Students interested in publicizing, browsing or organizing campus events now have a new place to look — www.themaingreen.com, a Web site developed this past summer by Matt Smith '12.
The site features a Brown campus map on which public events are posted to help students find their way to events on time. Students need a University e-mail address to register.
Smith came up with the idea for the Web site last semester after an unsuccessful night out.
"I was supposed to go to a concert and party with my friends, but then went to everything at the wrong time and ended up in the Gate," he said.
Registered users will be able to add events to a weekly organizer, see notices of changes made to events and create or join groups in which private events can be organized.
Visitors can log in as guests to check and post events — a feature Smith said he would keep intact "as long as people are responsible and well-behaved."
This centralized site for event organization, Smith said, allows students to "compare one event instantly with other things on campus and plan what they want to do."
It will also be easier for event organizers to advertise their events, he added. "No more table slips," creating "paper waste," he said.
The site has more than 100 registered users. Smith said he has also posted public events. "I have done no major advertising," he said, "but if everyone starts using (the site), it will definitely happen."
The Web site is also available for students on other Ivy League campuses. It can, in the future, be "expanded to any other university pretty easily," Smith said.
There is also a "venue" section on the Web site where businesses can sign up and post their own events.
With basic knowledge of computer programming that he learned in CSCI 0040: "Introduction to Scientific Computing and Problem Solving," Smith created the site on his own this past summer.
Some students said they think the new tool is a good idea. "I'd totally use it," said Yvette Gutierrez '13. "It sounds like a good way for me to find out what's going on on campus. From what I've heard, there's so much going on and it's hard — at least for me — to know (about the events)."
But others expressed doubt it would become a regular reference for the community.
"It's an interesting concept," said Anne Fuller '11. "But people have so many ways of getting information already. I wouldn't necessarily check it."
Another student, Joey Burnett '12 said, "It would be a good idea if it is connected to something already in place like Morning Mail or other sources which people regularly check. For example, Mocha is widely used because it has links to actual Brown Web sites."
