Computer guru builds Web
site for students
By Anna Herkamp
Staff
Writer
Brent Meshier, founder of Purdueonline.com, has
been working on computers since he was 10 and since high school has
worked to make news retrieval easier on the Internet.
He owns Vision Networks of Indiana, which specializes
in custom Internet database design, but Meshier credits his success
to his early work in electronic information exchange.
Meshier began in high school where he set up
a bulletin board system on his home computer.
The system was a dial-up service with messages
about topics of interest, a place to exchange files and games and
a place to play games.
His system eventually led to Meshier’s interest
in creating an interactive site where users could post messages, have
more user interaction and could exchange ideas more freely.
Meshier found an outlet for his curiosity and
need to bring people together when he came to Purdue. Purdueonline.com
began to develop by 1997, but Meshier didn’t have much time to
devote to the site so advancement was slow. During the spring of 2000,
the site, which originally started as a way for students to access
their e-mail, was finally ready for visitors.
At the time, Purdue students could only check
their e-mail via Telnet, but once the University created its own Web
mail service, Meshier had to find new ways to keep users interested.
Now Purdueonline.com contains classified ads,
apartment reviews, a dining guide, a photo gallery and a drink guide.
"I wanted to provide an online interactive
site that could encompass everything they need while in school,"
Meshier said.
Users of Purdueonline.com are familiar with the
news stories that appear on the home computer screen. The idea for
news stories that users could post and comment on came from a site
called Slashdot.com, a site visually similar to Purdueonline.com but
designed for computer tech gurus, Meshier said.
On both sites, users can read, post and comment
on stories — all from their own computers.
"It’s a good place for students to
read stories about issues they care about," said Meshier.
"We don’t answer to anybody," Meshier
said about the site’s news aspect. "Unlike local printed
periodicals, we have no one to answer to, and news can be posted instantly.
During the riots, we were reporting on what was going on as it happened,"
he said. "We can post news no one else will post."
Sean Soper, a senior in the School of Computer
Science, is the only "staff" Meshier credits besides Santa
Clause, his pet snake, who is Purdueonline.com’s mascot.
Soper is a primary news source, and consults
a variety of online news services such as CNN.com and ABCnews.com
to find story ideas. Occasionally, he will consult specialized services
for unusual stories.
Soper’s interest is not in the technical
aspect, but rather the sociological aspect of bringing together users
to discuss issues such as religion and politics.
Soper said that although local periodicals do
a fine job of reporting on campus life, it’s hard to find a good
forum for discussion of different political and religious views. He
wanted to create a place for discussion that dealt with the issues.
Aside from the review services, the site continues
to grow every day, but Soper and Meshier both say they would like
to see more people post their own stories and participate in the discussions.
In the future, Meshier said he hopes Purdueonline.com
could become something students could work on and gain experience
in Web site building.
