First communitycollab test version released

• Nick Rougeux
• October 21, 2008

The first CommunityCollab version (beta in techspeak) launched October 21, 2008. We are calling this the first version, because it contains a core set of features, which we plan to expand significantly over the next few months.

To find out what CommunityCollab can do now, and what we'll have for you in the near future, continue reading. . .

The Collab currently contains:

• A directory of people who are working to make communities better (such as community organizers and developers). You can find others like yourself, filtered by areas of expertise, city, or organization.
• Work updates. Read what other professionals are doing and tell others what you are up to. Compare notes, ask questions, give advice, find someone to collaborate with... whatever you find useful.
• Google Maps, which help give a feeling of who's doing what, where.
• The ability to send messages to other members.
  

We expect that you will find a bug or two, and the site may be slow at times. When you find something wrong, or if you have suggestions for improvements or new features, let us know through the contact us page.

Over the last few months, we've conducted many interviews to try to discover what will be useful to you in your work and, based on the data we've gathered, are already designing features for the next beta releases.

Possible additions include: a site-wide search; expanded bios with photos, links, education, experience, articles, etc; news from community websites and blogs that provide RSS feeds, such as the Grassroots-based sites from CDCs in Chicago, Milwaukee and Detroit; Q & As and other types of threaded discussions; a directory of links; and topic- or organization-specific affinity groups.

How this site evolves, and its usefulness, will depend largely on how you use it. Have fun, and spread the word!