I remember the first message board. It was so cool to have this ongoing conversation on some various topic which zigged and zagged back and forth and occasionally went off in some tangent that was even more interesting than the first topic. Whether you\’re trying to find how out to use that sweet anime program or researching why your eyebrows just started falling out, this moving conversation of message boards setting is here to stay. We\’ve taken that feel and gave it even more power in the world of instant and online local news and local gossip.

So what is the Rezip in the Zipper smart phone app. Basically, when a person fist posts a zip message of local news or local gossip importance, it\’s fresh out the gate. For that reason, it will get notoriety up top for a brief while but this new found validity is fleeting unless two things happen. One, it needs to win over the \”Thumbs\” for confirmation of the actual report but another key to determining how strong a message stays after it\’s brief unveiling at the top is the # of rezips. Any person reading a local news or local gossip zip can click on the teaser message (from main window) and reply in a message board format. This is in addition to using the quick Thumbs Up or Down for confirmation/denial of the original story. The system will take into account the number of rezips as a measure of engagement that the original message conveys. What else does the the rezip do?

It gives the original message life, direction, and ultimately, power. It allows additional information to be added to the message. Let\’s say you\’re sitting at a coffee shop just minding your own business when a car goes shooting past you at 100 miles per hour down a small street. Whoaa! What the heck was that? Good question. Put a quick zip on the Zipper about a black speeding El Camino (come on, it had to be an El Camino) and watch what happens. You don\’t know much more than what you saw but other people will likely fill in additional detail. \”Yea, they just passed me and jumped out of the car with cops in pursuit\” follows as a rezip 30 seconds later. Wow. They even posted a picture of the get away and car in their rezip. Now, we\’re watching real news live as it happens. This was impossible before the Zipper and it speaks to the beauty of what the Zipper aims to do. Another person rezips, \”There was a robbery at the Wells Fargo on 3rd Ave. Any connection?\” Another separate rezip follows, \”Yep. I saw the two guys running out of WF and jumping in that car. Wow!\” Another rezip pops up \”I know one of those guys. Went to Santa Monica High. Tim…something\”. Another quickly pops up, \”Tim Reynolds. He\’s crazy! Sister dated him\”. Maybe a few incorrect rezips or clowns post which is to be expected but we now have a 360 view of a local news event made up of the collective eyes, ears, and minds of everyone in the area. The Zipper truly can change the way we look at local news and the rezips tie all the info together and turns a vague \”car speeding down street\” into a back story of how Tim just lost his job and broke up with girlfriend; drinking heavily\”. If you\’re interested in the story (say your Tim\’s ex-girlfriend…good choice by the way) you can follow it as far as you like with the threaded message board flow of the Zipper and the rezips.

You may also find a really cheap El Camino for sale through the Zipper or a few words of wisdom to get over a bad breakup. It\’s the power of everyone\’s collection knowledge and an extension of their senses to fully flesh out any local news or local gossip story that\’s important to you. By you, we mean anyone.

Dennis Jarvis writes extensively about local news and local gossip smart phone apps.