New csmonitor.com look debuts today
This newspaper's website, www. csmonitor.com, has a new look and feel today, born of a desire to better serve our growing online audience.
When we decided to publish the newspaper's content in digital form in 1996, we were optimistic. Events have proven us right. So far this year, 600,000 people have visited our site on average each month, and the number is growing.
Our efforts were acknowledged last month with a Digital Edge award from the Newspaper Association of America.
Our redesign is aimed at achieving a cleaner look and a slight change of direction. One thing experience has taught us is that Web users navigate differently than readers of the newspaper.
As a result, the structure of our site is considerably different from the newspaper. While the site still contains all the newspaper's content, as well as interactive features and original online material, some of the labeling and content categories are different. Of course, if you prefer the way the newspaper is organized, you'll still be able to access that version easily from the front page of the site by clicking on the link labeled "print edition." You'll find a convenient list of all the stories in today's newspaper.
The rest of the site has been reorganized to make it easier to find stories and information on topics you're exploring. You can see at a glance the breadth and depth of what the Monitor has to offer. And every story includes:
A link making it easy to write a letter to the editor.
A way to print the story in an ink-and-paper-saving format.
Easy access to MonitorTalk discussions.
And many stories include links to related and background Monitor stories on the same or a related topic.
We also include on each page:
The site's five most-read stories from the day before.
Links to special coverage and Monitor Spotlight.
And on news pages, we've added a new feature called Latest News in Brief.
On the csmonitor.com homepage, you'll find the usual customizable weather, an About Us/Help section that we hope answers all your questions, the text-only edition, and the archive of Monitor stories back to 1980. Also, we offer a Monitor Web Directory of websites we like.
One of our most popular features, "e-mail to a friend," is now easily accessible with each story. This link allows users to forward stories they find interesting to others via e-mail and is used to send about 4,000 stories each month. So, take a look and browse. One thing the Internet does is make it easy to let us know what you think. Please do so, at feedback@csmonitor.com.
