ccmag2010_04

Founder & Editor-in-Chief Steve Hewitt - steve@ccmag.com VP of Operations Michael Hewitt - mike@ccmag.com

Applying Tomorrow’s Technology to Today’s Ministry Volume 22

April 2010

No. 4

6 cover story

Cool Solutions Group Offers Intuitive Web-Based Room and Facilities Management Solutions for Churches

by Steve Hewitt

Copy Editor Gina Hewitt

3 editorial

“PCs in the Ministry” Is Now Available Through CCMag!

Steve Hewitt - steve@ccmag.com

4 Press Releases 10 ACS ideas to impact

It Is All about the Weekend

from ACS Technologies

12 Special Feature

Logos Church Management Software Offers New Solutions

15 accelerating the dynamic church Dynamic Churches Have Vision

International Conference on Computing and Missions(ICCM)

19 tech talk

Windows 7: New and Improved Applets

Dr. J.D. (Doc) Watson - docwatson3228@qwest.net

21 Special Feature

One Company’s Story of Using Web Video to Inspire Others

23 higher power with kevin

Using the Apple iPad in Ministry

2010’s Hot Technology

Nick Nicholaou - nick@mbsinc.com

28 launching online

Isn’t Open Source Socialistic?

32 big ministry - small resources Android Attack

34 church web strategy

Minnie Lamberth

Kevin A. Purcell - kevin@kevinpurcell.org

26 nick at church

Russ McGuire - russ.mcguire@gmail.com Bradley Miller - bradley.w.miller@gmail.com

Church Website Communications Teams and Content Strategy Research Part 2

33 ministry communication

Corporate Home Office

from Fellowship Technologies

17 Special Feature

Contributing Editors Dr. J.D. “Doc” Watson Terry Wilhite Yvon Prehn Nick Nicholaou Kevin A. Purcell C. Brian Smith Russ McGuire Drew Goodmanson Bradley Miller Michael Curylo

Drew Goodmanson - drew@monkdevelopment.com

Christian Computing® is a registered trademark of Christian Computing, Inc. Written materials submitted to Christian Computing® Magazine become the property of Christian Computing®, Inc. upon receipt and may not necessarily be returned. Christian Computing® Magazine reserves the right to make any changes to materials submitted for publication that are deemed necessary for editorial purposes. The content of this publication may not be copied in any way, shape or form without the express permission of Christian Computing®, Inc. Views expressed in the articles and reviews printed within are not necessarily the views of the editor, publisher, or employees of Christian Computing® Magazine, or Christian Computing, Inc.

A Useful, Inexpensive, and Easy-to-Use Tool to Create Web Graphics

Yvon Prehn - yvonprehn@aol.com

Articles that are highlighed are provided by our partners www.ccmag.com/2007_03/2007_03editorial.pdf

Christian Computing® Magazine

April 2010

editorial

“PCs in the Ministry” Is Now Available Through CCMag! Steve Hewitt - steve@ccmag.com

ant some fantastic ideas on how to use technology tools and services to enhance and expand your ministry? Then get my new book “PCs in the Ministry”! Thomas Nelson Publishers asked me to write the book as one in a series that they are producing. I centered my book on two things. First, I sought to provide many real-life examples of how people are using technology in all aspects of ministry. There are examples in the book of churches using imaginative ways of combining technology with their children’s ministry, youth ministry, discipleship, evangelism, worship, etc. In fact, I basically provided examples in every area that most churches have included in their mission and purpose statement. I am a firm believer that technology, the Internet and computers can be used in each and every aspect of the church today! When I wrote the book last year, I was acutely aware of the fact that we were in the midst of a recession. Therefore, I provided many solutions on using technology in ministry that would not cost a church a single penny! There are many exciting ways you can use computers and the Internet to connect people, provide discipleship, and even expand your outreach, all without adding a single dime to your budget! The second area I centered on , I know that most churches face a potential conflict whenever they seek to implement new technology solutions within their church. I cover this in the book as well. There is a right way and a wrong way to introduce change in a church, and there are always those that seem to want to stand against change, especially when it comes to technology, within the church. However, there are some very good methods that I explain enabling you to move toward technology solutions in your ministry without raising concerns and diminishing conflicts. I hope you will give my book a good read. Buy one for your staff and pass it around! It is available on our site at

