Recently in New Releases Category

Hi all.  My name is Greg Whalin and I am the CTO here at Meetup.  I wanted to start giving more transparency into our weekly releases than we typically have, so starting this week, not only will we be listing off any new features/functionality, but also listing out in greater detail what bugs/tweaks were made during the course of the weekly release.

However, before I dive into what went out today, I would like to briefly talk about how we build and launch software here at Meetup.  The primary responsibility and focus of the dev team here at Meetup is to build and launch product that directly addresses the needs of our community.  We devote a lot of time speaking to Organizers, user testing, and studying metrics to help us decide where we should be spending our time on new development.  Currently, we have seven small teams devoted to working on either new product, or improvements to current product.  These teams are expected to be working with our users as they build to make sure they are working smartly and effectively.

In addition to new development, the dev team is also expected to be spending a portion of their time working on maintaining current product.  This translates into things like bug fixing, usability tweaks, small features, as well as behind the scenes work on the technology that keeps the site and email running smoothly.

To support both big/new development as well as smaller incremental maintenance work, we have set up our release schedule to allow the dev team to be able to launch regularly and quickly.  To this end, we have a regular release on a weekly basis.  This allows the maintenance work to have a relatively short turnaround time from development to launch, while at the same time making sure that when teams have new product complete and tested, there will be a release already scheduled to allow them to launch.

There is obviously a lot more detail to uncover here, but this hopefully should shed some more light on how the Meetup dev team launches.

Now, lets get to what we launched today:

features

• initial work to start to support draft events; currently only used to support continuing event create for Orgs using Amazon Payments
• mailing list forgery detection now allows suspect senders to whitelist themselves via an email confirmation
• showing link to currency converter on payment page if user is international
• added additional cities to Craigslist Tool

behind the scenes

• some cleanup of our javascript libraries
• ongoing work to programatically generate all links on site; will allow for url customization in future
• add last visited to members method to make easier to display on site
• converted some site images to a more translation friendly format
• made search autosuggester work for future transalations

bugs fixed

• made easier to edit 'Home Town' on profile
• display issue fixed in IE 7 for change location popup on city page
• fixed bug w/ posting a note with accented characters on calendar page using ajax
• fixed a typo in the 3 month anniversary check-in org email
• corrected Meetup phone number on the Org step down page
• fixed broken link to 'Invite Meetup members'
• fixed some broken links on member list for long profile names
• fixed invalid copy when using a 3 month coupon
• fixed invalid copy in purchase receipt email
• past event page no longer showing mark-as-paid people as refundable
• fixed display issue where member cannot see box to enter charge amount for event
• fixed capitalization inconsistency in footer of refund policy
• fixed bug which prevented editing RSVPs for an event with no current RSVPs
• member home no longer encouraging member to RSVP when meeting is full
• fixed bug w/ browing to cities with accents
• fixed template bug w/ Meetups in the Making signup email
• fixed broken export Meetup to Outlook
• fixed broken link in text version of 1st new member email to Org
• fixed bug where venue reviews from defunct groups were not showing up
• fixed bug where venue website not removable by user

That is all for now.  If you have any questions about any of this, please discuss on our boards.

Here's what we're releasing for the weekly upgrade that is going out Tuesday, August 12th:

- For private groups, we added an explanation to non-members that the group is private with links to contact the organizer and/or join the group.
- Organizers can now mark themselves as "paid" when using Amazon Payments.
- Organizers can now see members' confirmation number on the "print summary" page when using Amazon Payments.
- The member count updates when a member is removed or blocked from a Meetup Group.
- Fixed IE6 issues with truncating descriptions using the Craigslist posting tool. Also updated the html based on changes Craigslist made.
- Fixed several IE6 and IE7 layout issues.

Have questions or feedback on this release? Talk about it on our boards.

We make weekly updates to our site, and our latest update just went live! Here's what's new:

- If you're an organizer who's charging members with Amazon Payments, we've made it easier for members to find your refund policy.
- Added the rsvp count and Meetup event fee info to the Meetup API.
- For Meetup Places - organizers can now share a private Meetup Place directly from the form where it's being edited.
- That list of "Your Meetups" that you see on your logged-in Meetup home page - it now contains the day of the week
- Plus a TON of behind-the-scenes work.

GOT SOME FEEDBACK? Please share it here.

Hi everybody,

As we mentioned in an earlier post, we're launching a lot of exciting new improvements to Meetup. While that post was a broad overview, here is a more comprehensive list of what exactly is new at Meetup.

