Twenty years after the Windhoek Declaration on press freedom

most popular stories, readers could
comment on issues and additional
photos and information could be
made available. In today’s terms it
is nothing exceptional, but a decade
ago it was ground-breaking for
small rural papers.
Once <strong>the</strong> website was finished,
<strong>the</strong> company started to look for
a few o<strong>the</strong>r projects to keep <strong>the</strong>
young designer busy. The need for
a booking system for adverts was
discussed. A system was needed
where marketers could book adverts
from any workstation and where
<strong>the</strong> central list was populated on
<strong>the</strong> fly. It needed to regulate <strong>the</strong>
complete workflow, from when <strong>the</strong>
advert was booked to when it was
placed on a page and eventually
invoiced. It had to include various
check mechanisms and also had to
generate reports on everything from
a client’s records to <strong>the</strong> instances
where too much discount was
allowed.
In 2004 <strong>the</strong> first version of AdBooker
was implemented. Like all <strong>the</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r
applications that followed, AdBooker
was designed as a website, which
meant it was not dependent on
<strong>the</strong> workstation’s operating system.
Any computer with a browser and
access to <strong>the</strong> server could log on to
<strong>the</strong> programme. Permissions could
be set up and modified, meaning
every user could only see what he
or she needed to see. The server was
linked to <strong>the</strong> internet and it became
“cloud-based”, <strong>years</strong> before such
applications became popular.
Shortly <strong>after</strong> AdBooker’s first
version was finished, work started
on similar applications. Press-Store,
an online file repository, followed.
This made <strong>the</strong> work of especially
<strong>the</strong> news editors much easier, as
large files could be received from
correspondents in a structured
manner.
The next project was DistriBooker,
a web-based system that regu-
lated <strong>the</strong> distribution aspects of
<strong>the</strong> newspapers. DistriBooker keeps
track of deliveries at <strong>the</strong> multitude
of delivery points and generates reports
on where surpluses or shortages
are experienced.
“Press freedom is
inevitably linked to
<strong>the</strong> newspaper owner
and manager’s ability
to survive in a tough
economy.”
Following a few more small projects,
work started on probably <strong>the</strong> most
complex project of all, Newsfiler.
This system controls <strong>the</strong> workflow in
<strong>the</strong> newsroom and is an extremely
powerful filing system. It allows
reporters to log into <strong>the</strong> system and
post <strong>the</strong>ir stories and photos. These
can <strong>the</strong>n be sub-edited and sent
through for proofing. Feedback can
be given throughout <strong>the</strong> process
and it also tracks changes to stories.
Once editing is finished, <strong>the</strong> story
is made available to <strong>the</strong> layout
artists. As is <strong>the</strong> case with <strong>the</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r
applications, Newsfiler generates
a variety of reports and is also an
extremely potent archive system.
The software that was developed
made an immense impact on our
business. It not only cut down on
losses, such as for missed adverts,
it also made us much more
productive. It probably helped to
keep us in business in difficult times.
Best of all, <strong>the</strong> development could
be done with a budget that would
not even attract <strong>the</strong> attention of an
accountant.
Section 2: Pluralism
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