As mentioned yesterday, STC invited community leaders into the My STC Network to help us test it out over this past weekend. Jamye Sagan, co-manager of the Instructional Design & Learning SIG, was the first community leader to enter the site. To celebrate her status as “First!!” and to give members a bit of a taste of what's to come, Your Friendly Neighborhood Blogger asked her a few questions about her experience. Thanks to Jamye for taking the time to answer my questions, and thanks again to all community leaders who helped out!
You were the first community leader to log into the site. Were you waiting by your keyboard for the notification? What got you in there so quickly?
I just happened to finish checking a batch of emails when I received the notification that the My STC test site was ready to view. It was pure coincidence that I logged on so early.
What was your initial impression of My STC before you starting looking around?
The interface reminded me of Facebook, with the friends and messaging feature. This site definitely invites social interaction among members.
What about your final impression before the test period closed?
Pretty much the same.
Was there anything in particular that really stood out to you?
For some reason, the main thing that stood out in my mind was the main community page where all the members were listed. It sure is nice to put a face to the name, and to see a little status blurb underneath one’s name as you rolled over the image.
Tease the members a bit—what do they have to look forward to?
It’s one of those systems where you really need to simply go out there and play. Be ready to interact with members on a whole new level.
Any final thoughts or comments?
I’m happy that we have these new cool features, and that we can continue using our existing features. I come from a larger community (IDL SIG) and our members have put a lot of work into our website and our other social elements, and it’s good that all of these items can co-exist in harmony.
I totally agree. The inclusion of member photos as avatars made the experience much more personal and enjoyable.
I think that members who use mySTC will be very pleased.