Spring Cleaning

We redesigned the web site! It now has a cleaner look, with less clutter. Here's a detailed list of the main changes:

• Member home page: now lists all your upcoming Meetups
• Member home page: pins Meetup Groups you organize to the top
• Meetup Group home page: New design, with "What's New" given prominence.
• Meetup Group home page: You can edit your main headline directly.
• Meetup Groups section: Mailing Lists and Message Boards are two different side links.
• Meetup Groups section: There is a side link shortcut for organizers to schedule a Meetup.
• About Us pages: Easier-to-find Table of Contents, and a Recently Updated Pages box on every page.
• Calendar page: Clearer views, and a single day now stretches its box to accommodate any number of Meetups.
• Members page: Streamlined down to one view. This will make it easier to potentially add member searching.
• Photos section: Photo URLs change automatically.
• Group settings: Added as a direct link on the left side. All settings are now grouped into six simple pages.
• Organizer Resources: Organizer Help & Tools is now called Organizer Resources. There is now only one page, with eight clear choices.
• Promote page: Organized into three sections.
• Find a Meetup: "Meetups by City" and "Meetups by Topic" are now combined into one central resource to find a Meetup.
• City Calendar: Neater format, and added a fun photo sampler of (public) Meetups coming up that week in that city.
• City Calendar: Meetup Groups tab page lets you filter your search by topic.
• Terminology: "Meetup Groups" are the groups on the site, that host in-person "Meetups."
• Terminology: "Shouts" are now called "Greetings".

Click below to watch the Meetup Spring Cleaning video! (5 minutes, will open in another window)

Meetup Places

Organizers: want to find a place to hold your Meetup? Meetup Places lets you find venues that have been used by other organizers and read reviews made by Meetup Groups.

• Organizers decide which venues to make searchable. Share your existing saved venues or add and share new places.
• Search for venues by location. Enter in a full street address, the city/state or zip code or drag the marker on the map.
• See how well a venue's been rated and read reviews. Find out before you go if it's the best for your meetup.
• Are any other Meetup Groups scheduled at the same venue? We'll let you know.
• Has a venue shut down or moved? Update the info and we'll let everyone know about it.
• Know that the venue has wi-fi or is pet friendly? You can share this and additional attributes with others.

Click below to watch the Meetup Places video! (6 minutes, will open in another window)

Payments

Organizers: want to cover your costs, reserve a venue, or even pay yourself? We've integrated with Amazon Payments to make it easier for organizers to charge members to attend their Meetups. This is the list of features you'll find if you select the Amazon Payments option:

• Organizers can require that members must pay in order to RSVP
• Refund policy - Organizers state it, members accept it
• Organizers and members can see detailed transaction information
• One-click refunds
• Ability for organizers to manually add offline payments
• Also note: you can still choose to use Paypal instead, which didn't change

Click below to watch the Meetup payments video! (10 minutes, will open in another window)

Additional Features

• Organizers can set RSVP deadlines
• Organizers can ask their members questions when they rsvp
• A convenient printable ticket with all the Meetup's information, available for members and organizers to print out and bring to the Meetup

Meetup API

• The Meetup API allows developers to use the Topics, Groups and Events hosted and created on Meetup.com in their own applications and mashups.
• Any Meetup.com member can request an API key and start playing with the API right away.
• We're committed to making the information at the core of the service widely available -- while of course respecting the privacy of our Meetup groups and members.

Meetup in Other Languages

• By the end of the summer, Meetup will be translated into Italian!
• We have plans to add more languages in the future

Share your feedback

• Share your feedback in the New Features forum.
• Need Technical Assistance or find a Bug? Post it in the Help Forum
• Have a great idea or suggestion for making Meetup even better? Stop by the Suggestions Forum.

Hi everyone,

Last week we posted screenshots and a description of the new features coming soon for Meetup. For those of you craving more detail, here are the features presented in video format. Each video takes you through the new features by showing real screenshots of the site, along with our voiceover descriptions. Click on the image to get to each video, which will pop up full-size in a new window.

Site redesign: 5-minute video, hosted by Jesse:

Meetup Places: 6-minute video, hosted by Viviane:

Payments: 10-minute video, hosted by Maya:

Greg Whalin and Maya Voskoboynikov, from Meetup HQ, demo upcoming Meetup improvements at the NY Tech Meetup

We love that you are participating in real, face-to-face community. We believe that meeting up offline is a harder thing to do than staying online...but it's ultimately much, much more rewarding. Clearly a lot of you agree - 4.5 million people have now registered for Meetup.com and we're hitting 1.6 million RSVP's a month!

We listen very seriously to the feedback we get from you, and while we can't fulfill everyone's request, we're committed to making Meetup better than ever.

So in a few weeks we'll release some exciting new updates that will help organizers run their Meetup Groups better and will improve the overall site experience for both organizers and members. Here's what we're planning:

• Spring cleaning - a new look and feel to the site
• Meetup Places - find a place to hold your Meetup
• Payments - an easier way for organizers to charge their members to attend their Meetups.
• Meetup is going global - Meetup is going to speak more languages...soon!
• For developers - Meetup API
• And more
• Got feedback?

Spring cleaning - a new look and feel to the site

We watched organizers, members, and brand-new visitors navigate the site and found a long list of ways to make it easier to use. Don't worry, we haven't removed any of your favorite features, just a lot of clutter. It's a redesign of the site, but with the emphasis on making it clearer and easier to use. Think of it as a "spring cleaning." And after this launches, we're going to keep tweaking the site based on your feedback.

