[Moonliner]

After my brief foray into hosting a vBulletin site, I’m now setting my sights higher and looking towards the next generation of online collaboration. Rather than take the traditional skunk-works approach to development where are the details are hidden until the full fledged project gets off the ground I thought I’d do the entire project out in the open and I do mean the entire project. So here is what I have so far.

I have some basic ideas that I think are worth perusing and I’d like to get your feedback on which one (if any) is a better use of time and resources. To start with here are my building blocks:

I have my choice of servers to use. For this project I can pick from several dedicated Windows or Linux servers. Each of them has plenty of disk space (100GB+) and bandwidth to use. Software wise I have been looking at Wiki, Sharepoint Services, PHP, .NET, etc. In essence it’s all fairly open at this point.

Big Idea #1 – The Living Guidebook
Looking at all the DLR/WDW information on this and other sites it is clear there is a plethora of information out there about the parks. Information is updated not weekly or daily but hour by hour. I would like to create a data driven site to gather and coordinate all this information in an easy to search format. For newbies they could go into a virtual park and get information on any specific attraction. This would include all the basic stuff like the back story, hidden mickeys, etc… but would also include any up to the second comments. For the more advanced user, the site would feature options like automated email notifications based on keywords (like subs or ‘soft opening’) a calendar, free photo album storage, room for files, private areas, etc…


Big Idea #2 – It isn’t Disney but…
For lack of a better term, I call idea #2 “The good ol’boys network”. This would be a more private “by invitation only” type of deal. The main idea would be to have a site dedicated to helping each member prosper in the business world. With the wide range of experiences and interests people here have there is some fairly fertile ground for development. Some of the “off the top of my head” features would be things like a capabilities database. A listing of expertise you (or the company you work for) has to offer. Looking for Web design, accounting, a fashion photographer, or help in setting up a corporate library? Check the database. The site would also include discussion forums a document library (sample resumes, business letters, etc.,..) and other work related stuff.


Big Idea #3 - Fill in the blank.
Have a better idea? Write it up and post it here.


Let me know what you think, and if you would like to help with this project.