[fullsmash26]

Originally Posted by lorend

I am quite sure I have already asked this question on another thread: but what about the Sil's website? It's not often updated (ie a few times weekly, max), which is problematic for something that is supposed to be providing current news.

Most student papers have this problem; not just the Sil. I'm applying for Editor-in-Chief of The Manitoban at my home university (UManitoba) for next year.

If I get the position, you'll finally see student papers getting with the late 90s. The Manitoban will become a constantly updated site.

Hopefully, this will result in other papers following the lead of the Toban.

- Joey

[deadpool]

The Sil's website actually is not that bad in terms of updating. Articles are appearing on there before the paper makes it to the stands. It needs some aesthetic work, but otherwise is decent.

Joey had posted an issue of another school's newspaper which was published in pdf. The Sil should also do this with every issue.

[owenadam]

The Silhouette's website works though..

Its funny how much pressure the MSU put us under at the beginning of my term to go with their website. We passed though.

We update once a week because we put one newspaper out a week. its like the laws of thermodynamics, really.

As with any reputable weekly news source, our mandate clearly is not to be as current as an online service. What we do provide, however, is thoughtful, in depth, well researched examination and explanation of the events in the community that affect our readers.

One of the limitations of print media is that it cannot be as current as online material. The benefit, though, is that readers don't have to pour through post after post of discussion to figure out what's going on. Anything you read in the Sil comes with the guarantee that it is researched and fact checked. A guarantee that we are legally required to uphold.

This isn't to attack online material, however. It's faster, more discussion oriented, and better suited to the immediate needs of a breaking story. After the dust settles, though, if you want to find out what happened in a clear and concise manner, I think the Sil is your best bet.

As far as I'm concerned, there should be no beef between the Sil and MI as we both serve important roles in the community. Kudos.

[deadpool]

Adam, the site is functionally sound, but needs a bit of frontend code work. Would you be open to some independent designer/developer helping you clean up the look of the website to make it fully aesthetically pleasing?

[owenadam]

I appreciate the offer Rohan, and we're always open to suggestion.

As it goes right now, we're putting the finishing touches on a complete overhaul of our infrastructure; from the look of the physical paper, to the distribution, to the website.

Keep your eyes peeled.

[deadpool]

Originally Posted by owenadam

I appreciate the offer Rohan, and we're always open to suggestion.

As it goes right now, we're putting the finishing touches on a complete overhaul of our infrastructure; from the look of the physical paper, to the distribution, to the website.

Keep your eyes peeled.

Yeah you did mention that this morning. Looking forward to it.

[Chad]

Originally Posted by owenadam

As far as I'm concerned, there should be no beef between the Sil and MI as we both serve important roles in the community. Kudos.

Thanks Adam! I agree, we both have our place, and I've never seen us as competitors (though I have heard of there being animosity between staff of each of our services? - not sure why). We're an information and discussion service, rather than a hard news service. We rely on the power of our community and growing memberbase, as well as our small team of dedicated volunteers, while The Sil relies on paid editors and contributors who go out and interview, fact find, and are seen as reporters. It's apples and oranges in my opinion.

Keep in mind though that we aren't just discussion forums, and we have a full blog-like homepage and write longer, more well researched articles (see article archives) as well as publish videos.

[jeffgreen]

Just to clarify, volunteers drive this paper -- from reporters to photographers to idea generators -- they all make this paper run. Apple and oranges tho.

[lorend]

How do you like them apples?

MacInsiders = apples.

[Dave.Moore]

Speaking as an alumnus who does not get to campus daily, I appreciated the days (5 or more years ago) when most of The Silhouette was posted on line. All the news, sports, arts & entertainment, the editorial, letters to the editor, OPEDS --- pretty much the entire paper except for the advertising. All of this was typically posted by Friday afternoon each week.

For at least the last 2-3 years, there has been a limited selection of the above --- and I don't recall seeing the editorial or letters to the editor for a long time.

