I’ve just added a Nashoba Valley TV channel to the site!  As I find (or create) new videos about the people, businesses, and towns of the Nashoba Valley, I’ll be adding them to the channel.  Right now, I can only add YouTube videos to this channel, but I’m hoping to find a solution that will let me add videos from other video sharing services on the Internet.  This would give me more flexibility with the content.

If you have any suggestions for some great videos related to the Nashoba Valley, let me know in the comments below!

As part of the rebuilding effort for NashobaValley.com, I’ve decided to create a new feature that I think will add some local flavor to the site.  So, what I’m going to be doing is some local profiles of:

• Interesting people: Citizens of the Nashoba Valley who have an interesting story to tell or who want to talk about an important issue.
• Cool businesses: Your favorite local merchants who have become a part of the fabric of the Nashoba Valley because of their focus on customer service.
• Local organizations: Charities, schools, and other organizations that have contributed to making the Nashoba Valley a richer place.

What I’m looking for are suggestions (nominees really) for the people, businesses and organizations in the Nashoba Valley that I can interview.  I haven’t decided if I’ll be doing written, video, or audio interviews (or all three) but what I hope to provide is some human (and organizational) interest that will make the site a much better place for visitors.

If you have a nominee, please use the Comments form below and let me know why you think they would be perfect for the site.

Thanks!

Chuck

NashobaValley.com is looking for local news and events to promote the towns and businesses of the Nashoba Valley.  If you have some newsworthy item you would like to get the word out about, please use the Contact form to send me a note.  I’ll post a Calendar event as soon as possible (usually within hours) and if you have a News item, give me some contact information (email or telephone) and I’ll try to arrange an interview and a short article.

And, if you have any great suggestions right now, just use the Comments below and post a note.  I’ll respond as quickly as possible.

I’d love to make NashobaValley.com a valuable addition to the area’s newspapers by keeping a very up-to-date event calendar (and making it very easy to submit), and by offering an additional outlet for news items.

OK, so I’m working on getting the site up to snuff (does anyone say that anymore?) and I wanted to start finding out what makes sense for a local community portal.

When I started the original NashobaValley.com, way back in 2006, the whole site was coded by some Romanian programmers I had worked with in the past.  It was a very complex software implementation, and it cost me a lot of time and money.  It was a software development project and I’m not really a software program manager, so there was a lot of give-and-take.

And, the most important part… I never asked people what they would want to see in a local community portal.  I created all the content and features based on what I thought people would like, instead of finding out by asking.

So, now I’m asking.  I’ve developed a quick poll that will let me get an idea for what’s most important on the site.  You can select as many options as you want.  You can also use the Comments to give me your suggestions and ideas.