Students' Web site gaining popularity

This summer, three students founded the Web site www.thehoosierweb.com, which is currently host to about 1,300 users and receives 25 page hits each day.\n"It's a place students can go to meet other IU students and get their opinions out there," said Chris Shemmer, one of the site's moderators.\nThe Web site was designed by Shemmer, a junior, and two of his friends, Jason Kilpatrick and Michael O'Neill. Registration is free for anyone with an indiana.edu e-mail address. \n"After we were ranked 'No. 1 party school' we decided it was something we needed," Shemmer said. \nKilpatrick and O'Neill, who work as Web designers, visited the campus before designing it. Similar Web sites have been started on several other campuses, including Arizona State University, the University of Miami and Pennsylvania State University. There also are plans to start a Web site for Purdue University.\nTo promote the site, Shemmer said the group relied on word of mouth. \n"We went to tailgate on Homecoming weekend and had a banner up, but we mainly spread the word by telling people," Shemmer said. \nIU alumnus Stephen Nowak, who graduated last May, said he still uses the site even though he's not in Bloomington. \n"I think it's a good way of keeping things in perspective," Nowak said. "A lot of freshmen have questions about lots of things and I remember being in the same position."\nAlthough Nowak wasn't able to hear about the site by "word of mouth," he did find out about it through an e-mail.\n"It sounded like something that should have been started long ago," Nowak said. "I'm an (alumnus) and I think it's a good way to stay connected with the school." \nHowever, some students, like freshman Lauren Fishering, use the Web site purely for entertainment. \n"I do it out of sheer boredom and because it's entertaining," Fishering said. \nThe Web site is not affiliated with the University and is largely unregulated. \n"It serves as a centralized forum for IU students to use," Shemmer said. "I've been getting a lot of positive responses from people, so I hope it keeps going."\n-- Contact staff writer Obaid Khawaja at okhawaja@indiana.edu.