Here you will find improvements and tips LocalNews1.org made to improve what we do and what you see. While we announce improvements in “LocalNews1.org is Listening” emails we also publish them here for your future reference.
TECH TIPS:
Easy LocalNews1.org Access: We started LocalNews1.org with the idea of an app. There is a quick way to get immediate access on your iPhone, iPad or Android device by placing an icon on your home screen. Click and follow these instructions. One touch and you’re at LocalNews1.org every day.
Reloading Passwords: We got a few complaints about constantly having to reload passwords. Cermak Technologies researched this and found if you check the “Remember Me” box at login, you will remain logged in for 2 weeks; we have changed that to 2 years. As long as you stay logged in with “Remember Me” checked, you won’t have to worry about logging in for a long time!
Opt In Email Reminders: Some of you suggested sending an email reminder to check LocalNews1.org. It is done! To receive an email reminder, go to your “My Account” page (the big yellow box in the banner). Scroll down and you will find a new checkbox to “Opt-In to Email Reminders.” Checking that box will open a window so you can choose the days of the week to receive a reminder. Check or uncheck days to suit your schedule and click Save. Reminder emails will arrive early on the days you choose and provide a link direct to LocalNews1.org.
Getting Subscription Pop-ups and / or You Cannot See Stories: Are you a current LocalNews1.org subscriber. Are you getting a pop-up message to subscribe and / or you cannot see the full stories? Try these steps to get a resolution:
1. On the LocalNews1.org website, look at the top header for the yellow button on the top right of the screen.
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- If you are logged in to your account, the button will say “My Account”. Go to step 2.
- If instead it says “Subscribe,” then you are not logged in. Look for the white “Log In” text in the header and log into your account.
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2. Refresh your window – you may be looking at an old view and a refresh might reset everything.
3. If above does not work, log off of your account and then login in again.
4. If none of these work, contact us at [email protected] and we will work quickly to troubleshoot and fix the issue.
FEATURES:
Community TV Displays (CTD): If you’re a business with a TV that you make available for your customers, we have something for you. You can share LocalNews1.org content on your TVs. Local news, local advertising, weather and your messaging material (ads, specials, service announcements, etc) are updated every 12 hours. That’s locally relevant content. No national news, soap operas, or reruns. Check it out here, and click anywhere on the “Sample Playlist” to see it in action. Want this in your business? Contact us at [email protected] and we’ll help you get started.
Media Cooperation: We’re collaborating with other media outlets and organizations to bring you more news from more locations and on more topics.
– Radio News: We supply local news to Verstandig radio stations. They broadcast our material during morning and afternoon rush hours, drawing attention to local issues. Take a listen. Their stations are 104.7 FM WAYZ Country, 101.5 FM WBHB Bob Rocks, 92.1 FM WIKG The GOAT, and 100.9 FM and 1380 AM WLIN The Line. See the “Media Links” box on the LocalNews1.org home page, or link directly to Radio News Updates.
– WRGG: This is a small radio station serving Greencastle. We carry a live feed of their broadcasts for those with reception problems; for example, while vacationing in London. In exchange, WRGG provides us local stories to share with the broader area and occasionally speaks kindly of us on air. See the “Media Links” box on the LocalNews1.org home page, or link directly to WRGG.
– 30 Minutes with Mike: Franklin County Area Development Corporation (FCADC) promotes countywide development, and works with surrounding counties. We now carry FCADC President Mike Ross’ podcast. Hear from local businesses, cultural and community leaders, with maybe hear a little comedy, sports and politics thrown in. Also in the “Media Links” box on the LocalNews1.org home page or click here. By the way, we also carry occasional stories from FCADC and would love to carry other business stories. Contact us at [email protected] to explore.
Local History: On Tuesday, July 11th we started a Local History series in the Voices section our news site. Every Tuesday we’ll publish an article about the events that made our area what it is today. Civil War, industry, agriculture, your town and the town next door. Check it out. If you have local history stories to share, send them to [email protected] and we’ll work with you to publish a story.
Religious Services: We’ve added a list of churches in our coverage area. Fully searchable, find names and contact information, along with days and times of services and other information where provided. Check the main menu. If you’re not on the list, we can add you. If your church has more information to share about service days and time, let us know so we can update your listing.
Weekly E-newsletter: We are excited to share that effective Friday, August 11th, LocalNews1.org will launch a weekly free e-Newsletter which will be sent via email each Friday morning. It will include headlines of all articles published in the prior week, with links to the articles. The e-Newsletter will also include advertisements for those currently advertising with LocalNews1.org. Feel free to share this with everyone you know. We’re providing the e-Newsletter as a service because getting vetted, accurate and timely local news out to our local community is what we do.
“Lastest Headlines” Menu: Don’t have time to read all the stories every day? The “Latest Headlines” menu located in the upper right corner of the website always has the last 20 stories for you to peruse and click.
Most Recent News: A subscriber provided feedback recently that it took a long time to find the most recent stories. You already know if you click on any single story you’ll go to a page with just that story. Did you also know that scrolling to the bottom of that page will bring up another recent story, and another . . . you might even see a rotating disc while the site searches for the next story. This is probably the fastest way to see seven of the most recent stories at one sitting. Start on a different story and you may get a different set of the seven most recent stories.
Business Ads – They don’t just sit there 😉: All advertisements in LocalNews1.org provide information beyond the ad itself. Click on an ad and you will be linked to the business website, social media page, or other content provided by the business.
Classified Ads . . . still have their uses: Have an event, job for hire, yard sale, car, mobile home or lawn mower to sell. Or are you looking for something. If a business ad is too much for your purpose, try a Classified Ad. A basic Classified is $7 for 7 days for the first 25 words, and 10 cents per additional word. It’s also “self serve”. Just enter your information on the “Place a Classified Ad” page. Edit the ad right on the screen or copy and paste from elsewhere. Your words will be counted and the price for one week shown. Enter the number of weeks you want to get your total price, and hit Submit. Your Classified will go up as soon as payment is received, or you can choose a different start date by contacting [email protected]. If you like yard signs and banners, Classifieds can very affordably complement these efforts. For most messages, 25 words is enough to identify what you’re advertising or searching for, and include contact information. Check it out by clicking here or email [email protected] for more information.
SERVICES:
Stories: We enjoy providing stories about everything in our coverage area. There is so much going on. Serving an informed, connected community with a great local news network is our objective. If you have a story to share, write to us at news@localnews1.org. If you like what we’re doing, tell all your friends and neighbors. Got a suggestion or concern? Contact us at contact@localnews1.org.
Free Looks: Some subscribers noted they want to share a story with family and friends, but we did not have that capability. We’ve changed access so anyone can see 3 stories per month without subscribing. Hope this helps.
Historical News Archives: A little known feature of the Alexander Hamilton Memorial Free Library (AHMFL) is that it has a page where you can search over 172 years of local history from all the papers who preceded LocalNews1.org as the local news outlet. In cooperation with AHMFL we’ve added a convenient link to their archives to make it easy to access all that history. That link is located at the bottom left of the footer (the grey area at the bottom) on every page.
Obituaries: We want to simplify your life by giving you “one stop” access to all the local news in the area. We’re taking one small simplifying step in cooperation with Grove-Bowersox Funeral Home by presenting their obituaries in LocalNews1.org. Just go to the LocalNews1.org “Obituaries” page.