As you've no doubt reasoned from our last couple of posts, the last couple of months were, well, busy. In fact the last couple of years developing this project have been exciting, interesting and, at times, frantic. The challenges in managing the workload over the last couple of months underscored two things that have been clear for the past year and a half.
1 — There has been a fantastic, positive response to all aspects of the project from across the design community.
2 — It's very difficult to keep all the parts of the site running smoothly and updated frequently by relying on such a small group of people to keep it alive.
So with the launch of 100 2.0 we're hoping that we can solve point 2 by building on point 1. From the very outset the plan was for this to be a community project, and as it's developed we've been blown away by the generosity and engagement of everyone who's been asked to submit, donate or write. So now we're hoping to develop that even further, to get more people, more involved and keep the site alive with activity.
There's several ways you can help the project thrive and grow.
Volunteer
To help the site be the vibrant hub we all want it to be we need volunteers. We need people to help us to research, prepare and upload projects to 100past. We need people to interview, write and illustrate articles for 100present. And we need people to help us maintain, troubleshoot and develop the website.
We'd like to build a database of volunteers all willing to give a small amount of their time now and again. If you've a skill that you'd like to lend us, email us.
Submit/Subscribe
We've tried to make the submission and subscription costs as low and affordable as possible. If you're submitting projects, we hope you see the value in it and continue to subscribe where possible. While that cost is linked to 100future and the submission process, it really pays to keep the whole project on it's feet, so if you enjoy the site, even if you aren't submitting, we'd be grateful if you'd consider paying for an occasional submission or subscription by way of a donation.
In the name of transparency, the small amount of money this currently generates is being used to pay off the initial set up and development costs of the site, as well as ongoing site admin costs, hosting and keeping accounts in order. We'd initially hoped that the project would generate enough revenue to employ a part time administrator and that it may also be possible to organise an occasional event, exhibition or publication. This currently isn't a possibility, but we can always hope.
Suggest
The single trickiest part of the site to get up and running has been the historical archive. And it isn't for the want of trying. There are currently 30+ projects requested, and in most cases are being prepared. However it's become clear to everyone involved that the historical archive should be as vibrant and open a part of the site as 100present and 100future.
So we'd love to hear suggestions, and not just the obvious stuff but the hidden, the little known, the modest and the personal. If you've got a particular interest in 50's trad records, or 90's club flyers, 80's annual reports or 70's theatre posters. If you're a student writing your thesis on something you think is relevant. Get in touch and let us know, or even better, write us a couple hundred words about it and we'll publish it on 100present.
Use the site as a platform
Just completed a project that you're really happy with? Well we'd be honoured if you'd submit it to the archive straight away. An ongoing challenge last year was encouraging people to submit their work throughout the year. Doing this makes the site work better and keeps it engaging all year round. We know it's hard to find the time [we all love a deadline] but submitting your projects at the end of the year along with hundreds of others means that they disappear into the mass.
As the site started to come alive last year we found ourselves sending on peoples site profiles when we were asked about design talent, or our own when we were talking to new clients. We'd encourage you to do the same. One of the aims of the site is to help design in Ireland become more widely understood and accepted, disseminating the site and contents outwith the design community will really help this happen.