Industry
Publishing
Location
West Lafayette, Indiana
Employees
3
Basecamp plan
Free (1 project for free)
Basecamp color scheme
An interview with Justin Williams
Justin is a founding partner of MacZealots — a nonprofit Macintosh community website that offers practical, in-depth information on how to use the many Apple Macintosh related hardware and software products offerings on the market today. Our information is presented in the form of "I was very happy to see that my workflow in Basecamp was almost automatic. From the beginning I was able to get down to work adding new Milestones, To-Dos, and opening dialogues with my partners. At this point, you would have to pry Basecamp from our cold, dead hands."Articles, Reviews, Tutorials, and User Requests by a knowledgeable and experienced team of authors. Justin and his team use Basecamp to manage the publication.
So, let's get started. How did you first hear about Basecamp?
We first heard about Basecamp through a variety of sources in our RSS subscriptions. I couldn't pinpoint an exact one that comes to mind, but when Basecamp was released, there was a definite buzz in the blogosphere. We were intrigued from the get go, but were concerned since we run a site that has no revenue. We were then happy to see that Basecamp offered a free service that is very beneficial to a site like ours.
What were your first impressions of the product when you signed up? What keeps you using Basecamp?
We signed up under the 1 project plan to see if we would enjoy using it. Coming into the experiment, I knew that I didn't want to have to invest a lot of time learning a new product when I had already invested a few months in a system I was already used to. I was very happy to see that my workflow in Basecamp was almost automatic. From the beginning I "Before Basecamp, our project management could be defined with one word: nonexistent. We would shoot off emails whenever we had an idea or needed an article proofed, but there was no central location where we could brainstorm or keep our ideas."was able to get down to work adding new Milestones, To-Dos, and opening dialogues with my partners. It's these reasons that we continue to use it today. At this point, you would have to pry Basecamp from our cold, dead hands. We are that used to incorporating it into our site.
The ability to have our site's organizational data wherever we go is advantageous for us. As three college students, we are running around the campus of Purdue University all day. By having MacZealot's data in a central online repository, I can access it not only from home, but also from my laptop on campus, any campus computer, or at my office.
Were you using another product before or were you managing your projects manually (or with a combination of emails, post-it notes, notepads, etc.)? Was the transition difficult?
Before Basecamp, our project management could be defined with one word: nonexistent. We would shoot off emails whenever we had an idea or needed an article proofed, but there was no central location where we could brainstorm or keep our ideas. Each of us kept ourselves organized with our own methods. I kept a few sticky notes on my Mac that had a list of articles I wanted to write, tasks that needed to be completed on the site, and other general items. Matt was using a mix of Tinderbox and Tasks on his Powerbook to track his data, and Ryan kept everything organized on his Mac.
This obviously isn't the best solution when you are trying to collaborate on a website, so a solution was needed. That's where Basecamp came in. The transition from keeping everything on our separate computers"Ever since moving to Basecamp, our productivity has increased... We have been more motivated about getting our articles published, our redesign underway, and making our site even better in general." to centralized on Basecamp was effortless. Signing up took a few moments and then we were in business. The most difficult task was copying data and pasting it into text fields!
How are you using Basecamp? What are you using it for? What parts do you use most (messages, to-dos, milestones, files)? Have you used Basecamp in ways you hadn't anticipated?
We are using Basecamp for several ongoing projects. It's main use is to keep a list of articles we would like to write in the future. Each author has their own separate To-Do list with their articles. The articles ideas come from our user requests and from our own mind. Anytime we think of a topic that hasn't been covered at all, or could be explained better, we mark it down as an idea. That way when we are having trouble thinking of something for that week, we can reference that list.
We are now using Basecamp to keep track of our 2.0 redesign in December. We established specific milestones for each aspect of the redesign: design, coding, testing, and the actual launch. We can then attach specific message threads or tasks to those milestones. Rather than keeping separate iCal calendars and maintaining multiple email threads, we now keep everything in Basecamp. The beauty of this is the ability to tie everything back to a specific milestone. I can easily see all of the messages and to-dos that pertain to my coding milestone, so I know what I need to work on. That is a great feature.
Another great feature is the ability to subscribe to our latest activity via RSS. This was especially useful to me the other day. I had my iBook with me at a coffee shop where there was no Internet access. I was working on an article for MacZealots, and needed to reference a message I had posted to our project with the outline. Luckily, I had a copy of it stored in my RSS Aggregator! I find myself using RSS to keep up to date with everything far more than email and traditional web browsers. Having updates sent to my aggregator rather than my cluttered Inbox makes sure I will see the message or task.
Keeping ourselves organized like this helps us prioritize what to do and push towards meeting those goals. We try to avoid being reminded of Late tasks if at all possible.
How has Basecamp improved your communication with "We all have become adept to just putting anything related to the site to Basecamp. have come up with a new verb to replace e-mail. Now when we want to send an inquiry or idea, instead of e-mailing it, we "Basecamp it." The product has integrated that much in our workflow."co-workers and clients?
Ever since moving to Basecamp, our productivity has increased when it comes to the site. We have been more motivated about getting our articles published, our redesign underway, and making our site even better in general. I think separating MacZealots from everything else in our Inbox and browser has made us focus on the site more. Before, for example, our MacZealots related correspondence would be mixed in with email from friends, family, school, and our jobs. Now, when we want to do something with the site, we post it to Basecamp, and that guarantees that all three of us will see it almost immediately through RSS.
We don't use Basecamp to interact with our clients other than to post their suggestions and article requests onto the site so that we can reference them later on. Again, this was a move away from traditional email where we each had individual requests and suggestions stored in one big e-mail folder.
How many projects do you manage at once?
The entire MacZealots site is managed on a single project.
How many other people from your office are using Basecamp?
All three of use Basecamp everyday for the site. Each of us has an even stake in the site, so all of our opinions need to be heard. With the ease of use Basecamp offers, it's not burdensome or difficult for any"I think a sign of a good product is when its users evangalize it to their friends and colleagues. Basecamp is one of those products for me. Anytime I talk with a colleague I recommend that his company use Basecamp to manage their projects and tell them the same things I am telling you: it improves productivity, it's easy to use, and it's hard to live without once you start using it." of us to actually use the product. I find it a pleasure to use compared to our old methods (or lack thereof) of collaboration. I think my partners would agree with that statement as well.
How has Basecamp affected your emailing habits? Are you emailing less than before?
The amount of email sent out for MacZealots communication has droped substantially. We all have become adept to just putting anything related to the site to Basecamp. have come up with a new verb to replace e-mail. Now when we want to send an inquiry or idea, instead of e-mailing it, we "Basecamp it." The product has integrated that much in our workflow.
Thanks for participating. Is there anything else you'd like to add?
I think a sign that someone has a good product is when its users evangalize it to their friends and colleagues. Basecamp is one of those products for me. Anytime I talk with a colleague I recommend that his company use Basecamp to manage their projects and tell them the same things I am telling you: it improves productivity, it's easy to use, and it's hard to live without once you start using it.
Thanks for letting me tell our story. MacZealots is glad that Basecamp exists and look forward to using it for many years to come!