First of all, we changed some of the wording on the site. "Meetup Groups" are the groups that hold in-person "Meetups". Also, Shouts are now called Greetings, which we felt better reflected the way people use this tool to communicate.

One of your top requests was to list more than one Meetup per Meetup Group on your main home page, so we separated Meetup Groups on the left, and all Meetups on the right. In addition, organizers now see the Meetup Groups they organize pinned to the top of their lists.

Overall, the new design is meant to play down Meetup HQ content and give the spotlight to your text, photos, and content. We simplified the Meetup Group home page, and placed emphasis on the What's New feed. You can now edit your Meetup Group's main headline. We made it easier to navigate multiple pages in the About Us section. And by popular demand, we separated Message Boards and Mailing Lists on the left navigation.

Boxes now expand on the Calendar page if you have multiple Meetups in one day, a request from super-busy Moms Meetup Groups. This page also demonstrates our easy icons for actions you can take.

We completely redesigned the Organizer Help and Tools section into one simple page, now called Organizer Resources. You'll find the Organizer's Checklist here, too. Your Group Settings are now directly accessible from the left navigation, and are grouped in simple chunks rather than one long list.

The different ways to find a Meetup Group are now combined into a single "Find a Meetup" link. Our new City Calendar Page (above) is cleaner, easier to read, and features a fun sample of photos. The photos are from upcoming (public) Meetups - one from each day that has Meetups happening.

Meetup Places - find a place to hold your Meetup

We heard from many of you that it's a struggle to find the right venue to hold your Meetup and that you would like to know what venues other Meetup Groups are using.

So we created Meetup Places. It's a collection of searchable venues created, rated, and used by other Meetup Groups in your area.

Once you find a venue, you'll see ratings and reviews written by any Meetup Group that's been there, not just your own. We'll also let you know if any other Meetups have activities scheduled there.

Meetup Places is powered by you! Organizers decide which venues to make searchable and which are private - there are 100,000 venues with a million ratings and reviews waiting to be shared!

Organizers and members rate and review the venues in the post-event survey, which in turn updates the venue info. Ah, the cycle of life, er, we mean venues!

Payments - an easier way for organizers to charge their members to attend their Meetups.

Are you an organizer who needs to cover costs, pay for a venue, grow a great organization or even pay your self? We've made it easier for organizers to charge their members to attend their Meetups. We didn't change anything about how Paypal works, and because we want to give organizers more options, we introduced a new payment option with Amazon Payments.

Organizers will have the option to require that members pay when they RSVP. (We've learned from organizers that charging members reduces no-shows).

Organizers will get to set their own refund policy, and members will be required to read and accept it when they RSVP.

Organizers and members will be able to view detailed transaction information. (Example of what an organizer will see).

And refunds will be super easy! Members can easily ask their organizers for refunds, and organizers will be able to give individual or bulk refunds with just one click.

Meetup is going global - Meetup is going to speak more languages...soon!

We're proud to announce that by the end of the summer, we will launch Meetup's first non-English version of the site, and it will be in Italian! We plan on adding more languages like Spanish, French and German in the future. Why Italian? Outside of the US, Canada and Great Britain, Italy has the highest number of Meetup Groups in the world.

This is a big project and we could use your help. If you are a native Italian, or have spent a considerable amount of time in Italy speaking the language and are fluent in both English and Italian, we could use your help proofreading and editing the professional translation. We've started a Meetup Group called "Help Translate Meetup.com into Italian" - if you can help, join it! Who better to help proofread and translate Meetup than the people who use it? Thanks in advance!

For Developers - the Meetup API

Meetup will provide an API to allow developers to use the Topics, Groups and Events hosted and created on Meetup.com in their own applications and mashups. A simple HTTP interface provides access to this data in several standard formats. Any Meetup organizer or member will be able to request an API key and start playing with the API. Meetup is committed to making the information at the core of the service widely available -- while of course respecting the privacy of our Meetup groups and members.

And more

And there is more: organizers will be able to set RSVP deadlines for their Meetups, everyone will be able to print a physical ticket with their Meetup information, and organizers will be able to ask their members questions when they RSVP.

Got feedback?

We hope you'll love these new features - we built them because so many of you asked for them! We run Meetup Groups too, and we're looking forward to using these features to help us help people get the most from every Meetup.

We see stories every day of Meetup Groups helping people in large and small ways. Keep it up! We're all making the world a better place  by ensuring there's a Meetup Group there  whenever people need one.

All of these changes are only a first step. We're always here working to make the site better. Input from our organizers and members inform every decision we make.

Stay tuned for the launch! (And please keep in mind that we are still working on everything, so you may see some minor cosmetic differences when we launch).

• Want to talk about the updates with other organizers and members? Join our online discussion
• Got feedback on any of the stuff you read about? Send it to support-at-meetup-dot-com