an existing one, and to respond to letters to the editor online.
"The goal hasn't changed," Peter Oberfest, Times co-publisher with his wife Barbara, said yesterday. "We want Islanders, seasonal residents, and visitors to find the information, news, advertisements, and entertainment they need at mvtimes.com. We want The Times web site to be an indispensable daily stop for Islanders and others with an interest in the Vineyard."
