How to run a better bulletin board."The number one issue today," says Jim Fitzgerald James F. Fitzgerald (born March 1926 in Janesville, Wisconsin) is an American businessman and philanthropist. He is best known as a former owner of the Milwaukee Bucks and the Golden State Warriors, both NBA teams. Fitzgerald attended Notre Dame ('47). , manager of technical support for Borland's language products, "is getting information into the hands of users." And one of the best ways to provide such information, he argues, is through an electronic bulletin board system. Unlike "one-to-one one-to-one adj. 1. Allowing the pairing of each member of a class uniquely with a member of another class. 2. Mathematics " phone support, he says, bulletin boards help users tap into knowledge that is otherwise lost "on isolated hard drives, on sticky Refers to an application or service that keeps you on a Web site. For example, stock quotes, glossaries, educational material, chat rooms and similar offerings give you reason to remain on the site, while it allows the company to show you more ads or proprietary messages. notes, and in the brains of engineers." But setting up a bulletin board isn't as easy as it seems, Fitzgerald concedes. To succeed, a bulletin board has to attract a critical mass of enthusiastic users and "provide a comfortable environment for people to talk to each other." We asked Fitzgerald for advice on how to create a successful BBS (1) (Bulletin Board System) A computer system used as an information source and forum for a particular interest group. They were widely used in the U.S. : * Emphasize support for advanced users: Bulletin boards typically attract high levels of message activity from users of technical products like languages, Fitzgerald points out. Borland gets roughly 1,000 telephone support calls a day for its database products and only 300-400 calls for language products, but both products generate the same level of BBS activity--1,000 messages per week. BBS users "want more than access to sophisticated engineers--they want to get in touch with people who understand business applications as well." * Stay involved: One benefit of a bulletin board is that it reduces a company's overall tech support burden. Fitzgerald says Borland only has to answer 5%-10% of the questions that users post on the BBS. But Borland technicians regularly monitor all messages for accuracy and completeness. "To set up a bulletin board and then not be there will doom it to failure," he says. Almost every engineer in our language group participates on a bulletin board in some way." * Reward active users: "People really enjoy sharing their knowledge," Fitzgerald says, but Borland also tries to reward expert BBS users who provide the most generous on-line help. These users become part of a "Team Borland" group that receives free software, access to beta versions A pre-shipping release of hardware or software that has gone through alpha test. A beta version of software is supposed to be very close to the final product, but, in practice, it is more a way of getting users to test the software in the first place under real conditions. , and occasional reimbursement Reimbursement Payment made to someone for out-of-pocket expenses has incurred. for connect charges. Borland also flies Team Borland members out to California California (kăl'ĭfôr`nyə), most populous state in the United States, located in the Far West; bordered by Oregon (N), Nevada and, across the Colorado River, Arizona (E), Mexico (S), and the Pacific Ocean (W). every year for a party and meeting. "Whatever we do for them, it's almost not enough. They're the people who make it all happen." * Have a public presence: Even though Borland generates more than enough message traffic to justify operating its own in-house In-house In the context of general equities, keeping an activity within the firm. For example, rather than go to the marketplace and sell a security for a client to anyone, an attempt is made to find a buyer to complete the transaction with the firm. BBS system, Fitzgerald says the company prefers to operate bulletin boards through services like CompuServe and Genie, because these services attract high-volume message traffic. CompuServe is a particularly good BBS environment: "The depth of knowledge there is far greater than on any bulletin board I've seen. If I had my way, I'd like the whole planet on CompuServe." (Borland does operate an in-house BBS, but users rely on it chiefly for downloading downloading - download and uploading files, Fitzgerald notes.) * Don't censor censor (sĕn`sər), title of two magistrates of ancient Rome (from c.443 B.C. to the time of Domitian). They took the census (by which they assessed taxation, voting, and military service) and supervised public behavior. your message traffic: "You can't even allow the perception that you censor anyone's messages," says Fitzgerald. When customers post lists of bugs in Borland products, for example, Borland may attach explanations and comments, but doesn't try to remove the lists. People love it when you're forthright forth·right adj. 1. Direct and without evasion; straightforward: a forthright appraisal; forthright criticism. 2. Archaic Proceeding straight ahead. adv. 1. and honest." Jim Fitzgerald, manager of technical support/language products, Borland International, 1800 Green Hills Rd., Scotts Valley, Calif. 95066; 408/439-1247. |
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