Christian Computing® Magazine

www.ccmag.com/shop for only $29.95 plus $5 for shipping and handling. Three Books now Available In the Tech Guide Series Besides the book I have published, “PCs in the Ministry”, Thomas Nelson has also released “Audio, Video and Media in the Ministry”, and “Macs in the Ministry”. Now all three books are available in the CCMag bookstore. Each sells for $29.95 plus only $5 for shipping and handling. Visit www. ccmag.com/shop to order your book today! Together We Serve Him

April 2010

Press Releases Elexio & People Driven Software Come Together From this point forward the merger of Elexio and People Driven Software will provide Churches & Christian ministries the best of both worlds, technologically speaking: Website Content Management & Church Management all in one place. Elexio has announced the merger of Elizabethtown, PAbased Elexio with People Driven Software, based in Apex, NC. This merger is a natural transition for both companies as they separately served both churches and Christian ministries and can now serve them together, providing better products and services than companies offering affiliated or separate partnership arrangement relationships. Elexio, the parent company, provides Web Site Content Management Software while People Driven Software provides Church Management Software. This merger will unite not only two companies, but two powerful software solutions. Both software solutions are now available in one place: Website Content Management Software, which allows the most basic of computer users the ability to update their organization’s website content with speed and ease and Church Management Software, which is designed to assist churches in effectively managing the process of people becoming fully engaged disciples of Christ. The existing People Driven Software staff will be merged with the Elexio staff. Jeff Hostetter, CEO of Elexio, remarked, “This merger even further positions Elexio for the continued growth and job creation we expect to experience going forward into 2010.” “It is incredible how God has given People Driven Software and Elexio similar mission, core values, vision, and software platforms. We are thankful to join church management and website content management and to partner with churches worldwide in fulfilling the Great Commission of Jesus Christ. Praise God for orchestrating our steps to advance His kingdom.” -- Jeff Hostetter, CEO - Elexio “The merger of Elexio and People Driven Software means a huge win for churches and Christian ministries. I am downright giddy about all the new things we are going to be able to do now to serve our customers. We love leveraging great technology to help build the Kingdom of God and when you get to work with great people like the ones at Elexio who share the same mission, it’s just pure joy.” -- Mark Kitts, President - People Driven Software From this point forward churches and Christian ministries will be able to have the best of both worlds, technologically speaking: Website Content Management & Church Management all in one place. Christian Computing® Magazine

To learn more about this merger, the products, and how your church or ministry can benefit from these software solutions visit http://www.elexio.com/news or call 888-997-9947 option 1.

ServiceU Announces EventU Green™ Compatibility with NiagaraAX Churches Using NiagaraAX to Run Their HVAC System Can Automatically Manage Room Scheduling and HVAC with EventU Green ServiceU Corporation (http://www.ServiceU.com) announces compatibility with NiagraAX, Tridium’s next generation Niagara Framework® software that will allow EventU Green to integrate with more churches’ heating and cooling systems. “By integrating with NiagaraAX, EventU Green will be able to work with hundreds of churches that are already using this platform to control their HVAC systems,” says Tim Whitehorn, president and CEO of ServiceU. “We are very excited that this integration will allow more churches to take advantage of the 10-20% or more energy savings that EventU Green has demonstrated.” EventU Green™ (http://www.eventugreen.com), an add-on component to ServiceU’s EventU™ event management tool, allows churches to automatically coordinate heating and air conditioning based on the church’s event schedule. “One of the most important benefits of EventU Green is that it allows church staff members to manage room and facility scheduling AND the temperature controls in one easy to use calendaring system,” continues Whitehorn. “In addition to energy savings, EventU Green reduces the labor required to ‘turn on and off’ the HVAC for various church events and helps reduce costly temperature swings.” To learn more about how EventU Green can work with your church’s NiagaraAX HVAC system, contact ServiceU at (866) 709-7426. Or, visit us online at www.EventUGreen.com. About NiagaraAX NiagaraAX’s (http://www.niagaraax.com) open, Javabased framework creates a common environment that connects to almost any embedded device imaginable, regardless of manufacturer or communication protocol. The system then models the data and behavior of the devices into normalized software components, providing a seamless, uniform view to the enterprise via a wide variety of XML-based enterprise April 2010

