Codex ContentThe City is Now Beta
We’ve been so busy over here that we forgot to announce that the City is in Beta!
What does Beta really mean?
Well, it means that the general functionality of The City is getting firmed up, and even though we’ve got a couple hundred things in the queue to work on right now, we’ve got enough functionality that we think The City is “useful” for alot of things. It also means that it’s pretty close to hitting our adoption target…as of today there are over 4,000 Mars Hillians on The City. Considering that it’s only open to folks over a certain age that are a part of one of our Campuses, that means we’ve cleared 80% adoption; that’s pretty exciting.
What’s in store for the future?
At this point, we’ve tackled alot of the main things that Churches and other organizations need to be able to do (campaign management, community growth and management, email functionality galore, massive community networking, file sharing, event planning/scheduling/assignment, content sharing, spiritual disciplines and discipleship plans, membership process, assimilation for community and service groups, families, distributed administration and oversight, secure and private email replacement, classifieds/marketplace/business listing/need sharing, email client integration with the City, in context video help…and so on and so on). In addition to all of this we’re going to build out a donor management piece and a bunch of other things to assist with organization-wide management…we’re really just getting going and are very excited about some of the ideas for the future.
Favorite Beta Feature?
I really like the new Families structure. Rather than having a profile page that links off to my wife’s, my wife’s picture is right next to mine (likewise on her page). I love this because it shows that we’re one and a good theology of marriage is built right into the page. In the same way, I can now see everyone in the context of their family (kids too!) which reinforces that The City is about community, not individuals acting individually. I love it.
Coming Soon
We’ve received alot of questions about what the City is all about, so we’re working on an informational website to explain more of the DNA. Nothing to announce yet, other than ‘coming soon’
Beta eh? When do non-Mars Hill ppl get to use it? Or at least see it?
Heck of a lot better than just a forum to communicate…
Also is it easy to make into an international thing? Since postcodes and states are vastly different…
[...] a way that reflects real life instead of replacing it like other social networking sites. And now The City has moved into the Beta stage! What’s that mean? Big improvements have been made and the work continues. Much like the [...]
I echo Benson. I live in Australia and have no hope in getting to Mars Hill in Seattle. I would love to visit “The City” - and get plugged in.
What so you Mars Hill? Open it up for the rest of us!