Capitol Fax.com - Your Illinois News Radar

Question(s) of the day

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Illinois

* Question 1: How often do you access this blog via your “smart” phone, if ever? …Adding… Which smart phone do you use?

* Question 2: Is there a particular smart phone-ready, etc. news site that you particularly like which we could use as a model here? Explain.

With the legislative session kinda over, I’m about to embark on a total revamp of this site. I saw tons of lobbyists, staffers, lawmakers, etc. accessing the blog via their phone during session. Conversations in the past few days have often gone like this…

Lobbyist, staffer, etc: “What’s new?”

Me: “35 House Dems voted for Senate tax plan in caucus five minutes ago.”

Lobbyist, staffer, etc: “I know. I saw it on the blog. What’s new since then?”

Me: “It’s only been 5 minutes! lol”

So, naturally I’m wondering if this smart phone usage is also happening a lot outside the Statehouse. The mobile revamp will just be one part of the reconstruction, so let’s stick to that topic right now. We’ll get to the rest in time. Thanks.

posted by Rich Miller
Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 11:14 am

Comments

Did you really say, “lol?”

I use an old blackberry… I don’t have a particular site as a model, but I don’t like having to go to a different page for each story, as my phone is too slow.

The easiest solution (for me) would be to have a full post RSS feed. I know you make more money with subscriptions when you have people visiting the site, but the full post RSS would be huge.

Comment by dave Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 11:20 am
I should have expanded on that last sentence… the full post RSS feed would allow me to access it via Google Reader (or another good mobile RSS reader) on my phone.

Comment by dave Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 11:22 am
I don’t currently have a smart phone (at least not one with all features enabled) but have been leaning that way. I become a free agent cell phone user in July, and if this site was available on a cell it would probably cinch me. So, having said that, I can offer nothing constructive about a potential model site.

Comment by Vote Quimby! Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 11:23 am
I have the new Curve with the wireless and sometimes with the graphics heavy environ, it can really slow down my phone, I’m switching to the mobile only site for now, but I think if you had a straight m.capitolfax.com with less graphics, it would work much better……..

Comment by I'm just saying, Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 11:23 am
Q1: Never.

Q2: No idea.

I wait for something to break or break down before I get anything new.

By the way, does anyone know how to responsibly get rid of video tapes (unless anyone wants half-destroyed Disney movies and old Barney episodes).

Comment by wordslinger Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 11:27 am
I have a Blackberry 9000 (Bold) and it seems like viewing the site via my phone is problematic in two ways. The first problem is the ads/newsfeed severely shrink the viewable area (this can be fixed by viewing the page in “column view” but you have to reload the page). Secondly, I have a hard time getting the password to work on protected posts. Sometimes I have to enter it 3 or 4 times, I have no idea why.

As for “phone ready” sites, I think the mobile versions of the WSJ and Chicago Tribune work pretty well, as do the mobile versions of ESPN and Gawker. Good luck with the redesign.

Comment by Jimmy87 Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 11:27 am
my smart phone usage varies, but it would be great if i could include a cap fax widget on my iGoogle.

Comment by soccermom Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 11:28 am
I have a Palm Treo and use your mobile site a lot for updates. It’s especially helpful when you use twitter to let folks know you’ve got an update on the site.

I was on my boat last weekend keeping up with the legislative train wreck.

I like the Mobile Politco site as a guide.

Comment by Jeff Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 11:28 am
iphone and I access the site about 4 or 5 times a day on depending on how busy work is or what I have to do on my train ride.

Comment by OneMan Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 11:30 am
Rich,

I think there is a market for a Capfax iPhone app. There are enough legislators and staff alone who would probably pay enough to justify your cost to build the app. You could potentially incorporate LIS data with your blog so that legislators and staff would have access to your information as well as an easy way to look up bill information.

Comment by Anon Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 11:30 am
I also have problems with the password working on my blackberry.

Comment by dave Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 11:30 am
I get a text every time you tweet, so I visit the site via tinyurl as many times a day as you tweet.No specific website that’s good- although I’ve never had a problem reading capfax as it is now.

