SP are currently going down the route of integrating Raisers Edge into our website and we would love to know how easy or hard this would be to set up?

It's quite easy to integrate Raiser's Edge into your website - it's just a matter of cost. At Strathcona-Tweedsmuir School we are just finishing our integration. Blackbaud's NetCommunity is the product you want. It cost our school approximately $50,000 CND for the product, though for your organization it may be more or less depending on your needs and number of users. If you have specific questions, please email me at [Email Removed]

Jacques, We are also looking at implementing Net Community. Did you choose to host Net Community on your servers or on BB's servers? What influenced your decision? Also, did you decide to use Net Community as your whole website or just for certain features, such as team fundraising or a tribute program? Thanks in advance for any info you can share. Nora Isaac Manager, Information Technology The ALS Association, Greater Phila. Chapter [Email Removed]

We have had our entire website on Netcommunity since Nov 2005 and it has been quite a learning experience, especially since our IT/website person left a month after implementation. It is a wonderful tool that we are just now (or I am anyway) getting comfortable using. Probably the biggest misconception we had was that it was a web application and had no clue how heavily intregrated Netcommunity is with RE7. Conventional concepts about what a website can and can not do all change when intregration is added. The other misconception was that Netcommunity (which is now version 4.122) and RE7 (now version 7+) do talk to each other, but in a teenager talking to a 5 year old kind of way. Once the two versions are at the same level, it will be much more compatible. All in all, though, we would highly recommend it. After a server crash last week, we are looking into Blackbaud hosting but currently have an apparently unique setup with a local hosting company and in house servers. Hope that helps! If you have any other questions, please feel to contact me at [Email Removed] Thanks! Sheila Sheila Rainey RLS Foundation Rochester MN [Email Removed] website: www.rls.org

Thank you so much, Sheila, for answering my post. I am very interested in learning more about your experience with Net Community. I've sent the link to your website to the company directors. I hope you don't mind if I email you a few questions in the near future. The website is bright and colorful and very functional. One of our biggest fears is what type of personnel resources will it take to set up and maintain the website. I'll be sending an email directly to you in the near future. Thanks again for your help and info. By the way, are you going to the BB conference this year in Charleston? Nora Nora Isaac Manager, Information Technology The ALS Association, Greater Phila. Chapter [Email Removed]