The Works of WSC
A guide to the Churchill canon
Articles
Affiliated sites
Version 3.0, released on July 23rd, 2007, is essentially an enabling release unlocking the new search page and simultaneously introducing the 'Books about' section of the site. The main features of this release are:
Version 2.2 was released on January 21st 2007. It is essentially a complete cosmetic makeover aimed at providing a much crisper, cleaner and more professional presentation to the user. Changes are myriad, but below is a list of the highlights of what we've tried to accomplish:
As ever, the site has been built with you, the visitor, in mind. We're always happy to hear back from you with reactions and suggestions. Meanwhile, enjoy the books!
Version 2.1 was released on October 28th 2006 and provided users with a significantly improved way to look at the detailed images for a volume. Major changes include:
Version 1 of Savrola went from conception to implementation in the space of about six months, culminating in public release on June 12th 2005. To say that our original design documentation was done on the back of a napkin would be to flatter ourselves. Nonetheless, by virtue of a titanic transatlantic email exchange we tacked our way to where we were more or less finally aiming and had a considerable amount of fun in the process. Some three months ago, we decided that the original offering was now ripe enough to be enhanced, based on the light of experience. This time we used the napkin....
Following are the highlights of what's new this time around:
The Home Page has had a general wash and brush-up. Clicking on the picture of Churchill's study at Chartwell will take you into an overall brief description of each of the works featured on the site and, in the cases where I've got that far, a link to a more detailed description. The 'Pick of the Day' image is now a clickable link which will take you into a detailed bibliographic description of the volume with the same options as if you had done an explicit search on it.
The search bar which is, after all, our primary raison d'être, has been made ubiquitous. No matter which page you are on, anywhere on the site, you have the opportunity to start a new search. The drop down list of searchable works now provides date of first publication and also indicates where a work is either a volume within a set or a derivative item.
The Search function itself has been significantly enhanced to speed up the ability to drill down to the specific information being sought. In Version 1 a search results list would include not only a set, but every one of the underlying volumes. With only eight items to a page this could quickly become tedious to page through. There are now four levels available when conducting a search.
There is now an active 'Links' page accessible from the navigation bar. Since I want to try to keep this site focused on bibliographic material I do not plan to link to the huge number of Churchill sites available today. That's what Google's for. Instead the links on this page will be chosen for quality and relevance. I'm not sure as of this writing if commercial links (booksellers) will be included. If they are they will be sites with which I have had personal dealings and which I personally trust.
For anyone who is interested in the technical underpinnings of this site I suggest you go to the 'Contacts' link and drop a line to Pete, who will be able to answer any questions far better than I could. I just know that we're hosted from Neptune (honestly) and occasionally I will see images of a penguin float across my screen. I am also aware that significant quantities of good beer are involved (which is why we have a UK address), but there we reach the limit of my expertise.
And finally a word about the future. I've been asked on occasion if, for example, we will expand to cover books about Churchill. Keeping in mind the urgent desire not to drive the technical staff completely insane, I'll give the following as my best answer right now. I would most assuredly like, at some point, to expand the scope to include the smaller than volume-length Churchill items, such as the pamphlets and individual speeches. I am also very open to adding the 'about' books. However, here is where I have to make a plea. Savrola is first and foremost a pictorial site. To this point I have been able to keep it going based on images from my own collection, but to expand it significantly I need to start getting in images from other sources. If you have a collection and are willing to help out please let me know. So, in principle, the answer is yes - we will continue to inch towards being a comprehensive Pictorial Bibliography - and for Savrola 3 we'll discard the napkin and go for the tablecloth.
Going back to Version 2 - if you have any questions, suggestions or corrections, please do not hesitate to contact Pete, or myself at savrola.co.uk. We're always open to new ideas and we do answer our email. Enjoy the site!
