We need to have the B&G Game televised for fans who can't get to the game... I mean can't NBC televise something like that? I think that'd be pretty nice...
Sean | Email | Homepage | 02.23.07 - 12:46 am | #

I've met Alan. So I feel the need to elaborate on the one thing that wasn't mentioned in this great BGS piece. Alan is a bigger Notre Dame sports fan than anyone reading this message (yes, even you.)

With that said, I really want all of us fans to understand the point here: UND.com is going headlong into every fan-friendly endeavor that it can. For example, every football fan that wishes that the Blue-Gold game were online must realize that in all liklihood Charlie Weis is the one who doesn't want the game out on the web for public consumpion. Would you want und.com going against the wishes of the Coach? Of course not.

So this is the world where Alan lives: he wants to give all ND fans everything he can, but of course he is dedicated to the will of the coaching staff.

Yet there are other concerns; things like the pre-game show, which is mentioned in the full version of the interview, get lackluster (internet) ratings. Before any of us go demanding new features, we should all check UND.com daily to make sure we aren't missing some of the best features.

Personnaly, as a South Bend native, I missed a great deal of the pregame content because I wasn't spending any time on the internet on Friday/Saturday of home game weekends.

Likewise, I doubt anyone reading this could honestly say they watched all the multimedia content provided on und.com this year.

The point is: we as fans can contribute. Bookmark UND.com, and visit daily. Check the daily multimedia updates. Watch the content provided. The more we collectively watch the content, then the more content we will get. As long as enough of us are logging on to generate ad revenue for Chevy, the service will be free (which, if the interview didn't hammer home, is quite unique at least at this time in college athletic websites.)

From what I know, the people working at UND.com (not that I'm an expert) are really dedicated to being the standard in college sports fansite content. At the very least, let's all realize that our clicks contribute to greater content and further free service.

God Bless us all.
Chris | Email | Homepage | 02.23.07 - 3:17 am | #

While I can't say I've watched *ALL* the content on UND.com, I've watched the vast majority of it. Their video offerings this past year have been a GODSEND to those of us Domers overseas. I can't wait until the games are online and I don't have to suffer the whims of Armed Forces Network.
Nate | Email | Homepage | 02.23.07 - 5:47 am | #

We used to enjoy the videos on the official site. The ND website was a regular visit for us before they "improved it". When trying to access their videos now, there is a pop up which says something to the effect:"sorry, we can only allow access on Internet Explorer; but when we do try to access it on IE,the official site still blocks our access. . We realize that many people can access it. We realize that it may be that our firewall is intercepting it (although there is no notice from the FW that such is the case).
A thread on the Irish Eyes member board a month ago indicated that others have a similar problem.
We have tried an email to the official site about a month ago, but there has been no response to this date.
If anyone has a suggestion, it would be appreciated.
Peace
John
ps do you have Alan's email address? Thanks
John Judge | Email | Homepage | 02.23.07 - 10:04 am | #

Agreed. Perhaps someone should mention to Alan et al that IE hasn't been a recommended application for years now, and there are quite a few of us who *gasp* are quite happy using Mac OS X Tiger. At least let Firefox access the site. Until they do - great content or not, und.com is dead to me.
Jonathan | Email | Homepage | 02.23.07 - 10:25 am | #

Jonathan, did you read the interview? Specifically this part?

That also leads to the PC vs. Mac controversy. When CSTV set out to design their multimedia player, they had to make a decision on who to serve - the 85-90% of the computer community using PC-based machines or the 10-15% using a Mac. We all know which way they decided to go. We are in the middle of developing a Mac-friendly page that will have all of our content (save for the live streams) available for those Mac users. It should be fully up and running by the 2007 football season, possibly even sooner.

"Recommended" or not, IE is still the dominant internet browser out there. And the decision to go with the IE player was CSTV's, not Notre Dame's.
Pat | Email | Homepage | 02.23.07 - 10:27 am | #

Pat,

Understood. Macs make up only 3 or 4% of the total computer market worldwide.

But one thing that CSTV and ND should maybe take into acccount as they weigh how to support Apple products: the people who own Macs tend to be in the very crowd they're looking to impress with advertising and marketing efforts. They're tech savvy, well-heeled, and willing to pay a premium for good stuff.

There's a reason that almost any site that sells stuff supports Macs.: Mac owners buy stuff.

If this UND content were available on a Mac, I'd be consuming it at a heroic rate. I'd even be willing to pay for access, if it were provided in a seamless way.

As it is now, Jonathan said it perfectly. This site is dead to me. But I'm ready to be their dream customer.

Hal
Hal | Email | Homepage | 02.23.07 - 11:38 am | #

Hal, I still think saying that the site "is dead to you" is a bit overdramatic. Nearly every single update, interview, and practice report for the Sugar Bowl was made available for Mac users. I thought that was a pretty good faith effort on ND's part to accommodate those who can't access CSTV's media player.
Pat | Email | Homepage | 02.23.07 - 12:04 pm | #

The life of a Mac user will continue to be full of disappointment for decades to come.