Press Releases connectivity options and open API’s. NiagaraAX reduces development time by merging automation, IT and Internet technologies in a single solution. About EventU Green™ EventU Green interfaces with a building’s HVAC system to cool or heat rooms to the perfect temperature for every event and thereby cut down on energy used when not needed. It turns the system on in time to reach the right temperature before the event starts--and it turns the system off automatically when the event is over. EventU Green integrates directly with EventU, so that event schedules and room temperatures are managed from within the same calendar system. When an event is scheduled, temperature controls are set up at the same time, ensuring that everything will be taken care of automatically. About ServiceU Corporation Since 1999, ServiceU Corporation has been the trusted solution for providing software that helps churches, schools and nonprofits simplify and automate administrative processes by moving them online. ServiceU’s core product line includes: EventU™ for event, resource, and facility management through web-based calendar scheduling software; EventU Green™ is an add-on to EventU that automates facility heating and cooling (HVAC) online based on a facility’s events schedule; TransactU™ provides secure online donation, payment, and event registration tools; TicketU™ provides online ticket sales, box office management, and theater software.

focused on improving back-office operations. In addition, Cheneweth will make use of his legal experience to serve as General Counsel for Fellowship Technologies. Jeff Hook, CEO, states, “I am excited by Nic’s arrival and the unique experience he brings in both technology operations and legal matters. His insight will be invaluable to the larger strategy we have in mind for Fellowship Technologies.” Cheneweth’s education and experience are undeniable assets to the company. He currently holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science from Walla Walla University, an MBA and JD from Willamette University, an LL.M. (Master of Laws) from Southern Methodist University, and he is currently working on yet another degree, a Master’s in Theology at Dallas Theological Seminary. He spent fifteen years with Friendship Developmental Services, Inc. as the Chief Executive & Legal Affairs Officer, and after moving to Texas he began his own consulting firm, Exegete Consulting Group. About Fellowship Technologies Fellowship Technologies provides solutions that help dynamic churches of any size or denomination to be more effective in ministry, more efficient in administration, with the essential information to make decisions. Their flagship product, Fellowship One, is a web-based church management software solution used by ministries around the world ranging in size from new church plants to mega-sized, multi-site churches. For more information, please visit http://www. FellowshipTech.com

Fellowship Technologies Announces the Addition of Nic Cheneweth as VP of Information Technology Fellowship Technologies has named Nic Cheneweth as its Vice President of Information Technology and General Counsel. Cheneweth has served as a consultant to Fellowship Technologies for several months and as of March 1, 2010, joined the staff full-time to oversee the Information Technology department and establish a new team Christian Computing® Magazine

April 2010

cover story

Cool Solutions Group Offers Intuitive Web-Based Room and Facilities Management Solutions for Churches

by Steve Hewitt

his month, I’m excited to share with you a new facilities management solution on the horizon that is truly exciting. In this economic climate, it’s great to hear about companies serving the church market offering free solutions to small churches, church plants, in addition to robust services for medium sized churches on up to mega-churches. That’s just what Tim Cool with Cool Solutions Group is doing: Rocking the boat just a little as he launches two new web-based solutions for the church space that aim to help with room scheduling and facility management at churches far and wide. I hope you enjoy learning more about Tim’s passion for this market and how his company aims to meet a need expressed by churches of all sizes.

What was your motivation to develop ministrEspace and facilitEspace? I come from a background of working with the facility needs of ministries. For the past 24 years, I helped churches plan, develop, construct and maintain their facilities. During that time I saw many churches spend millions of dollars to build new facilities and then gave very little attention to the care and day-to-day operations of those facilities. This baffled me and caused me to wonder why we don’t do a better job with the stewardship of the facilities God has entrusted to us. So as Cool Solutions Group was doing its due diligence in the market, we found a couple of voids that we think we can fill. The first solution we developed is a web-based application (SaaS) room scheduling program that allows for unlimited Christian Computing® Magazine

users while remaining very cost effective. There are some good companies in this space, but we found most were either expensive when unlimited users were required, or they were not webbased, or they just felt clunky. We wanted something that felt more like Outlook or Basecamp (By 37 Signals) and was more graphical than textual. ministrEspace responds to those needs. The second void we found in the market was a Work Order/Facilities Management software program that was webbased and geared toward the church community. Again, we found programs that were acceptable, but none whose sole market was churches, ministries and other non-profit organizations. facilitEspace allows ministry property and facility mangers to respond to daily demands quickly and efficiently.

