Show Posts
1
SMNetwork Archives / RE: Calendar Program
« on: May 05, 2006, 05:05 am »
Hello. I'm new to SMNetwork, and to be honest, I've never stage managed anything in my life. For the past six years, I've done lights, sound, set building, and just about everything else regarding high school theatre and productions (ranging from plays to musicals and dance recitals). We've never really had a "stage manager" for anything, so I suppose I'm as close as they come. I call cues, yell at actors, etc. Anyway, I was just reading a thread on here about calendar programs for theatre and thought "that's a good idea." So I took the liberty of registering performanceschedule.com (nothing there yet) and am pretty sure I'm going to write software designed for scheduling performances.
The idea behind this is to create web-based software that could be accessed from any computer connected to the internet. The software would basically be an online calendar (or, I suppose, many calendars - one per show) - and would be specially designed for scheduling theatre and other production events. This could be set up to notify actors/crew/everyone of changes, send notices, etc. The possibilities are endless.
Anyway, the reason I'm posting this is to ask for help. Although I've been working in theatre for 6+ years, I've never actually been a stage manager (or someone in charge of scheduling). My main role is technical director. Aside from a "normal" calendar, what features would be helpful for this industry?
Here are some of my thoughts so far:
- Calendar accessible via web OR iCal format (which means that while you can add/edit/delete events via the website, you could also do the same from an iCal program such as Mozilla Sunbird, or iCal. I think this would make it easier to work with and update.)
- File storage space for contact lists, images, documents, etc.
- Notifications via email, SMS txt msg, etc. for different things (new event posted, rehearsal cancelled, etc)
- Enhanced login system (username/password combo could be used as "showname" then a password of your choosing, OR you could have each member of your cast have their own user name, each with their own access permissions/groups, that shows only specific information related to them [ie/ cast only sees cast rehearsals, while tech sees all rehearsals. Or you could allow the technical director to post updated cue sheets for the light/sound techs])
- Message board (like this one) that allows everyone to talk about anything.
I'm going to start writing this as soon as I get a little free time, so if you have any suggestions, let me know!
Also, would you pay for something like this? I was thinking of making this a subscription-based service of maybe $10/month or something, just the cost of keeping the servers online. And, having worked for a software company before, I know the importance of updates/fixes to the software; so if someone says "hey is it possible to add x?" I'd do my best to add it.) So $10/month for a web-based calendar system that can also be accessed from software like Outlook, Sunbird, iCal, etc. with web space for file storage, notifications, message board, etc. that would constantly be updated with new features that YOU request. Would it be worth it?
The idea behind this is to create web-based software that could be accessed from any computer connected to the internet. The software would basically be an online calendar (or, I suppose, many calendars - one per show) - and would be specially designed for scheduling theatre and other production events. This could be set up to notify actors/crew/everyone of changes, send notices, etc. The possibilities are endless.
Anyway, the reason I'm posting this is to ask for help. Although I've been working in theatre for 6+ years, I've never actually been a stage manager (or someone in charge of scheduling). My main role is technical director. Aside from a "normal" calendar, what features would be helpful for this industry?
Here are some of my thoughts so far:
- Calendar accessible via web OR iCal format (which means that while you can add/edit/delete events via the website, you could also do the same from an iCal program such as Mozilla Sunbird, or iCal. I think this would make it easier to work with and update.)
- File storage space for contact lists, images, documents, etc.
- Notifications via email, SMS txt msg, etc. for different things (new event posted, rehearsal cancelled, etc)
- Enhanced login system (username/password combo could be used as "showname" then a password of your choosing, OR you could have each member of your cast have their own user name, each with their own access permissions/groups, that shows only specific information related to them [ie/ cast only sees cast rehearsals, while tech sees all rehearsals. Or you could allow the technical director to post updated cue sheets for the light/sound techs])
- Message board (like this one) that allows everyone to talk about anything.
I'm going to start writing this as soon as I get a little free time, so if you have any suggestions, let me know!
Also, would you pay for something like this? I was thinking of making this a subscription-based service of maybe $10/month or something, just the cost of keeping the servers online. And, having worked for a software company before, I know the importance of updates/fixes to the software; so if someone says "hey is it possible to add x?" I'd do my best to add it.) So $10/month for a web-based calendar system that can also be accessed from software like Outlook, Sunbird, iCal, etc. with web space for file storage, notifications, message board, etc. that would constantly be updated with new features that YOU request. Would it be worth it?