A weekly look at what’s new, what’s coming on our site …
• The Morning Java feature will return this coming week, and it will be in video form. Every Monday-Friday, a brief commentary will be posted at 6 a.m., one that will cover some topic not already being taken up in a column.
This will afford a chance to maybe expand beyond the Pittsburgh boundary on occasion, as well as a chance — in all candor — to cut down on some of the typing.
Here is the amazing intro by our own Alex Messmer:
• Proud to add Duquesne basketball to the teams this site will cover on a regular basis, joining the big three, as well as Pitt football and basketball and the Riverhounds. I’ll be at the Dukes’ opener this afternoon and have an accompanying season preview column.
There are no plans to add Penn State, West Virginia or Robert Morris in the near future, for the simple reason that they’re too geographically far, and I can’t afford to have anything take away from the Steelers, Penguins and Pirates. I’m simply not comfortable going to the occasional game and writing a column. I prefer to write from at least some level of expertise, and that requires getting to know people, getting to spend time with them at practices and other sessions. Going out to State College, Morgantown or even Coraopolis just eats away at that.
That doesn’t mean I’ll never write about anything else. I’ve shown that. But as far as regular, dedicated coverage, I’ll stick with these for now.
• The new apps are off to a wonderful start: We’ve had 2,135 downloads from Apple for iPhone/iPad, and we’ve had 1,091 downloads from Google for Android platforms. They’ve been up only a week.
Some of you have sent suggestions for fixes and/or upgrades, and trust me they’re all being recorded, and all will be shared in a follow-up meeting we’re having with Brisk Mobile on Tuesday. All that will go to our next build, which I think will be 1.1 or something like that.
Commenting order and threaded replies will be part of that, but I can’t make promises as to whether it can be part of this build or will have to wait.
• I’ll be guest-hosting on 105.9 the X next week while Mark Madden takes vacation. No days yet. Will inform.
• We do gift subscriptions, and it works like this: Buy a subscription, whatever level, as if it were for you. Then, email us at [email protected] with the name and email address of the person on the receiving end. We’ll do the rest and, once it’s done, we’ll send a really cool, personalized graphic note to welcome them to the site.
• Two other huge commerce additions to the site coming in time for Light Up Night. (That’s how a good Pittsburgher thinks of the start of the holiday season, you know!)
• We’re also extremely excited about another potential major advertiser in the works.
• We have a new Facebook page. Not my personal one, but a special one to promote this site. Please, if you haven’t already, hit us up with a like and share. It helps.
• As of this writing at midnight, we’re at 5,727 subscriptions. We’ll be four months old on Nov. 23, and our full-year goal is 10,000. Our unique page views are at 1,121,141.
• We’ll have a subscriber meeting Monday in Nashville before the Steelers-Titans game. I’ll inform regarding time and place, but it will be somewhere on Broadway near the Predators’ arena.
• Thank you so much for reading and for your support.
Love the photoshop.
Had to look twice. DK front page on computer screen.
And there the coach pointing at the computer in the middle of a game... did you read what that DK said about you guys!
He said you were a bunch of .....
So go out and win this game!
Been meaning to post this for awhile. DK, you're giving us more quality from this site than the entire sports staff at both papers. The quality & depth goes far beyond the fluff that gets printed & repeated on other outlets. Thank you very much!
Dejan have you gotten any comments from the local sports writers on your endeavor? Is the launch and growth of your blog/site made any larger waves from writers and sports writers in other cities?
DK, taking a shot in the dark here but is there any chance for a WPIAL Football Championship game preview or post games artical? Just thought i would ask... Thanks
DJ, question about the app (maybe something you can add), there's an option to show a notification when a new article is posted and I have it checked, but the notification doesn't happen. Don't know if anyone else is having this issue. The app itself though, awesome! TY!
I'd wanted to sign up for awhile, finally have thanks to the mobile app; can't beat the coverage and for a Pittsburgher living away from home like me, this is a must! Keep up the great work!
Wait, was #34 left vacant last yr? If so, what an oversight. Missed opportunity by someone for free stuff from AJ. Hello, Vance Worley & others ... eye on the prize, gentlemen! This was easy money.
Shame on you DK. I feel like you are providing more content than what you originally promised us upon subscribing. Nothing I hate more than a guy who over delivers.
