January at Sidepodcast HQ continued where the previous month left off, working on shiny new things in anticipation of the 2012 F1 season. Today we pulled the covers back on the next item on the virtual conveyor belt, a contact page!

After many months of berating, prodding and mickey taking, Christine finally got the page she always wanted - an obvious means of getting in touch with us. Such simple pleasures.

Oh yeah, we also debuted a brand new live event commenting system this afternoon. It's kinda neat.

Event horizon

Having followed and commentated on live F1 events since the beginning of the 2008 season here at Sidepodcast, we know just how much fun sharing the live experience can be. Watching a Grand Prix alone is no longer an option.

This year, with a focus on mobile devices and commenting on the move, we've re-imagined the live experience at Sidepodcast.

Live events are the new way to contribute to the live conversation. Designed to offer the briefest of overviews, before getting out of the way and leaving you free to get on with the business of sharing your observations, the new pages allow you to track conversations on any device, anywhere. Sharing has never been so simple.

In the UK, Formula 1 coverage is changing significantly for 2012, and Live Events will allow us to manage the multiple conversations during the course of a race weekend with ease. It's entirely possible we could set up separate pages for live, delayed-live and highlights coverage if the demand is there.

We already have a test event set up should you fancy jumping on in and having a play around, and we'll be certain to give the system a thorough test ahead of the F1 season.

Behind the scenes we've made the creation of threads more straightforward, such that we'll never need to twist anyone's arm for a guest post about an obscure race at the last minute again! Additionally, because threads are separate from the main content of Sidepodcast, a wider range of subjects can be covered without encroaching on the main F1 content. The new system will almost certainly come into it's own when both the Olympics and Euro 2012 get underway this summer.

Mobile home

There is, as with anything we release, more to come. Notably, live events conceptually tie in nicely with the Sidepodcast Dashboard, so look out for updates in that area in the coming weeks.

We're focusing on the mobile experience throughout the whole site right now. Our responsive template offers the best possible experience to users of mobile devices, tablets and desktop machines alike. The goal is to make interacting and sharing the live experience with likeminded fans, the best possible experience we can offer.

In the meantime, have a play in the test event and join us later this evening for our first real test, Crashed Ice live from Saint Paul!