The electronic version of the newspaper

It’s that time of year. You are getting ready to pack for the annual vacation. You should take us with you.

I’m serious, please take us with you.

The Marietta Times is delivered every day around 5 a.m. No, I’m not talking about the one that gets delivered to your mailbox. I’m talking about the electronic one. It’s awesome and you get it for free if you have a subscription to the printed version, and pretty darned reasonable if you don’t.

The All-Access edition is an incredible collection of local information – let me give you the highlights of what you may have been missing.

The All-Access edition has a four-year archive. You can go back and look at every page we have published for four years. That’s 1,204 editions, or more than 19,000 pages.

It has a search function to help you find what you are looking for on thousands of pages.

The pages are easy to view. You can view the pages as a gallery, but you can also click through them one by one, much the way you leaf through a printed copy. You can also enlarge the pages so you can read it even if you can’t find your glasses. (Are they on top of your head?)

You can also clip out stories and email a friend. You can even print it out and hang it on your fridge if you want. A different feature will read the story to you. If the AI voice mispronounces names like Muskingum and Kanawha, I am sure you will understand.

You can view All-Access pages by clicking on the link for Today’s Paper at the top of the newspaper’s website and following directions. Once you have a username and password you can use it to log into the All-Access app on your computer, smart phone or tablet. The username and password will also give you full access to the newspaper’s website, unlocking the thousands of stories available there.

If you never set up your digital access, just let us know and we will be more than happy to help you out. If you decide to email us, please let us know your address, phone number, name on the account, plus your email. There is an email address on the log in page, send us your info if you are having issues.

It’s great to have an old friend with you when you travel. Throw us in your bag and we can help you get through the two-hour delayed flight, or the 8-hour car ride. You can access it on your computer, tablet or smart phone. The dedicated All-Access app makes the newspaper one click away on a tablet or phone.

Who knows, maybe on your next vacation the age-old question, “are we there yet?” will be replaced by “can I read the newspaper when you are done?”

Art Smith is online manager of The Parkersburg News and The Marietta Times, he can be reached at asmith@mariettatimes.com