UND.com does a great job for the non-stubborn PC user.
Andrew | Email | Homepage | 02.23.07 - 12:51 pm | #

What I don't understand is, if they can make certain things accessable to us Mac users -- like Sugar Bowl coverage, why not everything? This completely baffles me. I was able to access every clip almost all the way through the season using Flip4Mac...then, all of a sudden, it ceased working -- as if they deliberstely changed things so that it no longer worked. Lastly, I don't understand the "IE only" issue. I can access ANY internet site on my OS X, just not "All-Access" Any help would be appreciated.
TXIRISH | Email | Homepage | 02.23.07 - 12:59 pm | #

Pat,

I don't mean "dead to me" in an overdramatic way. I meant it in a practical sense; I literally don't think of it as a source ND stuff.

When an online user consistently runs into technical roadblocks to what he wants to see, he tends to stop coming to a site. That's Web 101.

Obviously the site's not universally useless to Mac users. But by a hit-or-miss user experience convinces a large number of would-be loyal customers that it's not worth the trouble.

This isn't a whine. There's plenty of ND stuff out there to satisfy my healthy appetite. All I'm saying is that if they made it easy for us Mac users, we'll come.
Hal | Email | Homepage | 02.23.07 - 2:03 pm | #

TX Irish,

I'm sure UND's got an explanation for that, but users don't really care. If it works, they come. If it doesn't, they don't. Simple as that.

I'm not slagging the site. I think what they're trying to do is great, and I get the sense that they're working as hard as they can to solve some issues that are beyond their control. But incompatability is a big problem.

I would have bought the Air Force game from CSTV, but it wasn't available to Mac users. After seeing the highlights, I thought this: "I'm sort of glad I didn't buy it."

Hal
Hal | Email | Homepage | 02.23.07 - 2:10 pm | #

Fair enough Hal. And I do understand your point. My home computer runs Windows 2000 and I have never been able to get the All-Access features to work, even when I switch to IE from my preferred FireFox. Granted, it's likely an issue with my busted old computer, but I do understand the frustration of feeling a bit left out.

Hopefully important people will read this post and these comments and try to devote some more resources to help out those already working to make the site completely cross-platform compatible in the near future.
Pat | Email | Homepage | 02.23.07 - 2:26 pm | #

My feedback is that regardless of OS, the content is excellent. The interface is intuitive. I like hearing that podcasts are on their way -- having store and record play-by-play (to all games) would be an excellent feature.

I think the priority should continue be on improving the content, which is already excellent.
John - ND | Email | Homepage | 02.23.07 - 3:00 pm | #

If you're a mac guy (liker me) and you really want to watch this stuff, you can. If you have a new macbook, you can run the newest virtual pc software called "boot camp." Just go to apple.com/macosx/bootcamp and download the public beta. It's free. It will work if you have an intel based mac and this software will be included in the next go around of macbooks and macbook pros.
Chris | Email | Homepage | 02.23.07 - 3:41 pm | #

p.s. youll still have to buy (or "borrow" from a friend) and install windows xp, but in my experience, this works flawlessly
Chris | Email | Homepage | 02.23.07 - 3:42 pm | #

This Mac vs PC conversation is irrelevant.

Web content should follow international web standards which should allow material to run on ALL major browsers if designed appropriately.

This stuff that works on IE only is because MSFT creates code that deviates from the standards to lock people into their platform. Complete crap and unethical business practices if you ask me.

However, that does NOT mean if stuff is appropriately designed that it won't run on both systems.

Basically, CSTV needs to hire smarter eggheads. It can be done, but the way it is done, it looks like they hired a bunch of MSFT tools that don't know what they are doing.

I agree, I avoid CSTV and the parts of UND that won't run on Firefox. Because embracing IE is like embracing Miami football from the late 80s. Its just evil.

Anyways, if Alan is reading this, FIND A WAY TO STREAM THE BLUE AND GOLD GAME.

I won't be able to make the trip this year, but I really want to see it. We've got the Fox Sports/CSTV package, but I'm not confident that ND material always makes it to the West Coast. Having online at UND would really simplify things.
atepesm | Email | Homepage | 02.23.07 - 4:01 pm | #

ESPN televised the 1982 Blue-Gold game, live and in color. Twenty five years later, in the Communications Age, we are blacked out.
Voice in the Wilderness | Email | Homepage | 02.23.07 - 6:57 pm | #

Read the interview - it's not up to Alan to stream the B&G game.
John-ND | Email | Homepage | 02.23.07 - 9:34 pm | #

Fantastic interview! It's great to know ND's intent with regard to the UND.com coverage.
SDIrish01 | Email | Homepage | 02.24.07 - 1:15 am | #

I love everything on the UND multimedia site, and I hate to get off subject, but did anybody see Todd McShay's evaluation of BQ on Sportscenter tonight?

He actually called into question Quinn's COMPETITIVENESS. ARE YOU KIDDING ME??? He says this because Brady never lead ND to a big win over a team with a lot more talent, and because he has opted out of working out at the Senior Bowl and NFL combines, totally ignoring BQ's knee injury for the Senior Bowl. I'm not sure about why Quinn's not working out this time, but come on, show me a more competitive QB in college football this year.

Absolutely ridiculous.
TacomaDomer00 | Email | Homepage | 02.24.07 - 2:01 am | #

Can anyone provide Alan's email address? Thanks, John
John Judge | Email | Homepage | 02.24.07 - 9:39 am | #