Comment by TTL, III Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 11:31 am
I check the mobile version of the blog regularly via my blackberry in and out of the statehouse. It does the trick quick nicely. I like the NYtimes site a lot, but I actually use my blackberry primarily for e-mail and checking the blog. If there was a Cap Fax app that could be downloaded so it can be more than just text (e.g. see the videos which I cannot do via the mobile cap fax blog) but streamlined for mobile use, that would be cool. I bet you could get some eager college student to throw one together for you.

Comment by montrose Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 11:34 am
Q1: at least 5 times daily
Q2: an iPhone app would be great

Comment by Pek Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 11:35 am
Agreed — an iPhone specific CapFax app would be quite useful (but limited, of course, to iPhones).

If you want to look at quick and easily viewable phone app interfaces, I *highly* recommend looking at the Digg interface. Obviously, this blog is structured differently — we’re not “digging” stories up in popularity — but the mobile interface (as well as the normal, web-based interface) is slick and clean and minimizes round trips to the server (making it quite quick on any phone.)

Comment by Macbeth Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 11:36 am
I’m aware of the Blackberry password problem, and it will be addressed, so let’s move along from that.

The Blackberry problem is one reason why so many of the weekend updates were not password protected.

Comment by Rich Miller Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 11:38 am
BTW –

Link to Digg:

http://www.digg.com

Note the ability to view the original stories and the ability to view comments.

Comment by Macbeth Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 11:40 am
Yes, I do check on my phone.

One thing that would be helpful is the index of recent posts other than at the bottom - if there are lots of comments you have to do a lot of scrolling to get down to recent posts.

P.S. If you actually said “lol” verbally in conversation, you might be spending too much time online.

Comment by Motorola Q Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 11:41 am
For what it is worth, I can get the password to work if I plug it in, hit ’submit,’ then ‘refresh’ the page. Why that works, I have no idea.

Comment by montrose Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 11:41 am
1. Infrequently, but I would do it more if it were easy to read.
2. WSJ and Forbes both use the same app for BB that is absolutely brilliant. Makes it really easy to read stories, and makes it really easy to then bookmark them to sites like del.icio.us. My WSJ usage has gone through the roof in the months since I found their app.

Comment by Vlad Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 11:44 am
I use my iPhone several times a day to catch up.

I like how the NYT and WSJ have their iPhone apps set up. I have them side by side.

Too, check out this link– www.bravenewcode.com. They have something called “WPtouch.” They say they can transform a “WordPress blog into an iPhone app-like experience when viewed from an iPhone.” I have no idea if your blog is wordpress or not…but food for thought…

Comment by Blue in DuPage Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 11:46 am
Thanks for looking into a fix for the Blackberry password protected post issue. Not a fan of the multiple columns, but I know you have to sell your ad space. Tribune’s mobile site is pretty good, as is NYT’s. I’m just glad to be able to access the site from wherever - especially once the password starts working!

Comment by phocion Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 11:46 am
I am a dinosaur when it comes to accessing the internet or even texting on the cellphone. I rarely do either and certainly don’t do any web surfing on the telephone other than occasionally checking email.

That being said I think some of the devices like the new Blackberrys or Iphones are far superior in terms of ease of use and speed and will make on the go blog posting much more common.

Comment by Stones Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 11:49 am
I use a Blackberry Curve. It would be nice if you could model it after Goodard’s site, politicalwire.com. The Opera browser on Blackberry allows a person to see the full site, so that is a nice feature. However, a better mobile site would be nice.

Comment by UISstudent Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 11:49 am
Just keep it kind of simple, also does anyone have access to an electronic version of the Illinois Blue Book? Figured that might make a nice iphone application…

Comment by OneMan Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 11:56 am
I’m a user of your Twitter feed and visit throughout the day on my Iphone. I think an Iphone app would be a big plus. My current favs are the WSJ and the Free RSS Reader (it’s highly customizable).

Comment by farmboy Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 12:07 pm
Treo 700p — haven’t yet but it’s a good idea! (sometimes when I hotsync I lose all my newer bookmarks — the Treo’s browser stinks but maybe the new Pre model will better)

Comment by lake county democrat Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 12:13 pm
1: About every other hour.

2: I know this isn’t technically a news site, but ESPN mobile is the most user-friendly mobile site in my opinion.

For what it’s worth, I never have problems with the protected posts on my sidekick.

