The world of technology is changing faster than most of us can keep up with.
As such, the Oak Bay News moved some time ago to offering its printed stories, and more, online. More recently the News and our Black Press sister papers introduced a page-turner online version replicating our print newspaper (find it at the bottom right-hand corner of our home page).
As the year draws to an end we checked out which stories were most viewed by readers of oakbaynews.com.
1. ELECTION 2011: Oak Bay election results (story posted Nov. 19) – Not surprisingly in an election year, people anxious to find out who won the races for mayor and councillors in Oak Bay made this news item the most read single story for 2011.
2. UPDATE: Hundreds gather to remember slain Revelstoke youth Daniel Levesque (Aug. 5) – The death of this popular 20-year-old musician, who had moved to Victoria from the Kootenay city a short time before his death, attracted attention around the province. This story, provided by our sister paper, the Revelstoke Times-Review, recounted a sad memorial service in his hometown.
3. Taking advantage of technology (June 14) – Oak Bay Rotary Club’s donation of a smartboard – an electronic version of the classroom blackboard – to Quadra elementary was its third such donation in recent years and second to the Victoria school. The story combined teacher Jeanette Di Biase’s reaction at the installation of the board in her class with a wrap-up of recent Rotary fundraising activities.
4. ‘UFO’ was explainable, NRC physicist says (Feb. 1) – What one amateur astronomer took for a mysterious, bright, flickering light on the Western horizon, engineering physicist Eric Chisholm explained to be Jupiter, behind fast-moving clouds. Fritz Stammberger, centred in Fernwood, also recorded a moving light over Oak Bay, which was determined to be a Canadian Forces Buffalo rescue aircraft.
5. Multiple Grammy winner comes home in style (Aug. 16) – Whenever acclaimed record producer and performer David “the Hitman” Foster makes an appearance in Greater Victoria, people take notice. This time around he was at the Oak Bay Beach Hotel announcing his intention to hold a fundraiser concert in town. Hotel owners Kevin and Shawna Walker added that their new dinner theatre showroom would be named the David Foster Foundation Theatre.
6. UPDATE: Police talked to woman hours before body found in McNeill Bay (March 3) – The discovery of a woman’s body on the beach by two people walking nearby led to an investigation into the disappearance of a local caregiver, Mary Grant. When the pieces were put together, police determined the body was that of a woman walking along Victoria Avenue that an officer on patrol had spoke to at 2 a.m., the same morning her body washed up. Saanich police investigators said all indications were that Grant took her own life.
7. Question period for candidates (Nov. 1) – The popularity of this simple notice of dates and times for two all-candidate meetings for the Oak Bay civic election showed people were keen on getting out to hear what candidates had to say.
8. New research into fetal alcohol spectrum disorder offers hope (May 25) – Part of reporter Natalie North’s three-part series on alcohol, this piece talked about how exercise can improve cognitive abilities in those affected by the disorder.
9. Tough times for Oak Bay Police Department (Feb. 4) – At the time this story went to print and online, the department was the subject of organizational and operational reviews, and was named in a gender discrimination complaint by Const. Jennifer Gibbs.
10. Oak Bay Avenue night market set to start (June 10) – Residents are always anxious to know when the popular street market begins for the summer season.
editor@oakbaynews.com