An Idea for a Possible New Support Mechanism

Couple of thoughts.
1. I've led multiple Zoom sessions where even with ten people the content can't cover what everyone wants to know. I like the idea of an FTH 101 for newbie admins and officers that would simply be a broad overview of the system. After that, I envision specialty sessions going over individual modules such as agenda, dues, admin settings, etc. If 100 people connected and there was a Q&A via the chat window, two people would need to manage the broadcast. It would be like having an engineer at a radio station feeding the host calls.
2. I would love to run one of these. I've developed a survey (Google form) that I send to officers before I run a session to gauge their interest in specific modules/features of the system so I can tailor the call to the group. This could be made available to anyone interested in participating.

marc33: As we are already acquainted and I am familiar with all the great stuff you have done in this vein, I was hoping that you would be one of the people would would plan/collaborate w/ me to do the initial "pilot" and then plan/guide the full roll-out if the pilot is successful. I think we could probably make good use of some of the Google forms you have created (I like them).

Anyone else that would like to be part of the initial planning and "pilot", let me know. You need to have some savvy w/ FTH, Zoom (or similar), and general computer technology. I will want to have a phone conversation w/ you to verify that you have some savvy. I am only looking for maybe 2 or 3 people max in the beginning to help roll this out, in case the "pilot" does not have the interest. I will have a few Zoom calls w/ this initial team. If we do a full roll-out, then maybe this team morphs into a "guidance" team, but I have not really thought that far ahead yet.

Also, at some point I will create a dummy FTH website to support this initiative. We could use the calendar on the website for indicating when the webinars are scheduled.

BTW, there are Zoom training videos and such available for those who may be more familiar with other web conferencing systems:

support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/articles/360029527911
support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/articles/206618...Zoom-Video-Tutorials
zoom.us/livedemo

I adore this idea, Steve.

I don't want to overstate my expertise, so I'll just say that I do know my way around FTH. I've used it for 1.5 years as VPE then VPPR (FTH admin).

One of my clubs meets online via Zoom weekly. I post the club meeting recordings to YouTube (Unlisted). I'd be happy to provide this type of administrative support. I'm able to produce Powerpoint slides as needed. I could help feed questions to a moderator.

I'd contribute financially for one month of Zoom use.

If we get to the point where over 100 are joining, we can either pay Zoom another $5 monthly, or stream to Facebook Live.

I look forward to hearing that this will be rolled out fully.

I would be interested in leading if possible and I definitely know and love this site. I have trained others already on how to use functionality of FTH. GREAT IDEA

I must start out by saying I think all of the FTH volunteers do an excellent job of answering questions and getting issues resolved in a very timely manner. Kudos to all of you for that!

In regards to a new support mechanism, I am curious what prompted you to the suggestion. I have been aware of and using this website reference for at least 6 or 7 years. While I admire you giving even more of your time, I personally have never felt a void for a need that wasn't being met in the current format (mainly because of how responsive the solutions are). If you are saying this would be more of a test group for rolling out new features or suggesting new features, I can see that being helpful, but I also think this format with a link to a demo video or something else would suffice just as much if people are asked to review and provide feedback.

I make these comments not because of it being a bad idea. I just think meeting the language and time needs of so many users could become overwhelming and hard to keep up. It's one of those Catch 22's where you want it to grow large and be influential, but then that becomes a challenge to make the online meetings productive and orderly. In regards to donations, I know people have already stepped up, but what happens if the role in their club changes or even their membership in Toastmasters. Ensuring you have donors would then become an extra task for you.

To reiterate, LOVE this site! LOVE that you are willing to give even more of your time! Just making sure this additional suggestion isn't something that becomes overwhelming later.