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Wednesday, March 10, 2010
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Web site Notes:
Preston On-line Calendar Link: We have changed programs that generated our on-line calendar, opting to start using Google Calendars. Please note that you do NOT need a Google account to view the Preston On-line Calendar linked above. We have linked the basic HTML version that is available to all our website viewers. That having been said, if you DO have a Google account, just click the “Google Calendar” on the bottom right of the calendar that opens and sign in for a better calendar experience with more bells and whistles. There were numerous problems with access to the other programs servers, and this changeover to Google should improve response time greatly. Let us know if it’s working for you!
Site Navigation: All Breaking News and information on recent website updates can be obtained by clicking the new Website Update tab and then following the link. This includes story links from our local newspapers as well as minutes, agenda’s and Community Posting links. To receive these notices you can also follow us on our Twitter account.
Commentary: Click here to e-mail your comments for posting. Your Email comments on the issues of the day will be directed to the Webmaster, and will appear on our Current Commentary page. All comments will be reviewed by the Website Administrator for appropriate content prior to being posted
Effective February 10th, 2009 we have asked all Recorders and Secretaries who are submitting Minutes and Agenda’s and Notice’s for posting to submit them in PDF format. There have been some issues where our readers were having problems opening different versions of MS Word depending on how their PC’s were set up and configured. This change should make the download/reading experience uniform and predictable. There is a link on our Minutes Page to download the free Acrobat Reader.
Due to some incompatibilities with Safari, the Apple web browser, we have removed the scrolling calendar that had appeared on every page of the site. If you go to the Calendar tab you’ll notice we’ve set up an “Off Line” link to the current monthly on-line calendar. With this PDF document you’ll have access to basic calendar data even if you’re having problems getting into the MyCalendar server.
The Preston Website is now utilizing TWITTER. At the very top of the home page, there is a “Breaking News” graphic. Click this graphic and you’ll transport to a listing of the last 15 updates/changes that have been made to the site. Twitter
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Twitter is a free social networking and micro-blogging service that allows its users to send and read other users' updates (otherwise known as tweets), which are text-based posts of up to 140 characters in length. Updates are displayed on the user's profile page and delivered to other users who have signed up to receive them. Senders can restrict delivery to those in their circle of friends (delivery to everyone being the default). Users can receive updates via the Twitter website, SMS, RSS, or email, or through applications such as Tweetie, Twinkle, TwitterFox, Twitterrific, Feedalizr, and Facebook. Four gateway numbers are currently available for SMS: short codes for the United States, Canada, and India, and a United Kingdom-based number for international use. Several third parties offer posting and receiving updates via email. Twitter had by one measure over 3 million accounts[1] and, by another, well over 5 million visitors in September 2008, a fivefold increase in a month.
We’re doing some work optimizing the site , trying to find an optimum resolution for our average reader. There are many different screen resolutions available, and we’ve tried to strike a balance so that the majority of our readers will have the best viewing experience without having to scroll horizontally. Does the current set up work for you? We always appreciate your feedback!
Clear your cache (refresh)often!: Since we update this web site often, you want to be able to see the current version, and not the temporary files that will load from your cache if you don’t clear it often. Click here for a link to the how and why of clearing your cache (this applies to Internet Explorer)...if you’re using Firefox or other browsers you probably know how, or E-mail me and I’ll help.
On every page of the site, there is a “Search This Site” box
. Our Search Engine will find most articles, even in the PDF’s, on this site. Type in your lookup word on the left and you can link directly to the related article. We now have the entire site indexed daily and have corrected an OCR problem with some old Pipelines that were not in the search results due to that OCR issue. (updated 12/23/08)
On our “Links-Forms” page we have included links to many of Preston organizations. If you have a favorite local link that we’ve missed send it to me and we’ll add it to the list. Links are provided as a service to our readers, and commercial listings will be added on request for Preston organizations.
As a general rule, this web site is updated daily. Minutes and Agenda’s are posted to the Minutes page as they are received, and we also try to include the Agenda’s to the online calendar.
RSS Feeds from the Norwich Bulletin, the New London Day, the Hartford Courant and the New York Times are featured on the “Current News” page. The Recent Updates and Town Happenings section on our Home page is where the latest news updates are listed, newest to oldest by date.
We are receptive to suggestions for additions and changes to the site. Send your suggestions to me at r.payette@snet.net.
Bob Payette, Web site/Web log Administrator, Town of Preston Web site
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