SpiderBytes Survey leads to system upgrades for 2005-06

The next time you go online to submit a SpiderByte, don't be surprised to see that some things have changed for the better. Through an overwhelming response to last spring's survey, the University community clearly expressed its preferred direction for the campus-wide events forum. Members of University Communications and Information Services worked to incorporate those changes over the summer.

They include:
• A return to the morning distribution schedule The majority of respondents preferred to receive the digests each morning, the traditional "send time" prior to the 2004-05 academic year, when an afternoon schedule was tested. This preference was particularly strong among students.
• A streamlined submission form Designed to simplify the submission and approval process, as well as reduce the overall length of messages, the updated submission form incorporates more specific drop-down menu choices, required fields and a word limit on the description field. This will place greater emphasis on brevity and require authors to include external links to provide additional, optional information. These changes were in response to readers' desire for shorter digests and more control of their SpiderBytes interactions.
• A shorter, categorized digest The digest now places all submissions into one of six categories to increase ease of scanning and relevance for readers (a preference of nearly 90 percent of respondents). Additionally, daily SpiderBytes message digests will include only eliminate unnecessary scrolling and, again, bring added control to readers.
• New audience options The audience options in the submission form have been reworked to allow for more specific targeting of messages and to maximize the pertinence of messages to each selected group of recipients. Please refer to the SpiderBytes instructions page found at https://wwws.richmond.edu/spiderbytes/ to learn more about these changes and how they will affect you.

SpiderBytes survey drawing
The winner of the $50 gift certificate to Stony Point Fashion Park for participating in the SpiderBytes survey is Steve Zinski. Please contact Phillip Gravely at ext. 8621 to claim your prize

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