April 2010

Christian Computing速 Magazine

April 2010

What differentiates ministrEspace from other room scheduling programs in the market? First of all, it looks great! A user’s events are displayed on the dashboard chronologically, and each event is a live link that immediately opens the event in the Event Viewer so that all the information about the event is available. ministrEspace offers access to all ministry staff, yet allows authority to be controlled so that events can only be approved in the way that they ministry permits. It provides calendar views that show all events in a way that identifies their status (pending, approved, or conflicting) so that everyone can see at a glance whether an event can be created for a given time, date, and space. It is web-based, so there is no software to install or maintain. Notifications are generated within the ministrEspace system but can also be sent via the user’s email system. Event details can also be printed right from ministrEspace, with varying levels of detail depending on the need. What differentiates facilitEspace from other facility management programs? Like ministrEspace, facilitEspace is web-based and intuitive. It is designed to aid the church administrator, property manager, or facility manager with the daily tasks that need to happen, but (in my experience) frequently don’t happen when they should. Things like scheduled maintenance for equipment, building repairs, and maintaining an equipment database. FacilitEspace puts everything in one place and allows the manager to receive service requests, create work orders, and keep track of projects. It eliminates multiple spreadsheets, to-do lists, and sticky notes! I hear you’ve recently released a “FOREVER FREE” version of ministrEspace. Can you tell us about this offering? I have always had a heart for the small church, church planters, start-ups and the like. My dad was a church planter so I guess that passion started early in life. As we developed ministrEspace, we knew that not every church would be able to afford the tool and would continue to use an Outlook calendar or Google Calendar or even a spreadsheet (or worse…a legal pad) to schedule rooms in their facility. I have firsthand experience with the conflicts that can arise from these types of systems. A room was supposed to be reserved , but then you find out that the page of the legal Christian Computing® Magazine

pad was removed or someone’s hard drive crashed and all the data was lost, or someone else reserved the space in a different calendar. Suddenly the room you had reserved is not available and the event is in jeopardy. We wanted to provide every church with the opportunity to have a professional software solution that was developed for churches and would help them avoid these situations, even if they could not afford the PRO version of our service. FOREVER FREE is an excellent tool that has many of the same features as the PRO version, with some exceptions. It is a very simple application that allows up to 3 users to schedule rooms (what we call spaces, as they can include things like ball fields, parking lots, etc.) and approve Events. And like the PRO version, it is April 2010

completely web-based so it can be accessed from any anywhere. Perhaps the best thing is that it is FREE (and who doesn’t like free?). What type of technical (or non-technical) background is needed to use these two solutions? Describe how a user would integrate this into their day-to-day tasks? I do not have a technical background – I have a degree in music and have been in church construction and facility development all of my adult life. I needed something that I could understand, use and explain to others. We have tried to make our solutions as user-friendly and non-technical as possible. We made a conscious decision to provide products that did not require an IT degree to use. With both products being web-based, they can be utilized from any computer, anywhere. As long as you have internet access, you can login. The products will alert users of tasks and duties that need to be accomplished on a daily basis and even provide the necessary requirements for room set up configurations or when a vendor is scheduled to make a repair or perform product maintenance on your equipment. The combination of these two products can save administrators, facility managers, property managers and those responsible for the scheduling and care of their facilities an enormous amount of time and money. Your website talks about “trellis work” and how this is your company focus. Can you share what this means? We are all familiar with a trellis in a garden or yard. It is the structure constructed to support the growth of a vine or other plant. In most cases, once the vine or plant is fully grown, the trellis is virtually unseen and is clearly in the background so that the reason for the trellis can be fully visible and enjoyed by the onlookers. Just as some sort of frame work is needed to help a vine or plant grow, so our churches, ministries and organizations also need some structure and support. It may not be much, but every organization has some kind of trellis that gives shape and support to the Vine Work. As the organization grows, the trellis also needs attention. Buildings, facility management/maintenance, finances, administration, and infrastructure – these all become more important and more complex as the vine/ plant grows. The common mistakes most organization make is that they allow trellis work to take over from the vine work. When this happens, the Vine suffers and people take the eye off the ball. Our mantra is “We focus on the facility (i.e. Trellis) allowing you to focus on the ministry (i.e. Vine).” We have developed our solutions to assist you to stay focused on the ministry/Vine and your core competencies as an organization. What is next on the horizon for Cool Solutions Group and your Web-based Software Solutions? We are dedicated to meeting the needs of our end users. Our products are for them, so it’s important to us to constantly look to improve in order to meet their needs. In fact, for ministrEspace, we have developed a list of enhancements for our 2.0 version that we trust to release later in 2010. We have received great feedback and also can see new ways to add features that the market could benefit from. In addition, we are exploring the possibility of developing an API interface so that the products can function with other software solutions to provide a more integrated end-to-end facility solution. To download several white papers on facilities management visit http:// coolsolutionsgroup.com/resources.

