Transcript
Open Source Solutions
White Paper – Open Source Software and the Michigan United Conservation Clubs By Cooper Sigourney This white paper reviews a variety of Open Source Software tools that can be utilized by the Michigan United Conservation Clubs (MUCC). “Open Source” is a qualifying term for software able to be used by anyone for the purposes of furthering their ability to learn about and use beneficial computer skills, like making and maintaining a blog or website. Thousands of businesses have saved money and bettered their web-presence through Open Source Software. Considering MUCC’s mission, the organization can benefit from using Open Source Software by creating a new, highly customized website with a well-organized blog, maintaining multiple social media accounts with an Open Source social media manager, and by creating new videos with easy to use Open Source video production software. Utilizing Open Source Software to promote MUCC’s mission is cost-effective and helpful to an international movement aiming for a more inclusive computerized world for people and businesses. Web Making and Maintaining There are a number of Open Source web hosts available for individuals and businesses, which involve coding and non-coding software. For a simpler, non-coding web host, WIX.com or Weebly.com can provide template based drag-drop methods to creating basic websites. For MUCC, it would be necessary to purchase upgrades from a basic free website without a unique domain name to a higher echelon plan that provides a unique domain name, more storage, and unlimited bandwidth. Plans that provide these necessary qualifications start as low as $12 dollars per month, which is much less than what a professional web-making business would call for (WIX.com). If MUCC is already invested in coders, or would prefer to have a more personalized website, than an Open Source coding web-builder like Textpattern.com is the correct choice. Textpattern.com specializes in stylized texts and text organization ease. Considering a website that would be information heavy, having a clean, professional text style can increase traffic by MUCC members and possible newcomers, as well as promote the organization’s web-presence (Textpattern.com). While Textpattern.com cannot host a website, a web-host like WIX.com or Weebly.com can accommodate the use of Textpattern.com web-building on their websites. The use of Open Source web-creation software by MUCC can contribute to a progressive webpresence as well as help influence other organizations to help in the movement towards a less profit-driven software network. Furthermore, a more engaging and professional website can
legitimize MUCC’s stance towards hunting, fishing, and trapping rights through increased membership while providing clout with conservation decisions in Michigan. Blogging A clean and highly active blog can attract a different type of web audience to MUCC, which may in turn increase membership numbers. WordPress.com offers Open Source blog creating and maintaining software that promotes a professional image, easy to create and updatable posts, and free web-traffic tracking to stay up-to-date on blog views, comments, referrals, likes, search terms, video plays, and even number of clicks. According to Smashing Magazine, WordPress.com is, “the most famous and widely-used blogging platform” (Stansberry). Over 60 million blogs exist on WordPress.com worldwide, which adds to the proof of its effectiveness. Wordpress.com can offer MUCC an alternative to their current blogging platform with Open Source themes with easily maintained blog posts and effectively traced blog traffic. To create a unique domain name for a WordPress.com blog, it would cost slightly more than $8 dollars per month (WordPress.com). A WordPress.com blog can be maintained with many web-hosting sites, which would fit nicely with the aforementioned web-building Open Source Software. Again, the use of Open Source blogging software to promote the MUCC mission is wise from a cost-effectiveness standpoint, helpful for an international movement promoting widespread effective computer skills, and for the likelihood of increased membership rates, which can legitimize MUCC’s stance towards conservation strategies in Michigan. Video Production Effective video production can be a great asset for any organizations, as videos provide a quick and highly engaging connection with your audience. WeVideo.com is an Open Source video production website that allows for easy, timeline based video creation. Through MUCC’s Michigan Out-of-Doors University (Mood-U) video tutorials, WeVideo.com could become a viable option for MUCC staff to create effective how-to videos on whatever outdoor activity they please. Also, videos created to accompany blog posts or other website material could be useful for furthering audience engagement with MUCC events. A more engaged audience is more likely to connect with MUCC’s mission on a higher level. For businesses, WeVideo comes with 100 GB of storage and 3 hours of publishing time per user for a cost of $20 dollars per month total. WeVideo can publish videos in high definition 1080p as well for no extra cost. Furthermore, the Open Source site provides 900 sounds and music files along with the membership cost. In comparison to the cost of other video production software, like Final Cut Studio for $1,299.99, WeVideo can be a cost-effective method to creating engaging videos with the MUCC audience looking to learn more about Michigan’s outdoors or learn about MUCC events (WeVideo.com).
Social Media Management Possibly the most important aspect to connecting with younger generations; social media management and strategy can help MUCC stay current with the conservation news and audience opinion. With the Open Source social media management software Socioboard Core, MUCC can monitor the analytics of all used social media sites and manage them all on a single dashboard. Utilizing an inclusive system for MUCC’s social media voice can promote the organizations ability to connect with social media followers more closely while attracting new followers with increased likes, re-tweets, shares, and other free promotions by your current followers. Socioboard Core can also create reports for MUCC that can provide insight to how beneficial certain social media strategies are in attracting more attention (Socioboard.org). Open Source Software for the Future Moving forward as an organization, MUCC can get ahead of the international movement towards Open Source Software by utilizing its cost-effective web presence boost today. Utilizing Open Source Software can create buzz around MUCC, allowing for greater member engagement and new member possibilities. Furthermore, money saved by using Open Source Software can be re-invested into the people that make MUCC work, or into projects that further the goals of MUCC instead of profit-driven software production companies. MUCC can be the cutting-edge conservation organization in Michigan, and be the example that other organizations follow in the future.
Works cited Socioboard.org. “Meet the World's #1 Open Source Social Technology Enabler!” Web. 1 July 2015. Stansberry, Glen. "10 Weblog Engines Reviewed – Smashing Magazine." Smashing Magazine, 28 Aug. 2008. Web. 01 July 2015. Textpattern.com “Textpattern CMS – A Flexible, Elegant and Easy-to-use Content Management System.” Web. 01 July 2015. WeVideo.com. “Simplifying Business Video Marketing.” Video Editing Software for Marketing Your Business. Web. 1 July 2015. WIX.com. "Pricing Information, Coupons and Premium Upgrades | WIX." Web. 01 July 2015. WordPress.com. “WordPress.com: Create a Free Website or Blog." Web. 1 July 2015.