Comment by Obamarama Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 12:14 pm
I will look from time to time. Recent IPhone user

NYT is good, I don’t spend a lot of my time on the road on non-work related activities, so no other suggestions

You can try greendisk.com to recycle VHS tapes

Comment by Plutocrat03 Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 12:19 pm
my blackbery just doesn’t seem to work well witht he site. i try, but it takes for ever at times and you’ve touched ont he password issue.

I’d check it more if it were easier.

Illinois Carry has some neat backend on the Board/forum. my favorite is once logged in, I can simply search for new posts since my last visit.

it’s not bad on a blackberry, but I’m leaning towards an iphone

Comment by Todd Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 12:21 pm
Yes, I check on my iphone and I’m only at the statehouse on average once a week.

I check four to five times to see if you on to anything interesting…

I don’t tend to use iphone ready sites because they tend push information rather than allow me to find exactly the kind of thing I’m looking for.

Comment by Greg B. Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 12:23 pm
Access a couple times a day; Blackberry Storm with Opera Mini browser. Works fantastic; Opera allows you to access the whole page, which with the Storm’s nice wide screen is what I want.

Comment by Tommy Boy Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 12:26 pm
The site is tough on the Blackberry Curve. The most annoying thing is that I often start on page 1 of 4 (or 5 or 6) and have to really hunt around for the post. I think getting rid of most of the sidebar content is the easiest solution. Keep an ad if you need to and a few links at the bottom, but axe the rest.

STLToday.com (shockingly) has a nice mobile site.

Comment by aaron Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 12:26 pm
Never access my blog by phone.

Comment by Steve Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 12:27 pm
I use a BB Bold, and check in to the mobile site periodically throughout the day. To keep up on Twitter, I use the Ubertwitter app.

The mobile version brings up the latest post, with no graphics (except for images in the post). Wish it played Flash, but that’s a different issue. Prefer the Politico model with all the headlines onscreen.

For what it’s worth, one workaround I found for the BB password issue: after you enter the password and hit ‘enter’, click the ‘last 10 posts’ link. The protected content usually comes up.

Comment by Getting more mobile Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 12:37 pm
Blackberry curve. I use it only if I am isolated becuase of the slow access; plus it tends to dump the sutff on the sides into the bottom column which makes the screen position jump right as the load finishes.

as for a layout, I like the CNN mobile news site. The site detects if you are detecting from a mobil phone so you just use the standard cnn.com, no need for a new address.

Comment by Ghost Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 12:43 pm
Blackberry Pearl. LOVE the Twitter integration. It’s awesome.

I must say - I’m pretty happy with the mobile set-up now. The fact that the mobile site is graphics-free means it loads pretty quickly, especially if you’re on the wireless in the Statehouse.

Comment by JP Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 12:54 pm
I access CF on my iPhone. It works fine. I think the NYTimes app for iPhone is a bad model, it’s the buggiest app I have on my phone. I use bloglines feed reader & click over if the partial feed is interesting. I don’t follow you on twitter bc I don’t need up to the minute info. The herald & review used to have a decent mobile site, but it seems to be gone now.

Comment by Rayne of terror Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 1:00 pm
I have a Palm Treo 800w. For some reason I only get the blue background, and nothing else. I have no problems with any other web page, but I cannot get the CapFax for unkown reasons.

Comment by How Ironic Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 1:02 pm
1) a few times a week on a Palm Treo 700p. CapFax blog goes straight to a mobile version so I don’t have any trouble with it.

2) This is the only site worth checking on a cell phone. I check a lot of other sites on a laptop or desktop.

Comment by ValleyGal Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 1:07 pm
Q1: Twice or thrice a week, Treo 755p.

Comment by Ken in Aurora Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 1:14 pm
I like the ESPN site a lot. What I want to do is have the last few stories displayed, then have menu links for the rest of the blog stories, as well as separate menu items so you can check the automated news feeds. The ESPN model is almost perfect for that.

Thanks.

Comment by Rich Miller Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 1:15 pm
I’m constantly on my smartphone at the capitol, and often use it to look at your blog. The only time it’s ever a problem is, when you have a lot of embedded videos, my phone might freeze up. Any upgrades geared towards predominately mobile users would be much appreciated.