Food for thought as the newspaper's editorial team considers revisions to the print edition and on-line presence.

[DannyV]

When I started here in 2004, and even before that when I was at Western in 2003 I was able to read the Sil online no problem.

Then something happened (dunno what) and it wasn't available any more. It would be nice if it used the same online technology as most of the other student newspapers I follow. (Brock's for example is run on a platform developed specifically for newspapers and provides email versions and RSS feeds. I emailed the editor in chief of the Sil about it over the summer but never heard back)

[fullsmash26]

Originally Posted by DannyV

When I started here in 2004, and even before that when I was at Western in 2003 I was able to read the Sil online no problem.

Then something happened (dunno what) and it wasn't available any more. It would be nice if it used the same online technology as most of the other student newspapers I follow. (Brock's for example is run on a platform developed specifically for newspapers and provides email versions and RSS feeds. I emailed the editor in chief of the Sil about it over the summer but never heard back)

The Brock Press uses College Publisher for their website. I would not advise The Silhouette to use this third-party system.

The Varsity, University of Toronto, uses the Canadian University Press MassAudience system. It's not a bad system and it is getting better.

The Ubyssey, the student paper at University of British Columbia, powers their website using Wordpress (the same software that is used by The Sillhouette).

The Silhouette is using Wordpress to power the current website. This a step in the right direction. I'm a strong believer that Wordpress will become the leading application for student newspaper websites. There is a group called CoPress in the United States which is building a cooperative network of student papers using Wordpress. Eventually, they will start building strong plugins and custom templates for student papers. This will make WP the best platform for student papers.

---------------------

On a side note:

The Ubyssey just published their elections supplement for those of you interesting in seeing how things are done there. They also have a special elections coverage page here: http://www.ubyssey.ca/?page_id=6986

The Ubyssey website will be updated tonight with analysis for the all-candidates debates today and will be uploading their PDF version of Friday's paper overnight as well. I did an interview with them on a story that will be in tomorrow's paper. (I can't remember the topic. I've done a few interviews on elections this week)

[Alex McColl]

On Tuesday January 27 it was brought to my attention that Mr. Ian Finlay, MSU VP Finance, posted a response to my editorial on the MSU website entitled, “Corporate Responsibility and the Democratic Process.” It opens with a quasi apology to students with Mr. Finlay writing, “I have not done my job as well as it could be done.” However, this is not an apology in regards to deficits, the utter failure of Quarters, or the 24% raise he received. It is an apology for not doing more to “ensure you know what we are doing and why.”

He goes on to totally ignore all of my arguments, provide you with some philosophical insights into my psyche, and issue a short rant about the democratic process. It’s definitely worth a read. Not because it is particularly well written (it is not) or because my ego enjoys any piece that mentions my name nine times (which it does) but simply because your MSU fees paid for it as it is being hosted on the MSU website.

Mr. Finlay continues to raise the issue of hours of work, while never fully addressing how that has any relevance in regards to the Executives. He gives no explanation to the fact that there was no mention of any increase in their hours of work in any MSU documents. He ignores the fact that Operating Policy 2.6 clearly states the only reason for the increase was, “to ensure that wages of the Executive reflect the changes in the cost of living.” He makes no reference to the fact that the actual hours worked has not changed relative to previous years. Mr. Finlay does state that, “we must be transparent in what we do and how we do it” but instead of providing students answers to these questions he writes about the nobility of elections and how I should move on with my life.

The past two issues of The Silhouette show his true commitment to transparency. In the January 15th issue Managing Editor Jeff Green lamented, “Ian Finlay, VP Finance, defended his own budget and told me a draft would be in my hands before print time. 48 hours have past, and I have yet to see a number.” The cover of the January 22nd Sil contains a short piece entitled, “MSU declines further interviews.” This article contained the following, “Following up on the Jan. 15 issue of the Silhouette, both MSU President Azim Kasmani and Vice President of Finance Ian Finlay declined interviews this week.” & “Since last week’s publication, the Silhouette has yet to receive any budget outlining the current finances of the MSU.” In both papers the President’s page was not used to provide any details on the MSU’s finances.

