Neowin

Neowin

File:Neologo.gif
Type of site	News
Owner	Neowin LLC.
Created by	Steven Parker & Marcel Klum
URL	http://www.neowin.net
Registration	Optional

Neowin.net is a technology news website that actively focuses on Windows, PCs, Mac and Linux. Neowin runs under the slogan, "Where unprofessional journalism looks better."

History

Neowin was started as a hobby in October 2000 by Marcel Klum and Steven Parker, known within the forums as "Redmak" and "Neobond" respectively, reporting news about the Windows XP alpha and beta release (then known as "Windows Codename Whistler").

Neowin has broken several stories, such as the leak of Windows 2000 source code onto the internet.

File:Nw.png

Neowin on 1st July, 2007 (Neowin Shift).

Significant Post Marks

July 19, 2006, surpassed the 5 million post mark at or around 6:30am Eastern Time.

October, 2006, surpassed the 6 million post mark.

July 27, 2007, surpassed the 7 million post mark at 3:12pm.

Versions

Swift

The hosting for Neowin was upgraded in December 2005, and Neowin version 3.9 was launched. This upgrade, codename "Swift", is a progression from the version 3 theme and introduces subtle visual differences as well as a major overhaul of the content management system. Its focus was on semantic XHTML and CSS technologies as well as replacing the outdated nested table design. The forum system was also upgraded to IPB 2.1.3 as part of this move.

Shift

On 1 July, 2007, Neowin developers updated the forum skin to Shift, along with a board update to IPB 2.3.1. This update gave the site the consistent look they had been planning for some time.

Initially it was denied that they were planning an upgrade to Shift in an attempt to make it a surprise for members, and although members suspected Shift was ready to be deployed, nothing was confirmed.

Unfortunately for the staff, the copyright notice and the ability to choose the Shift skin was noticed by members on their IRC channel during the update, and thus spoiling the surprise.

Audience

Neowin focuses its attention on advanced computer users and technology enthusiasts of all kinds, although it is comprised mainly of users of the Microsoft Windows operating system. It is worth noting, however, that it has active users of Linux- and Unix-based operating systems, including Apple's Mac OS X. Neowin also has its own operating system, based on Morphix Linux, currently being actively developed under the name of Shift Linux.

Moderation

The site is strictly moderated, at least relative to some other sites. Neowin does not allow personal attacks between members and flamewars are usually extinguished quickly. Users who do not follow the rules are generally warned several times before being banned from the site.

Site structure

File:Neowin Shift Forums2.png

Neowin Forums on 1st July, 2007 (Neowin Shift).

The website is composed of several areas which all provide different services:

News

There are three news sections that involve different areas of technology.

• Main - general news, featuring articles about various tech-related subjects;
• Gamers - news about both PC and console gaming;
• Software - features mostly Windows software, including updates and beta releases.

Articles and reviews

This part of the site contains content that is original to Neowin and not linked from other sites.

Forum and blogs

These parts of the website provide users an area to talk about technology and other topics.

The Neowin forums are Powered by Invision Power Board forum software. Neowin has an active technology forum consisting of 200,000 registered users (as of November 20, 2007) and over 7,270,912 posts. At its peak (June 26, 2007 at 21:40 GMT), Neowin's forum had as many as 5,675 users online simultaneously.

While the primary topics on Neowin are generally perceived as being Microsoft and Windows-centric, the forums have a large community for other discussions, including, but not limited to:

• Latest electronic technology: devices, gadgets, and other hardware.
• Customization and tweaking of Windows, Mac, and Linux systems.
• Console and PC gaming.
• Discussion of real world issues (politics, religion, philosophy).
• Hardware related topics, such as overclocking.
• Internet and Web Browser discussion, such as Opera, Internet Explorer and Mozilla Firefox.
• Sports and Automobile discussion.
• Linux and Mac technology discussion

The blog extension of the forum, which allows Neowin users to post things they find interesting in their own personal blog, was only recently introduced with the latest update to the website's forums (3.8). However, it should be noted that Blogs are currently only available for the forum staff and subscribers, and regular users cannot make their own.

Podcasts

In 2006, Neowin.net debuted its own podcast, branded the NeoCast. After copyright issues arose, the name was changed to the current NeowinCAST.

The NeowinCAST originated as a discussion based show centered around the video game industry (NeowinCAST Gaming Edition). The show was created by Paul Krevs and Todd Tanner. Weekly topics would range from newly released software patches to the latest gaming hardware. The show, however, was short lived and exited weekly production after only the fourth show.

Originally intended to expand on the NeowinCAST lineup, the NeowinCAST News Edition was also created as a weekly show. Early episodes featured host Paul Krevs and a discussion panel consisting of Shane Pitman, Christopher Vendemio, and Don Smith. As the name implies, the show would center around the latest news in the entire technology industry, with Paul leading the discussion while the other three participants shared their opinions on the subject matter. Paul soon left the show and Christopher took over the hosting duties. However, the NeowinCAST News Edition went on hiatus in September 2006 after commitment issues prevented the show from being done weekly. A consistent panel of hosts could not be found and the project was put on the side.

In January of 2007, the NeowinCAST News edition was brought back online with former NeowinCAST members Christopher Vendemio and Todd Tanner being joined by a new member, Rob Wright for episode 15. Returning to the former weekly schedule, the second version of the News Edition featured a slightly more light hearted vibe with deeper discussion and a greater willingness to go off on tangents. The show was also scaled back in length, shortening from an average of one hour to an average of forty-five minutes. Christopher has often stated this change in length was done to help cut back on editing time, thus helping to guarantee a weekly release.

Neowin have now released an RSS Feed, which can be used to track the weekly podcast releases in your favourite RSS reader.

Software contribution

Neowin has also been known for helping people to release new freeware programs to the public. Some examples of programs that started life on Neowin are:

• AutoPatcher
• HardDriveIndicator
• WeatherAlert
• Neowin UXTheme Multi-Patcher
• Nexus Messenger
• Neowin Shift Linux

External links

• Neowin.net main website
• Neowin.net forums
• Interview with founders of Neowin
• #neowin IRC channel (Requires a Neowin account)
• NeoRequest (Neowin graphics work request system)
• Unofficial Guide to Neowin