Comment by Dog the Bounty Hunter Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 1:20 pm
I use a smart phone with Windows Mobile as the operating system. The regular web site only gives a blank background page on IE in Windows Mobile, so the mobile link is invisible on my mobile device. The regular site also doesn’t have an automatic redirect to the mobile site, which WM IE relies on for many popular sites. I’m used to that redirect when I call up other sites, so the net result is that I don’t access Cap Fax on my smart phone.

Comment by muon Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 1:23 pm
What is the CapFax “Mobil” address? I would be interested to bookmark that on my phone. Sounds like I’m having the same issue as Muon.

Thank You.

Comment by How Ironic Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 1:33 pm
I check the site a couple times a day on my iPhone, even more when I’m traveling. I didn’t even know there was a mobile version until it was mentioned here. I just checked it–YIKES. Definitely time for an upgrade.

I like the SouthSideSox mobile site. And Google’s is pretty easy to navigate, too. The Trib iPhone app is as cumbersome to me as its full version–too busy, not logical, etc.

Comment by Lefty Lefty Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 1:34 pm
Whereas 10 years ago my parents read the tribune and the suntimes in the morning for news I read this and then espn.com for sports. I give you credit for not being one of those sites that makes you click around a lot and so people are just able to read everything you’ve got in one large scroll rather than that obnoxious after the jump thing.

You also might consider something like those cnn, newsalerts when breaking news happens. The tribune does it, but since this is better than their product it might be good say for instance if you have a new post on something or a big story breaks.

Have a nice break.

Comment by shore Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 1:39 pm
shore, you can sign up for automated web alerts to your cell by clicking that icon in the upper right… Click here

to those who couldn’t find the mobile site, it’s clearly listed at the top of the main page, just under the header. Not sure how much more clear I could make it.

Comment by Rich Miller Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 1:41 pm
I use the Blackberry Curve and access the Cap Fax on my way to and from the office on the train, as well as while driving back and forth downstate.

I also access WSJ and NY multiple times daily. The WSJ allows you to access an entire article without having to go from page to page as you do with the NYT. The downside is that it takes a bit longer to download the WSJ articles and if you aren’t on a fast network that can be a bit slow.

Comment by Just the Facts Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 1:42 pm
Rich, all your news is so interesting I skip all of the other links on the site! (Come to think of it, I think I asked you a while ago how to find previous day’s stories. This site is so responsive that I didn’t even have to look around myself. You’re like 24-hour tech support during the business day.)

Plus I never had a smartphone before our Apple overlords bequeathed the wondrous iPhone upon us so I never used mobile websites. Some like Google and SSSox default to the mobile version so I am familiar with them.

Comment by Lefty Lefty Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 1:50 pm
As I indicated earlier, I can find the mobile address, but only from my laptop. The link is invisible (as are all the links and content) if I go to thecapitolfaxblog.com in my smart phone. By comparison, if I enter espn.com on my mobile device, the espn website detects that I’m running mobile and automatically redirects me their mobile site.

Comment by muon Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 1:53 pm
What is a smart phone?

I figured out how to add feeds to my desktop about two weeks ago. Please don’t harsh my sense of accomplishment.

Comment by yinn Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 1:55 pm
The reason that I don’t have automatic forward is that it kills my ability to post from my iphone. Long story, but auto-forward is out of the question on this version.

Comment by Rich Miller Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 1:58 pm
the site is pretty easily viewed with my blackberry bold and I check it pretty regularly during session. my only complaint is that sometimes the password doesn’t work. not sure if there is anything that can be done on your end. about that.

Comment by L.S. Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 2:00 pm
Cap Fax Mobil URL:

https://capitolfax.com/wp-mobile.php

Put it in your phone “favorites” and viola.

Comment by How Ironic Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 2:07 pm
You need a home page click through or flash that just says

Welcome to the Capitol Fax Blog

Bite Me!

then transition on to the main site.

Add a few mobile games, like whats in Rich’s beard; or maybe explecitive driven mad libs for government….

Comment by Ghost Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 2:32 pm
OK, I get the iphone posting situation, and I get that I could type the mobile url directly into my favorites (it’s been there for a while), but that doesn’t explain why I don’t get anything at all on my windows mobile device from the main page.

