Newspaper’s e-edition to be free to Herald subscribers
More free online news is now available to Sylva Herald subscribers with today’s launch of the newspaper’s complete electronic edition.
The Herald’s e-edition will include the entire contents of each week’s print issue. Subscribers will be able to browse the whole newspaper online and read all the ads as well as every news story by scrolling through the e-edition’s pages.
The e-edition will be available only to Herald subscribers; however, the newspaper is offering a free two-week preview prior to Aug. 3. Anyone with Internet access will be able to read the complete July 21 and 28 Sylva Heralds online.
To access The Herald’s e-edition during the two-week free period, go to www.thesylvaherald.com and click on the “e-edition” button on the left, or visit http://eedition.thesylvaherald.com.
Starting with the paper’s Aug. 4 edition, which will be available Aug. 3, e-edition access will be limited to current subscribers.
The two-issue preview should allow readers to see and get familiar with the technology and learn to navigate the electronic newspaper, said Herald IT Manager Nick Breedlove, who set up the new system.
The e-edition will be published each Wednesday afternoon around the same time the newspaper is available at local stores, and subscribers can sign up to receive notifications that it is available, he said.
“We wanted to reward our loyal readers with an additional offering that fits today’s lifestyles,” Breedlove said.
This way, if there’s a snow day, and paper delivery is late, subscribers will have the option of going online to read the entire paper, he said.
“We have many out-of-state subscribers, and sometimes delivery of their paper takes several days,” Breedlove said. “This will bridge that gap.”
Subscribers with a portable device, such as the Apple iPad, will be able to use it to read the e-edition using HTML5, he said.
The online newspaper is one more offering The Herald can provide its readers, said Publisher Steve Gray.
“We’re always pleased when we can provide another service to readers at no additional charge,” Gray said.
Making the complete newspaper available online gives subscribers another option, Gray said.
“Readers still want quality news, but the way they read that news has changed,” he said. “For most of our publishing history, the printed form of news was all that was available.”
The Herald first began putting some news stories online in 1999. More recently, the weekly newspaper has added a news blog to provide up-to-date news information, a Twitter feed, Facebook, Flickr and other web technologies to deliver its quality journalism to readers.
Herald Advertising Manager Margo Gray said she’s excited about the opportunity the e-edition will offer newspaper advertisers.
“It will expand the number of readers who view each ad,” she said. “It will really help our local businesses get the word out about their great services and products.
Current subscribers can pre-register for the e-edition by sending the newspaper an e-mail to subscribe@thesylvaherald.com that includes the following information: name, account number (located above subscriber’s name on their newspaper’s mailing label – likely a three- or four-digit number) and the e-mail address that will be used to login to the e-edition.
Until the Aug. 4 e-edition is published, anyone can preview the online newspaper. After that date, it will only be available to subscribers, who will need to login with their subscriber information. Subscribers will receive instructions via the e-mail address they provide on how to activate their login.
Non-subscribers who find they enjoy the e-edition during the free period will have to subscribe to continue to access e-editions. Subscriptions cost $20.15 per year in Jackson County; $34.16 per year for the rest of North Carolina; and $32 for those in other states.
Those with questions about the e-edition may contact Breedlove at 586-2611, ext. 310; or subscribe@thesylvaherald.com.
For information on subscribing to The Sylva Herald, call 586-2611, ext. 201.