Christian Computing® Magazine

April 2010

ACS

ACS ideas to impact

It Is All about the Weekend

from Eric Geiger

eekend worship services are incredible ministry opportunities. Wise church leaders seize the opportunity to motivate their congregation and teach Scripture in the community. But oftentimes it’s easy to focus on producing a great weekend event at the expense of strengthening the spiritual commitment of the congregation. ACS Technologies has partnered with Eric Geiger to develop the ministry guide It Is All About The Weekend...And Then What, from which this article is excerpted.

It Is All About The Weekend The rallying cry for greater focus and energy to be placed on the weekend services is warranted. “It is all about the weekend” has merit in church ministry. However, leaders who approach the weekend worship services with a kingdom advancing mentality know that the phrase is incomplete. All About People… “It is all about the weekend” is an incomplete phrase for multiple reasons. First, the mentality can cause church leaders to view weekend worship services merely as a program to manage rather than an environment where God will transform people. Subtly and overtime the goal can become producing a great weekend service instead of the weekend service being a tool to help people connect with God. And church leaders become program managers, seeking to tweak the program to perfection. People must be the goal, not the program or the weekend event. Church leaders must constantly ask themselves, “Do we care more about the service itself or about the people who come to the worship service?” The weekend worship services should receive focus, energy, and attention, but church leaders Christian Computing® Magazine

must remember that ultimately the weekend worship service is about people encountering God. The details surrounding weekend worship services are important – checklists and walk-throughs all serve a purpose – because they reflect the church’s commitment to excellence. However, people need to experience a more powerful ministry through the elements of the production, not because of the production itself. Not The End… Second, “it is all about the weekend” is an incomplete phrase because the mindset can cause leaders to believe the weekend is the end of church ministry. Success can become producing a bigger and better weekend service, as if the weekend service is the culmination of local church ministry. The weekend service should not be the end. It must not be treated as a cul-de-sac where people reach a final destination and live stuck in their faith. The weekend service is a great beginning point, but ultimately people should be moved on to greater levels of commitment. Weekend services should be viewed as a strategic environment in the process of making disciples, not the strategic environment. April 2010

An extension to the phrase would be helpful; it is all about the weekend, then what? What level is the church seeking to move people to next? The weekend service should encourage movement to that next step. In context, that could mean utilizing the environment of a small group or a Bible study to help people move forward. It’s important to decide what the church wants them to do next. What is the next step that they should take to facilitate transformation in their lives? What is the program or environment people should to move to next? Questions To Consider 1. When people come to weekend worship service(s), what does the church ultimately want to see happen in their lives? 2. How do the weekend worship services fit into the overall church ministry vision? 3. How can the effectiveness of weekend worship service(s) be increased in light of the ministry vision? 4. In what areas do ministry checklists or walk-throughs need to be implemented? 5. When people attend the weekly worship service(s), what is the next step that the church wants them to take? What Should The Next Step Be? If the approach to weekend services has been too casual, a greater sense of focus could help churches minister to people more effectively. Or perhaps the weekend is like a welloiled machine but the heart and intention for ministry – people – has been somewhat minimized. Whatever state the church is in, treating the weekend services as the beginning ministry point will bring about renewed growth and vitality in the church and surrounding community. It’s All About The Weekend…Then What? Taking an organized approach can help to overcome the difficulties faced in the pursuit of effective ministry programming and design. For more practical advice and solutions to help people strengthen their spiritual commitment, download the ACS Technologies ministry guide It Is All About The Weekend...And Then What.

