[3] Georgia Humanities and UGA Press then convinced Governor Zell Miller, who commissioned the guide in the first place, to fund the planning and development of a comprehensive print and online state encyclopedia.

The planning committee argued that the increased receptiveness to change offered by the online medium would quickly obviate a printed volume.

Unlike other state and regional encyclopedias, the project partners and editorial staff believed that the NGE should cover a wide range of subjects, instead of only history and culture.

Today, the NGE separates its articles into 10 topics: Arts and Culture, Business and Economy, Counties, Cities, and Neighborhoods, Education, Geography and Environment, Government and Politics, History and Archaeology, Science and Medicine, Sports and Outdoor Recreation, and People.

[5] Site improvements included updated media players and a search engine for articles compliant with Georgia Educational Standards.