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About My New Directory
It became clear to me over 2 years ago that Psych Central would have to change to keep up with the Web, or simply be taken down if it could not. I refuse to publish crap or outdated work. So I began planning on how to redesign the resources offered into a more user-friendly format, rather than these huge long lists which didn't cover any topic very well and were difficult to navigate. A Yahoo-like directory was the natural solution, and by going this route, allowed me to place all of the resources into a database. A database is much easier to manage and customize based your feedback and needs. It also means it is easier to find information, because it's arranged by topics -- the way most people think and look for information on the Internet today. You have a specific question in mind usually when you do research on the Net. For instance, "What's the best treatment for depression?" Now answering that question has become much easier with this new arrangement. People have already asked, "What happened to the list of support groups or mailing lists?" They're all there, just under each specific topical category. We need to do some fine-tuning here and there, and not every resource listed on the site is yet in the database, but we're working on it. I actually have a paid assistant helping me do most of this work, which is a lot of work! (That, by the way, is where the advertising money is spent; that and in a few months, on a new site hosting provider.) The best part of this whole reorganization is now I have a simple yet effective search engine on the site, too. That offers yet another way to find what it is you're looking for. You'll also notice some new features on the site as a result of this reorganization. One is the ability to see how popular various resoures are, so you can better gage whether it is something likely to be of interest to you. Another is the ability to rate a resource on a scale of 1 to 10 on how much you liked a particular Website or support group. Sharing your opinion with others helps them make decisions based upon a collective judgment on the site's quality. This is a system I pioneered on another Website, but one which I believe is better implemented here. I hope these changes represent an evolution of the original Psych Central site, started in January, 1995. We've come a long way in the past 5 1/2 years online, and I expect to be here for many years to come. I hope that with your help and support, you will make that possible. And remember, it really is all about you and helping you. If I'm not doing that here, then I'm not doing the job I set out to do. If that's the case, let me know, and I'll work hard to meet your needs.
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Site last updated: 10 Oct 2008
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