Why are the site's news updates dated the next day? How often is the site updated? What portions of the site are exclusive to Dollymania?
Part of that is attributable to my experience working in the newspaper business. When we'd upload stories to the paper's website in the late evening, we'd date all of the articles the following day because that was the date they were published in the print edition of the newspaper. Another reason is when I started the page, I didn't have much free time in the early evening to dedicate to the site, so it was nearly midnight each night when I'd upload the news updates, and I thought, "It's almost 'technically' the next day. I might as well date it the next day." Even though now I usually update the site several hours earlier, I haven't changed the dating system.
Most sections of the site, such as the list of songs she's released or the awards page, are updated only when something new comes along, such as a new recording being released or a new award presented. The most frequently updated part is the news page. I do my "Dolly search" every day unless I'm out of town, and during the week I usually update it that same day if I come across a newsworthy piece of information. So it is usually updated daily. If someone sends in a Letter To The Webmaster or a posting for the Collectors' Connection or pen pals' section, I usually hold it until the next news update to do them all at the same time. The only real exception is that I usually don't update the site over the weekend until I do Monday's update on Sunday evening (partially to take a break, but more so to increase the chance that I'll have a new news item to post when I update the This Week In Dolly History section on the news page).
There are several. The only truly exclusive items are the large selections of original photographs, most of which are collected in the gallery section, which either I have taken of Dolly or readers have taken and submitted to the site exclusively. However, there are several other sections of the site which, while compiled from information which is publicly available to anyone who wants to take time to research it thoroughly, have appeared on Dollymania either in their only form or in the most complete form ever published. Examples of these areas include the list of every song she has ever recorded and released (available both alphabetically and chronologically) and her original album and single discographies with chart data. The site also offers the only This Week In Dolly History report and the only Dolly Year In Review, which briefly covers all of the important developments in her career over the previous year. Also, occasionally, there are exclusive news reports on the news page. (Contrary to what some people believe, "exclusive" when referring to news reports doesn't mean simply that you reported something first. In its strictest sense, it means that a source -- who is the only person with access to a certain piece of information -- gives it to you and agrees not to share it with anyone else. Alternately, it can be a person who agrees to give an interview to you alone about a particular subject matter and to not talk to anyone else about it. In its most liberal sense, it is a piece of information that a source provides to you with the understanding that it will not be released or confirmed to anyone else until a certain length of time -- usually a day or two -- has passed. ) And if you have any suggestions or comments, e-mail me at dgordon@dollymania.net!