Christian Computing® Magazine

April 2010

special feature

Logos Church Management Software Offers New Solutions!

n talking with the folks at Logos Church Management Software the other day, I became aware of a couple of new features they are offering. I have followed the growth of Logos for over 20 years now (since I started Christian Computing Magazine) and always love to learn about their latest features and services for churches and ministries. I did a quick interview with Tony Ferraro, Chief Visionary Officer for Logos, and I believe many of you will benefit from learning about the new services Logos has to offer!

What new products or enhancements is Logos offering? The product roadmap in the church is exciting. Technology has significantly changed the way churches can operate. From basic back office and people management to relational interaction, technology is touching every part of the church. Logos remains committed to providing solid solutions that meet the changing demands of the church marketplace. Two great examples include our iCampus, internet campus, and VPIN, employee folder management, solutions. I’d like to hear more about both iCampus and Vpin. Let’s start with iCampus. How does the iCampus meet the needs of churches today? The acquisition of 360hubs, Inc. brought wonderful technology to Logos Management Solutions. The internet campus solutions or iCampus, is one of those. The iCampus was developed to meet the needs of the changing church. As churches desired to meet the “unreachable”, i.e. people that could not physically attend church due to either physical disabilities or conflicting work schedules, the product was designed to provide as “real” of an experience as Christian Computing® Magazine

possible. One very nice element of the iCampus solution is its integration with Facebook. Users can log in using their existing Facebook credentials, making it unnecessary to create a second profile. The solution will automatically pull their photo and profile information from Facebook. They can also control how the iCampus activity updates their Facebook wall making for a seamless experience between the two environments. In its design, core questions were addressed such as, how will discipleship be carried out, how will people be made to feel like they are part of a “church” and not simply “watching” one, how will the sacraments be performed, etc. To address these issues, the development team took the approach, “how can the experience beginning to end be as if someone were walking into the physical campus?” In the iCampus solution, attendees are greeted in a virtual lobby area staffed by church pastors and volunteers. As they arrive, community begins in the “Lobby Chat” room. Of course, people do have the option of remaining anonymous and not showing as “present” in the room. But, user profiles are also provided, attendees can see where others are from, what some of their interests are, etc. Users can also access the environment April 2010

from their mobile devices; although, the functions are more limited, the stream is formatted to provide ease of access from wherever they happen to be. A live countdown feature counts down to the upcoming service and begins. During the service, users can do something that they cannot do in a physical experience – ask questions. Throughout the service, using the chat room environment, users can ask questions, exchange other thoughts and interact with church pastors and volunteers. And, if needed, private prayer chat rooms are available for one on one conversation. Additionally, user can take notes, follow the online bulletin and read scripture. To encourage discipleship, the online environment includes a groups solution. Online users can join virtual small groups where they can interact with other members. Church pastors can lead weekly discussions about the service and manage online forums for deeper conversations. Attendees can link external blogs to the environment or write new ones within it allowing pastors to get to know their online community more effectively. The goal of most of the Logos churches currently using the iCampus solution is to move those that can to a physical church experience. In those cases, the iCampus is used as an outreach tool and members are eventually encourage to physically attend. In some cases, however, remote users do meet physically for small groups, perform baptisms and communion together. Central Christian Church in Las Vegas, NV, is one terrific example. Their online campus, http://www.CentralOnlineCampus.com, maintains roughly 2,200 weekly attendees from over 30 countries. They have enjoyed a national day of service with attendees around the world engaging in service projects. Some of their attendees include nurses and military Christian Computing® Magazine

personnel that physically cannot attend; however, they are huddled around computers in clutches of 5-9 people attending the online service with their friends and colleagues. Central has found that on some college campuses as many as 30 people are all watching together. Finally, new believers are being converted as well. There are many people that simply will not “walk into a church”. The web provides them a comfortable first step towards and eternal relationship with Jesus Christ. I’d like to hear more about Vpin as well. What need is Vpin addressing in the church today? Logos really marched on the cutting edge regarding pre-employment certification and background checking in the April 2010