Perhaps Mr. Finlay is refusing to be interviewed out of fear at what he may be quoted as saying. The January 15th Sil cover story is ripe with quotes from Mr. Finlay that lead me to ask if this is really an issue of transparency, or is it an issue of the MSU failing to have done its budgetary homework?

“I wasn’t 100 per cent sure of our financial situation.” – Mr. Finlay
“Surpluses weren’t necessarily the best thing in a student environment like this.” – Mr. Kasmani
“We can turn profits but why are we turning profits. If we’re running surpluses, like, why run surpluses, it’s just as bad as a deficit” – Mr. Finlay

“That’s last year’s board that didn’t deserve the raise.” – Mr. Finlay. Funny that Mr. Finlay would describe his predecessors as being excellent on the MSU website while also stating that they didn’t deserve the raise he now enjoys.

I feel as if I should emphasize one very important point. The MSU gets the vast majority of its budget from the student fees you pay. If it consistently runs a surplus, then it is in a position to reduce your fees. If its business units turn a profit leading to a surplus, then it is possible to further reduce your fees. However, if the MSU runs a deficit, it will be forced to increase your fees. How this simple fact is lost on the CFO and CEO of MSU Inc is beyond comprehension. At a time when the MSU should be working with the University to ensure McMaster get’s its fair share of Federal ‘stimulus,’ the MSU will be focusing on its own solvency.

Mr. Finlay is correct, in that the MSU does post many minutes with many documents. One such document is the Executive Board Meeting minutes from October 30, 2008. In section 3, Mr. Finlay states that “Quarters isn’t doing so well” and that Quarters will no longer run on Saturday nights as a club. The MSU President’s Report dated November 16, 2008 elaborates that moving forward Saturday would be used for special functions and karaoke nights.

Quarters enjoys a monopoly in regards to on campus club nights. It is true that there is increased competitive pressure from new and old off campus clubs. However, the inimitable advantage of Quarters was always its location on campus. Rather than compete, the MSU has thrown in the towel and opted to compete in the much lower volume karaoke night business. Unfortunately for Quarters, the Phoenix has already cornered the on campus karaoke market with Snooty Fox doing exceptionally well with karaoke on Sundays. If you’d like a free night of great entertainment go down to Snooty on Sundays, the Mac Musical Theatre people are often there and they really get the place moving. As for special events, that too is already dominated on campus by Paradise Catering. The things Albert and his staff can do in Celebration Hall make Quarters look like a low budget alternative. I know if I were running Quarters, I wouldn’t want to walk away from the high volume club market to become the lame duck competitor of Paradise Catering.

In closing, I’d like to say how humourous I found Mr. Finlay’s statements regarding my not moving on to other endeavours. Especially since last time I talk to him, he called me at work and asked me to take down something I had posted on Facebook the night before (which was later published in the Sil). I encourage students to get involved in things like the General Assembly, and I also encourage the MSU to book rooms large enough to hold them. In these interesting times many in government think action is needed and any critique of said action is an “empty criticism.” Perhaps not spending yourselves into a deficit is, in fact, a “new solution.”

- Alex McColl

PS: If you’re still wondering why I care, the short answer is:

Because I Can.


Alex McColl graduated with an Honours Bachelor of Commerce & a Minor in Economics in 2008. He served as the Inter-Residence Council Vice-President Finance and as the Undergraduate on the University Fees Committee in the 2007/2008 year.

[Phoenix]

Did you go to GA and hear the finance report?...that wasnt supposed to sound 'smart' or mean...just out of curiousity

[fullsmash26]

Mr. McColl's opinion seems to have been deleted by one of the administrators.

For those of you interested, the opinion is available on Facebook at the following link:

http://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=4803 3053666