The very first Morning Java video, way back in 2015, consisted of little more than a person talking in front of a shelf full of bobbleheads.
And five years later, it's advanced to ... well, two persons talking in front of a couple shelves of bobbleheads. Or at a field or a rink or wherever.
So, yeah ... we'd like to take it further.
We've spent the past week, and we'll continue to spend the coming week on completing a plan to reconstruct Java, both with the format and the actual studio, in hopes of giving it a fresh, vibrant look and feel. Once that's done, we'll film the first episode by week's end and have it up for you to see on Tuesday, March 17.
It'll still be two of us, and there'll still be bobbleheads, but we'll be taking an idea that Dave Molinari recently suggested of a point-counterpoint feature and applying it to Java. There'll be three segments with three different sets of people and, if we plan properly and stay true to ourselves, you'll see a lot of genuinely different viewpoints.
Being genuine is really the key. This won't be one of those scenarios where there's a faux or forced argument. If it turns out we agree, so be it. But we'll at least enter with concepts where it's known that we bring varying viewpoints and see where it goes, even if that's in super-happy-land:
We'll put out a new full episode every Tuesday morning, and we'll strive to make it timeless enough that it won't feel dated after a given game or move, the way the current Javas expire almost immediately. We'll also offer them in podcast form, so you can listen while you drive to/from work.
Next is where you come in. We'll welcome your feedback, as well, to what we discuss, initially in comments, and then possibly to read aloud on the following week's episode. That'd make Java more interactive than it's ever been, which would only add to the fun.
If it sounds like I wasn't happy with Java of late, that's accurate. But I tend to be a positive person and would rather focus on making it right. Excited about this.
PITT FOOTBALL COVERAGE
We'd promised for months that our Pitt football coverage was going to begin in conjunction with the Blue-Gold Game, which this year will take place April 11 at Heinz Field. But we'll actually bump that up a bit and, instead, open up with Hunter Homistek's overview/outlook of the 2020 season to be published March 16. He'll cover the spring practices from there, Blue-Gold and all else that follows.
Hunter was at practice yesterday, actually, beginning to get acclimated:
Some sights and sounds from Day 1 of practice in pads for @Pitt_FB here at the Rooney Complex. Check out that Davis Beville DIME to kick off the clip. 👀 pic.twitter.com/3kvWspDzEF
— Hunter Alek Homistek (@HunterAHomistek) March 6, 2020
As ever, we're grateful to our Pitt readers for contributing to get the coverage back, but the process doesn't end there. Read, comment, share ... the whole deal. Every little bit helps.
NEW MENU ITEMS
On our desktop/laptop site, you'll find a few new minor-league teams and additional colleges listed in the menu. The minor-league teams are all those within an hour or so drive of Pittsburgh, and the colleges are somewhat in the same category while making an exception to add Penn State because of the number of alumni here.
This is part of preparing for the new app/site, which we hope will be a portal to all teams, all colleges of interest to local sports fans. It's not complete. It's not conclusive. If you see that we've missed one, let us know below.
NEW APP UPDATE
Lots more behind-the-scenes work, most of it concentrated on the entirely new commenting platform.
We'll be offering a couple of new features within that, notably an alert button that allows you to be notified -- if you choose -- when someone replies to a given comment, including your own. (Yeah, we appear to have that now, but it's a mess.) There'll likely be a couple ways you'll know if you missed something, but more on that down the road.
The other new feature will be a reporting button. It's a shame it's reached the point of so many users complaining about relatively few, but that's the nature of a community as large and vibrant as the one we're lucky to have. Not everyone will be civil. Not everyone will be able to make a good point in anything less than 40 or 50 comments per thread. So ... yeah, here we are.
This way, rather than us policing the place, you can basically do that yourselves. Enough comments from a user get reported, and we'll take action, like simple math. Or, if it's really bad, we'll get rid of it that much faster by being made aware.
MILITARY DRIVE TO 1,500: 287
Josh DeNinno, our friend at Moon Golf Club, is challenging our subscribers to step up with 1,500 veteran subscription purchases in 2020, commemorating his course's 15th anniversary. And in the three weeks since he's done so, our count is already at 287, including 16 bulk purchases.
We've obviously got a very long way to go, but there's been a great early reaction to our having reduced the cost of these to half-price, now $19.99 for an annual, as we've done with other gift subscriptions. On top of that, Moon Golf Club will match 30 each month, beginning with this one.
Let's do this. Here's where.
Or, if you’re interested in making a bulk purchase, please email me directly: DK@DKPittsburghSports.com
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