Cambridge Reporter Revisited
It seems that my foray into community publishing in 2008 has garnered some interest on the Twitter... There is some confusion, understandably, about who was doing what when and under what when.
I may do an in-depth post sometime on the whole experience, but for now I'll offer a simple timeline to clear the air:
(I'm doing this from memory, so I may revise these a bit after publishing)
June 2008: I launch CambridgeReporter.ca. it's a community-driven site where anyone can submit stories and opinion. It's intended to be more news than opinion - similar to NowPublic.com but on a smaller scale.
October 2008: TorStar sends me a friendly email about how they still own the Reporter name and they'd appreciate it if I could stop using it. Important to note that in Sept 2008 TorStar did not own any of the relevant URLs, but in October, CambridgeReporter.com suddenly appeared with syndicated content from the K-W Record. Update: Rabble.ca did a story about this here: http://www.rabble.ca/news/cease-and-desist-i-dont-think-so
Later in October 2008: CambridgeReporter.ca becomes CambridgeVoice.ca.
Spring 2009: The Cambridge Voice becomes The Cambridge Advocate under new ownership. (I'm totally drawing a blank on the timing here, so I'll update after a little research)
There it is - my best recollection of the events surrounding my involvement with the Cambridge Reporter.
On the Twitter, there's already talk about trying again to create a community-driven local news & opinion website. Stay tuned.
ShareChristmas Review
It's Sunday, which means a Family Sunday post...
The past week has been all about family so it's hard to pick something specific to write about. It has been an amazing experience to watch the two older kids get excited about Christmas for the first time. Hannah has managed to learn more Christmas songs and carols than I thought possible for a 4 yr-old. (This in addition to her Avett Brothers repertoire.)
Next year will be very interesting as the twins will be running around on their own, Hannah will be half-way through her first year of Kindergarten and Bella will be fully conversant. We'll also be away from home for an full two weeks over Christmas. Should be interesting.
As I write this, we're on the road to Ajax for more family visiting - the girls are more excited than they look here:
Meeting Called to Discuss Coworking Space in Galt
Yesterday's blog post sparked quite the conversation on Twitter last night! I thought we should try to capitalize on the momentum and get a bunch of people in a room to brainstorm, so I called the first meeting of the Galt Coworking Group.
We will meet Monday, December 21st at 8:30pm at the Golden Kiwi pub on Dickson St.
RSVP here: http://guestlistapp.com/events/11064
Everyone is welcome to come and offer your $0.02 on this idea.
Update: There is a public working document for fleshing out the principles of what we are trying to accomplish. Read and edit it here: http://colincarmichael.ca/galtcoworkdoc
ShareWorking alone, together.
Not an ideal working environment...
Guess where I spent most of my day today? The public library. Why? Well, long story short, the weather made commuting to the office a silly thing to attempt so I was stuck in town with nowhere to work.
I essentially have three options in this situation: 1) work from home, 2) work from a cafe, 3) work from the library
The first option is really not an option since there are 4 pre-schoolers there and no "home office". Option #2 is my usual habit - but you can only drink so much overpriced coffee in a day. So today was #3 - no pressure to leave , but still less than ideal.
The biggest problem with each of these options (even #1) is isolation. Humans are social creatures and require social interaction, within the context of their work, to be creative.
So what to do? I've been intrigued by the concept of coworking for some time. The idea of being able to work on my own but in an office full of people I know is very attractive!
I have this feeling that we're reaching a critical mass in Cambridge that could support some kind of cooperative working environment. In talking with a few folks today and yesterday, I'm sure I'm not alone in that belief.
So let's do it. Let's incorporate a non-profit to create a cooperative working space for professionals in Cambridge that need a place to hang their hat from 9 to 5 but have no use for a full office of their own.
Who's with me?
UPDATE: a few of us are throwing around ideas on Twitter. Use the #galtcowork hashtag to particpate!
ShareColin Who?
I'm a digital communications executive specializing in community engagement, social marketing, and online identity management currently serving asthe Associate Secretary, Communications, at the national offices of The Presbyterian Church in Canada.
I can be found on LinkedIn and Twitter and Facebook.
This is a Mobile Post
This post was published from my BlackBerry so it probably doesn't have any links. If I remember, I'll come back later and add links as appropriate. In the mean-time, Google is your friend. ;)What I’ve Said
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- On The Twitter This Week: 2010-01-30
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