Happy New Year, Hidden Valley!

I am calling for some help with our website.

Last year saw one big change for our website: Online membership application, payment and updating. It was quite successful, with fully two thirds of our members applying and paying online. Another 10% applied online but paid by check. And we had our best year ever for total membership count last year, as a result of this and the work of our Membership Drive team.

But, this year, I hope to take our online features even farther, by adding some “Members Only” pages to our website. If that works well, then we may also consider an online version of the Roster as well. We may even consider an interactive map, chat rooms for interests, and online RSVP for the event calendar.

Some of the ground work for our Members Only section has been done already. A couple folks have already noticed the “Login” link on our web page header menu. So, will this involve passwords? Yes, but that is not the only security. You see, only folks who have a membership already, and who ask for the Members Only access will have a login created for them. Moreover, if we have particularly sensitive information, we will use two-factor authentication to have you enter a code sent to your email or phone.

The challenge is that we need about a dozen beta testers to help us. I can always find board members to pick on, but I thought I’d ask you if anyone else would be interested. The work involves getting on our website periodically and checking out a new feature. I will email participating members each time there is something to test, and a given test should only take 5-10 minutes at most. To join, reply in a comment to this post. (Comments will not be posted on the website without checking with you.)

By the way, I am also looking for a couple assistant webmasters whom I will teach how to add content to our website. Mention that in your comment as well, if it interests you.

Your help here will allow us to bring better service to our community.

Thanks!

Mike Oliver, Webmaster, HiddenValleyTucson.com