On the format of the mobile page, the improvement that would help me the most is to exclude the comments from the top story from the mobile home page. At times, it takes a lot of scrolling to get past them and find the list of other recent posts.

Comment by muon Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 2:48 pm
1 - every day I am at the capitol, 3x or more. iPhone works well.
2 - the AP news app is nice. It would be great to have LIS info like Anon 11:30 said. Congress+ or California in Your Pocket from iTunes app store are good examples

Comment by mj Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 2:48 pm
===the AP news app is nice.===

And it’s free. I thought the AP was worried about everybody stealing their content? They’re giving it away!!! lol

Just sayin…

Comment by Rich Miller Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 2:50 pm
iPhone. many times every day, especially from the road.

CapFax postings work well; appreciate the “On the Blog today” feature. often read news feeds but slow loading of feeds can delay the overall blog page refresh. lately use TwitterFon to track hot issues - works very well.

as for phone alerts, i did not have good experience with that. the alerts come hours after you have posted. Twitter is instantaneous.

Comment by LG Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 3:30 pm
@LG

I had to cancel the updates as well. My problem was opposite. I got them literally every 5 minutes non-stop. I couldn’t take it.

Comment by How Ironic Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 4:12 pm
Agreed — dump the old-fashioned sidebar content. No one needs news feeds via another site. If we want the feeds, we’ll subscribe to them directly. The news feeds are very 1999′ish (sorry — harsh but true).

The idea of “portal” sites is outdated. What matters now is content — and the content is in the body of the page — not on the sidebar.

Comment by Macbeth Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 4:13 pm
===the news feeds are very 1999′ish (sorry — harsh but true).===

The news feeds stay because I like them and so do many others. No debating that point.

=== What matters now is content — and the content is in the body of the page — not on the sidebar.===

That’s content. Every one of those stories links to content.

I suppose you’d tell Google News that they’re a massive failure because you can get news stories there? HuffPo is a dinosaur? You gotta be kidding me, man. Aggregation is the big thing now (check sj-r’s little page for even more proof), and we were doing it before most.

Comment by Rich Miller Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 4:21 pm
Also, the “content” argument is what’s really 1990s, dude. Back when sites had none.

Comment by Rich Miller Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 4:30 pm
I have an iPhone. I found myself checking for updates off the phone a lot this year and it worked really well.

Comment by Anon Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 4:31 pm
1.) Probably 5-12 times a day I check the site on myBlackBerry 8700g.
2.) I use the WSJ mobile reader app for the BB. Also, instapaper.com. Other than that, not many other sites have mobile versions that I use.

Comment by Kiyoshi Martinez Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 4:38 pm
If they are in session then I am checking this site 3 -4 times an hour while I am in Springfield. Couldn’t live without it down there and it works great. If I am not in Springfield then I am on my laptop all day and this site is my home page. Then I maybe check it on my Treo 680 only once on the way to the office and once back home.
The ESPN site is pretty good except sometimes they send you into continuous loops and its hard to get back to the home page. I also agree with an earlier poster about the video feeds. They not only slow down my Treo but also my laptop on days like yesterday when you had a whole bunch of video.

Comment by Been There Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 5:20 pm
subscribe for text message updates sent to your phone. (ad revenues….for you, time saver for me!)

Comment by neato! Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 5:35 pm
===
Also, the “content” argument is what’s really 1990s, dude. Back when sites had none.
===

Nope. Portal sites are dead. What matters is what *you* post (which is always great), your links to the primary sources, and the content of the comments. That’s it — that’s what matters.

The feeds bulk up the site, slow down the site, and aren’t necessary. I know you like them. That’s fine — it’s your site. But what the feeds do is considerably lengthen the page load. There’s no need for it — especially when we can all subscribe to the feeds outside of your blog.

Again — I love this site. But it’s one thing I’ve observed over the years.

I suspect this is an agree to disagree point.

Comment by Macbeth Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 6:13 pm
I use a Blackberry 8830, I read the site on the train, at lunch, in meetings…probably read it more on the BB than on the laptop.

I like The Hill’s mobile version, can’t think of any others off the top of my head

Comment by John in Chicago Tuesday, Jun 2, 09 @ 6:44 pm
blackberry, every day.

Comment by anon Wednesday, Jun 3, 09 @ 8:29 am