On August 4, 2016, we published our very first post on this website: a short “welcome” that marked the moment HSS Canada found a home online. This year, that home turned ten.
In those ten years the website has carried our Christmas and Easter greetings, our president’s circulars, news from our branches, and photos from picnics, Christmas lunches and conventions. It has also carried our farewells to members we have lost. More than anything, it has become a record of our community, in Croatian and in English, for members across Canada and for anyone curious about who we are.
To mark the anniversary, I’ve spent the past while rebuilding much of the site from the ground up. Here is what’s new.
A faster, more secure home
The website and our HSS email have moved to a new, faster server. Pages load more quickly, everything is served securely, and the site keeps itself up to date.
Easier to read, easier to find your way
- A wider layout and larger text throughout.
- A clearer menu: About Us, Leadership, Branches, Events, Classes, Articles, News, Circulars, Calendar, Join Us and Archive.
- The logo and every link keep you in the language you’re reading.
- On phones, a new menu and search bar make the site much easier to use.
Events, front and centre
- The Events page now shows upcoming events first, marked “Upcoming”, followed by past events.
- You can filter events by host branch and by year.
- Events can be announced before the exact date is known: they show the month, marked “date TBD”, until the day is set.
- The home page shows our next events at a glance.
A new home page
- A rotating carousel of featured stories that changes every time you visit.
- Latest Posts and Events shown as photo cards.
- A Photo Gallery with photos from our gatherings, which open full screen.
- Our Branch Namesakes: the Croatian figures each branch is named after.
Better organized
- Articles brings together Commentary, History, In memoriam, and the new Culture & Heritage section.
- News now includes Community: reports, visits and photos from our gatherings.
- Circulars has its own place in the menu.
- Articles credit their authors by name. Click an author’s name to see everything they’ve written.
- The Archive lets you search every post and filter by category and author.
Photos and sharing
- Photo galleries in posts have a new viewer: swipe or use the arrows, view full screen, and browse thumbnails.
- Every post can be shared on Facebook, WhatsApp, X, Telegram, LinkedIn or by email, or you can copy its link.
For our HSS email users
Webmail has a fresh look, at webmail.hss-canada.ca. You can change your password and set up out-of-office replies and forwarding yourself.
Coming soon
A new Classes section is in preparation. Details will be posted as soon as they’re ready.
None of this would matter without the people who fill these pages: the branch committees, the writers, and everyone who sends in photos and news. Thank you. If you notice something that could be better, or you have a story or photos to share, write to me directly at [email protected].
Here’s to the next ten years.
Vjera u Boga i seljačka sloga!
Karlo Krakan