As soon as you open Willie Jester's (liberal arts and sciences '88) orange and maroon web site, you know you're in Hokieland. Even Virginia Tech alumni in the farthest reaches of the world feel they are back in Blacksburg when they see the familiar names and faces on the computer screen. And that is exactly what Jester, the editor and creator of Hokie.com newsletter, is trying to do.

Jester's online site began as a newsy letter letting friends around the world know what was happening at Virginia Tech. "All of a sudden (other) people started asking for it," Jester says.

The Hokie.com newsletter has been dispensing positive Virginia Tech news online regularly since November to about 1,500 alumni. About 150 new viewers visit the site each day, many of them making requests to receive the newsletter online, Jester says. The hits (viewings) to the site increase each month. Between December and January he recorded more than 25,000 hits, he says.

The site offers many ways for alumni to maintain their Virginia Tech connection. At the Hokie Connection, alumni can look up long lost friends or register current information about themselves. Viewers can also converse about sports performance, recruiting, or other Tech news. Recent topics have included the football team's performance off the playing field and exchanges with administrators about how the proposed Advanced Communications and Information Technology Center spanning the Mall will affect the view. (Pedestrians will still be able to see the pylons.)

Jester also lists alumni-owned businesses and creates links to their home pages. A recent sampling included Jerry Cutchin's (agriculture '57) power-tool distributorship, Dan Barineau's (engineering mechanics '87) home-locating service, and Scott Carter's (technology education '92) custom iron-furniture business, as well as Jester's own Hokie product line.

Other features include Blacksburg events, alumni news, academic information, Tech offerings, and sporting events. As an added service to alumni, Jester has also included links to The Washington Post and The Roanoke Times, as well as to stock quotes and other national news. "It's easier to find everything when it's in one location," he says.

Even Virginia Tech President Paul Torgersen has had good words for Hokie.com's ability to get information out in a timely manner, Jester says. The newsletter also has links to the university's home page.

Jester will soon add sorority and fraternity web page links to his site, as well as links to other organizations. "There will be links to virtually everywhere," he says.

Jester returned to Blacksburg in 1994 to get an MBA, but ended up starting his own business, Personalized Products. The company sells Hokie products, such as peanuts, mouse pads, screen savers, and Hokie Bird towels, and sets up web pages for companies that wish to get online. Hokie.com is just one of the web sites set up through the company.

Laura Rosback (communication studies '97) was an editorial assistant intern for the Virginia Tech Magazine.

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