So I’ve decided we will add some sort of registration or e-mail verification. I don’t currently like the options Disqus, our comments system, provides – so we’ll see what I come up with. Stay tuned.
Anywho… how was your weekend? Mine flew by!
Archive for the 'Site News' Category
I’m considering requiring people to either register for the site in order to comment, or to at least provide a verified e-mail address.
Why? The tone of the comments has changed significantly over the past few months, especially as we’ve grown and attracted new readers. For the most part, things are good and I’m very proud of the discussions that have emerged between civil and thoughtful readers of the site. However, I’ve noticed a few, er, disorderly personalities leaving rude and distasteful comments.
The common characteristic of these readers appears to be their use of one-time handles and fake e-mail addresses. Having registration or requiring, at the least, a verified e-mail address seems like an effective way of combating that without needing to moderate every comment.
So – your thoughts? I’ll be making my decision by next Monday.
L Magazine must have known we needed some lettered love. The publication of the city’s uber-hip took a rare look down under (ie. below Park Slope) in a search for the borough’s best local blog. And what they found is that Sheepshead Bites is hard at work bringing you original reporting about one of the city’s most under-appreciated neighborhoods.
In their “Best of Brooklyn (and Manhattan Too)” feature, the magazine singled out Sheepshead Bites as the “Best Local Blogger.” They wrote:
You wouldn’t think you’d care what was happening way the hell out in Sheepshead Bay, but Ned Berke’s tireless reportage at Sheepshead Bites is endlessly fascinating—a mysterious dead body washed ashore? Racist Tea Partiers want to stop a mosque? Rest assured, his blog isn’t just links to Courier Life stories—the one-time journalism student is on the scene, snapping pictures and interviewing witnesses, when he’s not collecting tips and photos from readers.
Well, I’d love to take all the credit, but Sheepshead Bites isn’t just a one-man band. I’ve got to thank Ray Johnson, Samantha LoSapio, Rachel Vasilets, Daniel Gershburg, Joseph Reisman, Arthur Borko, Erica Sherman, Ariela Baranova and all the countless tipsters who help keep this site so rich with content.
Now, there’s no cash reward or champagne-fueled party to go along with the title. In fact, no one from L Magazine even notified us (that came by way of Facebook reader Kathleen L.). It’s all good, though. I’m appreciative because it gives me the chance to once again say thank you – not just to the writers – but to all you awesome readers who keep this site going and constantly evangelize the blog and the neighborhood. Keep it up!
Now… back to work…
Over the past couple of days we’ve heard from a number of readers that their comments disappeared into the ether. I finally figured out the issue, and the comments should now be posted. If you don’t see your comment up, shoot me an e-mail and let me know. Some of the comments may also be duplicated from repeated efforts to post. If you’d like duplicates deleted, point them out to me. Thanks!
CHECK OUT THE NEW SHEEPSHEAD BITES FACEBOOK PAGE!
So a lot of people have been asking us, “Hey, Sheepshead Bites, why don’t I see you on Facebook anymore?”
Well, Facebook, the bunch of jerks, banned us. It happened a while ago, and we’ve been trying to appeal it. But, gosh darn it, that big ol’ Facebook has no customer service. So our e-mails go nowhere.
Why’d they ban us? Due to a glitch on their end, a month’s worth of suggestions from our readers to “friend” their amigos got backed up. Then it came all at once. A couple hundred of them. So we friended away, setting off a flag for spamming.
Well, there’s no use crying about it now. The problem is, the current Fan Page was set up by an actual fan – not by us. So we have no ownership over it, and Facebook doesn’t allow for the transfer of ownership. Annoying right?
So now there’s another Fan Page. Right here. Click on it. “Like” us. Please. Because we like you, and we want to stay connected with you.
By the way – if you’re a fan of the old Fan Page, make the switch because the unofficial one will be deleted soon.
