Out of the Box

We have to admit, this is a request we get frequently. The truth is,  there are a lot of factors that determine if a Flash piece goes viral or not. We do our best on the factors we can control, but the truth is, not every Flash movie is destined to rise to the level of the Meatrix, which had 10 million views.

I recently attended a conference called Web of Change where I was interviewed on this very topic. Check it out. And check back here next week. Our Flash project manager Jay Golden is going to post The Five Golden(’s) Rules of a Successful Viral Marketing Hit.

Cheers,

Jonah

So what the heck does “open source” mean? And why should you care?

Open source is a term used to describe software that is developed by a community of individuals and offered free for download off the internet. It’s the opposite of propriatary software that’s developed by a company and liscensed to its users. Perhaps the best example of proprietary software is Microsoft’s office. The only way to use their software is to liscense it. And if you find a bug, you must submit it to Microsoft. It will be addressed by their internal programmers.

Open source developers often make their money by consulting or customizing open source applications for their cleints. So while downloading a piece of software is free, it may need to be tweaked for your particular needs.

The most common open source application we implement for our clients are “content management systems.” (CMS) These allow an organization to self edit their website without staff needing to know HTML. Through a password-protected administrative dashboard, staff can add, edit, and delete pages of content. They system is dynamic, meaning if you have multiple areas on your site where the same content displays (like news headlines in a press section and on the homepage), they system will follow an established set of rules and populate your content in all the right places. In other words, you only have to make one change and the website makes the rest.

There’s no one CMS option that’s right for every organization. Some will want to hire a proprietary company. But it can cost $30,000 or more to sign up with one of these groups. If this budget is too large, an open source solution might be the way to go.

See other web definitions on Google and visit the Open Source Initiative (OSI) for more information.

–Susan

We’ve been thinking about podcasting a lot here lately at Free Range. Be among the first to know: our movies are about to be on demand and mobile, so you can go, go, go and still keep up with Free Range’s latest. Look for an official *ah-hem* announcement in your inbox soon.

Last week, Emily Weinstein and I sat in on a fantastic call on podcasting sponsored by the New Progressive Coalition (NPC).

The presenter was podcasting expert John C. Havens who pointed out that every where we turn, advertisers, the media, and organizations are all demanding our eyeballs. There’s simply too much to read. But less demands are being put on our ears.

By creating a podcast, your organization has the potential to catch people in those can’t read moments– commuting to work, at the gym, while cooking in the kitchen…

Check out the helpful links below to start learning about podcasts. You can also listen to the call if you register with NPC.

TechSoup’s How to Record, Edit, and Promote Your Nonprofit’s Podcast·

NetSquared’s Nonprofit & NGO Podcasting
The About.com Guide to Podcasting

The audio recording from the call will be posted in NPC’s audio library soon.

–Susan