Daniel Smith: Web Tech Possibilities for the New CenLamar

By Daniel Smith

Just throwing these out there:

• Volunteer Coordination

I came across this software, and it stood out immediately as it has all of the features that I had suggested in my original proposal to Lamar. Tendenci(R) makes software that allows websites to have open volunteer sign-ups with a variety of administrative controls. Anyone can see the number of volunteers that have already committed, and it includes calendar features. The interface seems pretty smooth. Cenlamar could get to the point where this type of technology would be handy when multiple groups are trying to recruit volunteers for specific times.

• Mapping

I read a lot of New Orleans blogs. Maitri’s VatulBlog gave me a great idea. She has been working on the technical aspects of setting up a community website that maps crime in New Orleans. She settled with GeoPress for WordPress, detailed in this post, but in her previous post she lists some of the best open-source mapping software available, and most of it can be interfaced directly into a blog.

Perhaps the new hub of Cenla social activism could benefit from such a feature. Volunteer sites can be easily mapped, and as the community grows it would provide a quick graphic to see which areas of town are being overlooked. Habitat or the Food Bank could map its impact. The applications to open-source web mapping are limitless.