Those of you who are frequent visitors to The Citizen's Web site, www.auburnpub.com, have probably noticed a lot of changes lately.

In the past year, we've essentially launched three new designs, each aimed at making the site as user-friendly as possible. And you can probably count on more redesigns, because newspapers are quickly learning that Web sites must be constantly evolving.

I believe the best newspaper Web sites offer users a healthy supply of daily news, features and sports, but also give them things they wouldn't get in the print edition. And smart newspapers also try to make sure their print editions are offering content and features that are unique to that medium.

The goal - to be blunt - is to get you to buy the print edition and visit the Web site.

I believe our products are set up to do that, and we're always looking for ways to do it better.

That said, here's a look at some of the unique editorial content you can get with a visit to www.auburnpub.com:

� Citizens' Say: This is the feature that allows readers to post comments about stories that appear on the site. We've seen use of this program grow considerably since it was first launched in the spring. I think it adds to the reader experience when you can read through an article and then view some reactions to it. In many cases, we've seen some vigorous debate going on with this feature.

I do understand that some people would rather not view reader comments, and we're looking into a program that would allow you to hide the Citizens' Say comments.

� The Citizen Voting Booth: Near the top left corner of the site is an opinion question, usually related to local current events. We change the question twice a week, and publish the results in on page A2 (also known as Page Too) of the print edition on Tuesdays and Fridays.

This feature has also grown. In the first few months we were using it, we'd be lucky to get 100 responses. Now we typically see about 400 responses over the few days the question is posted, and we've had a few approach 1,000 responses.

Of course this is hardly a scientific poll, but it offers an interesting snapshot of public opinion, which is often hard to gauge.

� Video: Our newest feature came online last week, and it's just the start of what should be some significant upgrades in the multi-media offerings at the Web site. We now provide national news videos created by the Associated Press, which appear near the top of the home page across from streaming AP story feeds. Visitors to the site now can catch up on important world issues at any time of day with these features.

Our bigger goal, however, is to begin offering local multi-media packages, including video, audio and slide shows. These items make the Web site more interesting, and can enhance the printed story and photos that run in the newspaper.

Executive editor Jeremy Boyer's column runs Saturdays in

The Citizen and he can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 231 or jeremy.boyer@lee.net