Today marks two years since our very first post on Sheepshead Bites. We’ve come a long way in that time, and I’m proud of the entire team here. Some specific people I’d like to thank for helping either directly with the site or simply offering encouragement include: the ever-patient Ray Johnson, Arthur Borko, Samantha LoSapio, Daniel Gershburg, Jobana Soto, Robert Fernandez, Allen Veksler, Rachel Vasilets…
… and, of course, you. Our awesome readers. Whatever sense of pride I have from running this site doesn’t come from the number of readers we have (which has gotten quite large), but rather because of the quality of our readers. It’s been a real pleasure meeting many of you – in real life or the digital – so thank you. You’re amazing.
Now, what most media do (including us) when they reach important milestones is write about all the great things they’ve done and all the great things they hope to do.
I do that enough.
Today it’s your turn. On our birthday, give us a little gift – tell us what your favorite Sheepshead Bites post/comment/event/moment/whatever was. And I really hope to hear from some new commenters on this one.
Sheepshead Bites turns two this week. We’re not going to make a big deal out of it; really, we’re getting old and now we just want it to be a hush-hush event. It’s like you turn one, and then all the years just sort of blend together until you hit three.
Okay, but seriously. We’re hitting our terrible twos, and we’ve seen some tremendous growth. On the business end things are starting to come together, too. That’s all really groovy.
But here’s the deal: we can’t stop thinking about the infinite-plus-one services that we want to develop to fit your needs. And if it were up to us, we’d be working on all of them, launching new features every day.
But we don’t have that kind of time on our hands. Creating content is really, really hard and that takes up the bulk of our activity. But we’ve come up with a short list of features that are within reach, we just need to prioritize them, invest a little extra time, and we’ll be able to launch them one-by-0ne.
So help us do that. Use the poll to the right and let us know which new feature is most important to you. And we’ll get working on it right away.
Thanks folks!
I received the above message last week via our Twitter account and instantly felt broken-hearted. A mobile version of our site has been on our To-Do list for way too long, but keeps getting bumped back in order to deal with more immediate demands. But mobile’s time has come.
Without revealing too much, Sheepshead Bites is in talks to roll out mobile apps for Blackberry and iPhone users (followed by other platforms). We hope to launch in just a few short months – but a lot depends on the company we’re working with and the final feel and function of the apps (hint: there’ll be some awesome new features). To start with, we’re looking for approximately 10 users on each platform (Blackberry and iPhone). If you’re interested in being a tester, please e-mail us and include the subject line “mobile tester.”
For those not on those platforms, or who prefer to view the site using their mobile browser, give a shout-out in the comments now. If there’s enough demand, we’ll design a mobile-friendly template for use across all mobile devices.
Oh yeah, and it’s still an open thread. So jib-jab all you want!
We hope you had a great holiday weekend, and are revved up for 2010. (Afterall, it can’t be as bad as 2009, can it? Really?)
To help usher in the New Year, we’re kicking off a month of new feature launches on Sheepshead Bites. Most of the features revolve around the software and technology of the site itself, but we’re also planning to announce a new content feature by the end of the month.
First up – and already installed – is our new commenting system. Powered by Disqus software, there are a slew of new features that you’ll love, and will help you get to know your fellow readers better.
With our new comment system you can sign in from several other services, or continue to remain anonymous
Perhaps the biggest change is that you can now connect your comments to other social media sites. By clicking the Facebook Connect, Twitter, or Yahoo buttons above the comment field, Sheepshead Bites will fill in your name and grab your profile photo – not to mention provide a link back to your account so the friends you make here can find you. Using this same service, you can automatically post your comment to your Facebook and Twitter accounts with a link back to Sheepshead Bites.
We’d like to wish everyone a happy, healthy New Years. We hope good things for you, your family, and your friends. Thank you, once again, for making Sheepshead Bay what it is with your clicks, tips, and comments, and we look forward to sharing 2010 with you.
Sheepshead Bites is taking off until Monday, January 4. Don’t fret though – we’ve left you with our New Years package below so you can flip through some of the biggest stories of 2009, and catch up with what we think is coming in 2010. And with nearly one thousand posts archived on our site, be sure to flip back through the pages and find things you’ve missed!
Again: a happy, healthy New Years to you and yours.
New Years Posts:
Best of 2009: Sex, Violence, and Russians
Five Stories To Expect In 2010
Five Things We’d Love To See In 2010
