So, after all the waiting the time has finally come.

Of course, I'm talking about the relaunch of TrainingZone. Last time that we did this was 2009. In a few years' time we might well do it again. When the site relaunched three years ago it was both a radical departure and a dramatic improvement, but now elements of the site we are used to are no longer considered cutting edge in the publishing market. New technology and methods of content publishing have been developed since then that greatly enhance the 'user experience', to use a techie marketing term. Responsive design is a prime example of this. What responsive design offers is the ability to view the same version of the site regardless of the device you are viewing it on. This means no loss of functionality, no cut-down versions, no need to develop the 'app' form of TrainingZone, just because we feel we should. (This isn't to say we won't in future, but responsive solves our problems right now).

Another big move was to improve and simplify navigation. So, the top nav bar has been cleaned up. Some topics have been subsumed into others, some have been added, but also feature topics have been colour coded to give members a better idea of where you are and what you're reading about. And if you like it, there's a few suggestions at the bottom of the feature about what else might float your boat. Offering more types of media is something that the community wanted to see more of, so videos have a spot on the front page and can be browsed there and then, and we're also starting a podcast, which can be streamed right into your ears from the homepage too (starts mid-Jan).

While registrations have been increasing on site, the process (as it stands) has certainly been seen as a barrier by some; laborious and confusing. So that's been made much much easier, allowing the community to grow, connect and collaborate. It's tricky getting everything right first time for everyone so there will be regular Any Answers posts to discuss any issues that arise after launch.

But, for the moment the bulk of the hard work is over, and the people to thank are design, tech and community teams. I just stood about saying 'yes', 'no' and 'bigger social buttons'.

But it's never completely finished: We'll be tweaking and improving all the time. The site will mutate again. For now - welcome to the new TZ community.