I am spending less time on the blog with the new format, which is probably healthy for me and the site. I do miss many of the wider ranging discussions and some of the wider ranging participants. Therefore, I hope the AM Java will feed more than my love of the Pirates?
1. It's not 'the blog with the new format.' It's a full site and unlike pretty much anything out there. 2. When you say 'wider-ranging discussion,' what you mean, ironically, is nothing but baseball.
Hey DK, any comment on Malkin's "retaliation" last night?
I (a) thought it was a good, clean hit that didn't deserve any retaliation and (b) think it was bush league for Malkin to "throw down" without, you know, actually THROWING DOWN. I'm pretty sure it's a penalty.
They had close to zero response, Bill. They weren't even being used for the preview info, judging by the page hits. And that's understandable, given the lack of overall coverage here on the topic.
I'm looking forward to the java entries. But, uh, how do I say this? The first five notes of the music intro sounds an awful lot like the music at the start of Pittsburgh Dad episodes. Just sayin'. (Ducking and running.)
Happy for return of Morning Java. Haven't been too inconvenienced with preference to stay on topic with present format as you haven't been overly draconian enforcing it. But getting back daily, designated catch-all thread restores one of best things that fostered Asylum community
November 15, 2014
Saturday Site Stuff: Return of Morning Java
by Dejan Kovacevic • Site stuff • Saturday site stuff
Photo-illustration — ALEX MESSMER
DEJAN KOVACEVIC, DK ON PITTSBURGH SPORTS
A weekly look at what’s new, what’s coming on our site …
• The Morning Java feature will return this coming week, and it will be in video form. Every Monday-Friday, a brief commentary will be posted at 6 a.m., one that will cover some topic not already being taken up in a column.
This will afford a chance to maybe expand beyond the Pittsburgh boundary on occasion, as well as a chance — in all candor — to cut down on some of the typing.
Here is the amazing intro by our own Alex Messmer:
• Proud to add Duquesne basketball to the teams this site will cover on a regular basis, joining the big three, as well as Pitt football and basketball and the Riverhounds. I’ll be at the Dukes’ opener this afternoon and have an accompanying season preview column.
There are no plans to add Penn State, West Virginia or Robert Morris in the near future, for the simple reason that they’re too geographically far, and I can’t afford to have anything take away from the Steelers, Penguins and Pirates. I’m simply not comfortable going to the occasional game and writing a column. I prefer to write from at least some level of expertise, and that requires getting to know people, getting to spend time with them at practices and other sessions. Going out to State College, Morgantown or even Coraopolis just eats away at that.
That doesn’t mean I’ll never write about anything else. I’ve shown that. But as far as regular, dedicated coverage, I’ll stick with these for now.
• The new apps are off to a wonderful start: We’ve had 2,135 downloads from Apple for iPhone/iPad, and we’ve had 1,091 downloads from Google for Android platforms. They’ve been up only a week.
Some of you have sent suggestions for fixes and/or upgrades, and trust me they’re all being recorded, and all will be shared in a follow-up meeting we’re having with Brisk Mobile on Tuesday. All that will go to our next build, which I think will be 1.1 or something like that.
Commenting order and threaded replies will be part of that, but I can’t make promises as to whether it can be part of this build or will have to wait.
• I’ll be guest-hosting on 105.9 the X next week while Mark Madden takes vacation. No days yet. Will inform.
• We do gift subscriptions, and it works like this: Buy a subscription, whatever level, as if it were for you. Then, email us at [email protected] with the name and email address of the person on the receiving end. We’ll do the rest and, once it’s done, we’ll send a really cool, personalized graphic note to welcome them to the site.
• Two other huge commerce additions to the site coming in time for Light Up Night. (That’s how a good Pittsburgher thinks of the start of the holiday season, you know!)
• We’re also extremely excited about another potential major advertiser in the works.
• We have a new Facebook page. Not my personal one, but a special one to promote this site. Please, if you haven’t already, hit us up with a like and share. It helps.
• As of this writing at midnight, we’re at 5,727 subscriptions. We’ll be four months old on Nov. 23, and our full-year goal is 10,000. Our unique page views are at 1,121,141.
• We’ll have a subscriber meeting Monday in Nashville before the Steelers-Titans game. I’ll inform regarding time and place, but it will be somewhere on Broadway near the Predators’ arena.
• Thank you so much for reading and for your support.