[Editors] MIT Editors' Club Minutes: February 2014

[Elizabeth A Thomson]

MIT EDITORS' CLUB

*Meeting Notes from February 13, 2014*

I was impressed by the turnout of some 15 folks at this meeting, despite the VERY inclement weather….Topics ranged from virtual tours of the campus to whether QR codes are still au courant. Here's more:

*Virtual Tours*

MIT Medical has a new virtual tour up on google+, and Ken Gagne, their web producer, shared some insights into how it was created and how much it cost. First, check it out<https://www.google.com/maps/place/MIT+Medical/@42.361194,-71.086636,3a,75y,94.2h,71.16t/data=!3m5!1e1!3m3!1spwAzvQhipmAAAAAGOx1GbQ!2e0!3e2!4m2!3m1!1s0x0:0x1c2f0b343a65ba0b!6m1!1e1?hl=en-US>.

Assorted Insights from Ken:

--You'll need to hire a professional photographer to create a "street view" of your place. There are several in the Boston area, but Ken used Josh Raab and was quite happy with him. Bonus for MIT Editors: Josh is now "in the MIT system," so there will be less paperwork if you'd like to hire him.

--Every "point" that's photographed costs $50; Ken paid a total of $700 for a virtual tour of Medical's first floor, including places like the pharmacy and the waiting room. You can add floors, but the ROI diminishes--fewer people go there.

--Faces and license plates are blurred out.

--Google requires a photo of at least one entrance.

For more information, contact  Ken<mailto:gagne at med.mit.edu?subject=Question%20about%20your%20virtual%20tour%20of%20E23>.

*Energy Communicators*

Interested in sharing and/or promoting MIT energy news? Send a note to Vicki Ekstrom of the MIT Energy Initiative. She'll sign you up for a listserv on the topic. (Vicki is at  vekstrom at MIT.EDU<mailto:vekstrom at MIT.EDU>.) You can also sign up for a daily news clipping service about energy news.

*Tim the Beaver*

Tim the Beaver, MIT's mascot, turned 100 this year. To celebrate, Communication Production Services (CPS) has created several illustrations that MIT folk can use across a variety of publications. The illustrations, which you can download, include four different poses. Tim's also available in three different colors. Go to the following site<http://web.mit.edu/graphicidentity/tim-the-beaver.html> for more information, and to read a list of do's and don'ts associated with using the illustration.

*What About Those QR Codes?*

Are QR codes still used? If not, what's the current Cool Thing? Jessica Jones of the Undergraduate Practice Opportunities Program wanted to know, and Stephanie Leishman of CPS had an answer. Specifically, Stephanie advised against listening to web "gossip" either for or against QR codes. Instead, track your QR codes to see if they're working. If they're not, dump 'em.

Also, per Ken G., here's a website that (tries to) create a QR code based on an uploaded image:

http://research.swtch.com/qr/draw. Play with it!

*Interesting Talk*

Kelly Courtney, the new Senior Communications Strategist for the MIT Skoltech Initiative, invites everyone to attend what promises to be a really interesting lecture<http://web.mit.edu/sktech/download/pdf/poster-isak-web.pdf> next Tuesday, Feb. 25, from 4-5 in the Bartos Theater of E15. Dr. Isak Froumin will talk about the history and future of higher education in Russia. Because it's open to the public, it occurred to me that some of you might want to tweet about it! If so, Kelly's twitter handle is @kellyacourtney

*Thank You*

Thank you to Vicki E. and colleagues at MITEI for hosting this meeting. And thanks to Kelly C. for providing baklava!

*Next Meetings*

Tuesday, March 11
38-466 (Electrical Engineering and Computer Science)

Wednesday, April 9
E38-254 (Communication Production Services)

Tuesday, May 13
NW17-218 (Plasma Science and Fusion Center)

Thursday, June 19
W98-302 (Resource Development)


Keep Warm, Everyone!

Elizabeth
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Elizabeth A. Thomson
Senior Writer
MIT Resource Development
Office of Communications
600 Memorial Dr., W98-300
617-258-5563, 857-756-9457
<thomson at mit.edu<mailto:thomson at mit.edu>>, giving.mit.edu<http://giving.mit.edu>
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