PlaceStories

PlaceStories is a software system for managing digital media, creating digital stories, and publishing online. It was developed by Feral Arts, a Brisbane (Australia)-based not-for-profit media company whose aim is to encourage cultural pluralism and social inclusion. PlaceStories has been used by a range of Australian organisations in the health, natural resources/environment, and arts sector, but it may be customised to support the communication needs of community organisations, government agencies, and others who work with communities, particularly rural and regional communities, in any geographic location.

The PlaceStories system consists of two main parts:

1. Software - a Windows programme provided free to download and install on a standard personal computer (PC) to manage media and create digital stories. [There is currently no Mac version of PlaceStories software, but it is possible to run the software on a Mac with Intel processors running Windows XP as an operating system on its own Bootcamp partition.]
2. Communities - customised websites to support the communication needs of particular networks, communities, or organisations.
   

Most PlaceStories produced through this system are under 2 minutes long. They look and behave like videos, but are much smaller in file size (so that they may be viewed online). Each story is given a location and appears as a story marker on the relevant project map (using Google Maps software). PlaceStories Projects are collections of stories published in a PlaceStories community. PlaceStories Communities are larger groups of users from a particular sector or network. Each Community has its own customised website with a range of communication tools. Each community also has its own nominated administrators to check all story content before it is made public. Larger communities are sustained through license agreements that provide for support services, system updates, data hosting, and a range of other services.