www.nzherald.co.nz

The New Zealand Herald site is probably somewhat under-appreciated considering the wide distribution of the print edition - at least in the upper North Island area. It provides a highly significant mirror on day to day New Zealand society - and that is notwithstanding its timely news content.

With about 50 per cent of my own printed Heralds going out in the recycling unopened, maybe the time might come when I change over completely to the online version. On the last few occasions when I have seen an article in the Herald and perhaps wanted to track it down for a patient while at my desk, I have been surprised just how efficiently and easily the article comes to hand.

The site itself is very well laid out and easy to navigate. The main toolbar "departments" are news, business, sport, technology, entertainment, lifestyle, travel, blogs, your views, property, motoring and jobs.

There is a lot of advertising on the site which I guess makes the project self-supporting. Techniques of web-based advertising and modern graphics have certainly improved over the last five years.

From the point of view of content, the news articles are right up to the minute - the Herald certainly does not rely solely on "yesterday's news" for its website version, even on Sundays, news is up to date.

It is my guess the news category award was probably more for its timeliness and functionality than for the quality of its editorial content - indeed the day the Herald ownership changed from Wilson and Horton was the first day I ever picked up the remotest hint of a spelling error in "Granny's diary".

The main news department is further categorised into national, world, weather, politics, crime, health, environment, science, opinion, cartoons and Sideswipe (a daily humour column). Similarly, the business department is further categorised into economy, markets, personal finance, currency, small business, trade, management, marketing, etc, and the entertainment section is likewise comprehensive. Sports has a predictably long departmental list and technology has a very simple list of four items:  compute, connect, wired and games.

Along with classifieds, all this content may be freely subscribed through an RSS feed into our daily email.

Each department has an immediate summary section running back some seven to 10 days to cover news in the last fortnight, which is a great bonus over the print version. And, for those busy people who miss looking at the Herald often for days on end, this must be a great feature.

There is a searchable archives section going back eight years to 2000.

For a quick last look I checked out the health news section and it is good. The lead story was put in this morning at 5am. Headlines from the last fortnight's health news are given and a selection of archived stories appear under headings pharmaceuticals, diseases, immunisations and public healthcare. There is also a related links section leading to useful health websites.

So, while I haven't quite made it up the drive to get today's Herald from the box, I do know what the headlines will be. And, while I personally cannot see the print version declining terminally in appeal in the next five to 10 years, who knows what the future will hold?