ShareSoc’s IT Upgrade Project

I owe our members and followers an update on our IT upgrade project.

Thanks to generous donations from our members and other supporters, we were able to get our website overhaul underway last June. I feel I must apologise that the work is taking a bit longer than I had hoped, with over 80 distinct web pages to redevelop. One of my key objectives is to make this excellent content more accessible in the new site. However, I am pleased to say that it looks like we’re “on the home straight” now, with the majority of pages done.

It shouldn’t be long now before we can get out beta-testing programme underway and then launch the new site. Thanks for your patience and bearing with us whilst we get this important work done. Whilst I have a modest roster of beta-testers lined up to get a “sneak preview” of the new site and help ensure it is fit for launch, I would welcome additional volunteers to help with the test programme. You can find further details of what we’re doing and how to volunteer here: https://www.sharesoc.org/serving-better-sharesocs-upgrade-project/

Note that this work represents only the second phase of our overall IT upgrade project. To enable integration of our currently separate members network site and much-improved members services, such as event sign up, we do need further funds for later phases. In these we will implement a web-based membership management system and then use it to drive interactive parts of the website and integrate member-only content with the main website. So, we would very much welcome further project donations (https://www.sharesoc.org/donations-it-project.html) to allow us to proceed with these later phases.

Mark Bentley