KEY POINTS:
Otara is getting its own social networking website, in what's being touted as New Zealand's answer to Bebo or MySpace.
The website - dubbed The Haps - is being developed by teenage members of the Computer Clubhouse 274, with the help of the University of Auckland's new Digital Communities Development Centre, which opened yesterday. It is due to go live next year.
It is part of a wider plan to increase the use of new technology in one of the country's poorest areas. That includes providing wireless broadband to the suburb in an initial rollout to cover about 1500 homes next year.
"We did some surveys with families to find out who was on broadband and there was about 1.3 per cent. The national statistic is about 37 per cent," said Mike Usmar, executive officer of the Computer Clubhouse Trust NZ.
Mr Usmar said the ability to text message comments to the online site was among the students' early ideas for the website.
"A lot of kids do have mobile devices and off they go - they can start texting and commenting that way," said Mr Usmar.
A 3-D "virtual" Otara is to be a feature. "They can pretty much design Otara the way they want it - so that could be interesting in it's own right."
University of Auckland centre for software innovation director John Corey said features of The Haps would aim to reduce online safety problems.
"It will be the first time that New Zealand has applied this [a social networking website] to a school environment," said Mr Corey.
He expected it would be popular.
"It needs to be driven by the people and communities who use it - not driven by someone back in California or Boston."
Clubhouse 274 member and Te Whanau o Tupuranga Year 8 student Nathaniel Toia was involved in the initial ideas session. The 13-year-old, who is eyeing a career in IT, wants the portal to have a comments forum and galleries to post photographs.
Year 13 student Lolita Lio said the website would be of interest to working parents, who want to keep an eye on what their children are up to.
"When this does take off, The Haps will be the new Bebo."
