Launching a new web site is something like building a house. You start with an idea, commission an architect and contractors to design and build the thing, then move in. If only it were that simple.

By now, I hope you’ve had a chance to explore the new KWWL.com. No one would have dreamed that we’d launch our new site on a day when one of the biggest weather stories of the year took eastern Iowa by storm. The flood warnings forced us to launch in "severe weather alert" mode. You couldn’t miss the bright red background and "Severe Weather Alert" at the top of the home page. Behind the scenes, we worked very hard on Friday to enable important new features and fill the site with fresh content. When we’re reporting a major weather event or a very big breaking news story, there will be no doubt that it’s important and it’s happening right now.

On most days, the red banners at the top of the home page will be replaced by our normal KWWL.com blue background. When you see the color change, you’ll immediately know something big is happening.

Beyond the color changes at the top of the page, I hope it’s apparent that we’ve responded to a lot of comments from KWWL.com users and KWWL viewers when we built the new site. For example, we built a full-featured Storm Track 7 forecast center at the top of the home page because lots of people said weather is a number one priority. You’re just one click away from seeing animated Storm Track 7 radar. Not just a little image, either. You said you wanted it big enough to see detail. Now you have it.

We’ve also designed the site to feature the biggest, most urgent local news stories at the top of the page. Click on the story or the image to read more about those top stories. Our news content continues on our news page. Our "Metro" news page breaks down the news into our four major metro areas, to make things easier to find.

Speaking of making things easy, we used to get comments like "I saw this on the KWWL News at Noon, but can’t find it on our web site." In response, we’ve created the Blue Box - an easy-to-find place on the home page where you can find links you saw on television, learn how to get a copy of a story you saw on television, find a recipe or submit a community event. We’ve also created a "Tool Box" to help you make the most of the technical features of our new site.

I could go on and on about the features of the new KWWL.com, including the interactive photo and video feature called "Show and Tell 7." But I won’t. Instead, I’ll leave it to you to explore the site. Let us know what you like and what you want to see. Refining and adding features to the site will be a constant process.

We hope you like the new KWWL.com. Come on in. The door’s wide open.

Jon Okerstrom
KWWL News Director

Posted under From the Corner Office