church. For the last 2 years, Logos has been working many churches and catholic diocese to build a trustworthy employee verification solutions. Now, having been tested with thousands of employees across multiple church enterprises, VPIN is ready for prime time. VPIN provides a single solution for managing both staff and volunteers. The VPIN solution allows human resource and other church business and volunteer managers to set background check, certification requirements and other employee level actions by employee class or type, thus insuring a safe environment while saving money by limiting the background checks to only the areas of a person’s life that is required by their job or volunteer class. VPIN provides for the creation of a digital employee and / or volunteer folder. Based on the job or volunteer class or type, i.e. childcare provider or money manager, the folder can be set to create a profile of required documentation. For example, every employee folder will require a copy of the application and a completed I-9 with copies of identification. But, someone specifically working with children may also require a valid CPR certification and a background check appropriate for providing child care. A volunteer working with children may only require the background check and CPR certification. VPIN will continue to track that specific employee or volunteer throughout their relationship with church. As certifications expire or new testing is required, the workflow solution will provide proper notification to departmental or human resource managers and to the individual. Additionally, digital copies of all documentation can be attached to every virtual folder with notification indicating what is missing. One terrific advantage is that as employees or volunteers move from one facility to another in a multi-site congregation, denomination or diocese, the folder goes with them. Churches have found VPIN saves time and money. First, folder profiles are built at the job type rather than the individual with people being assigned to that job function. This means that not every employee or volunteer requires a new profile to be built; but, rather, they are married to a profile that already exists eliminating process redundancy. Additionally, churches no longer have to pay for every type of background check when only a specific one is required. For example, if someone is working with children, it may not be necessary to run a credit check. Logos is making every effort to insure that churches can provide the safest environment possible while also increasing efficiency and productivity by eliminating redundancy in the people management systems within the church. With continuous changes in the technology landscape, what types of advancements do you foresee for Logos? Logos will continue to move toward integrated technology platforms that solve the diverse enterprise needs of churches of all sizes. By integrating web, mobile, communication, database, back office and people management solutions into a single broad-based platform, Logos will continue to provide a solid foundation for managing any church environment.

Christian Computing® Magazine

April 2010

accelerating the dynamic church

Dynamic Churches Have Vision

¸ !CCELERATING 4HE $YNAMIC #HURCH By Anthony D. Coppedge

astor and author Andy Stanley once famously said, “An idea is what could be; but a vision is what should be.” Following the life of Nehemiah and the vision God gave him, Stanley points out this impactful truth in his book “Visioneering”. This kind of revelation is what’s talked about in the book of Proverbs when Solomon wrote, “Where there is no revelation, the people cast off restraint.”

Vision matters to churches that want to reach their communities and develop fully devoted disciples. That’s why we believe that dynamic churches have strong leadership teams with a clear vision of where they are headed. Though strong leadership can exist in a single leader, we have observed that a team committed to a vision will carry that vision and keep it in front of the people. In this way, every ministry area benefits from the team approach to leadership. The approach that yields the most results is based on a simple model: Vision, Goals, Strategies and Actions. Vision The vision is a unique representation of the specific DNA of a church’s culture. As a result, the vision of the church should not be the same as any other local churches. It’s this diversity in a community that fosters churches of varying styles, denominations and sizes all reaching different people groups. An example of a specific vision for a church might look like, “Our church will actively serve our local community through acts of service, partnering with the local government and providing resources to the needy.” When a church lacks vision, it often results in a church that stops growing or declines. Dynamic churches, however, will re-evaluate how they execute on their vision when something is not working, where as static churches focus on maintaining the status quo. Christian Computing® Magazine

Goals Having a vision means that the focus of effort needs to be applied in ways that allow it to be accomplished. This is where goals define the objectives. Goals are time-based and can be measured. If they don’t meet both criteria, they’re not goals, just ideas. Goals for the above sample vision might be: • “Have 50 people providing free volunteer services for the elderly, single parents and disabled people by the end of the year.” • “Provide free volunteer staff for city-wide events, including the annual July 4th parade, Arbor Days event and Christmas parade to help give back to the city.” • “Our men’s, women’s and youth ministries will organize teams of volunteers and find at least four service opportunities per month to serve people in need.” A dynamic church’s leaders will make sure that all goals align directly with the vision. These leaders understand that placing goals without metrics, inspection and accountability will lead to ministry silos – where each ministry is self-focused and misses the over-arching vision and mission of the church. The best dynamic church leaders will build goals with mileApril 2010

stones; that is, measurement “check points” along the timeline of the goal to ensure that the right time, energy & resources are being applied to reach the goal. Strategies Once vision and goals are set, strategies are devised to reach the goals. A strategy defines a plan of action. Typically, there are multiple strategies required to reach a goal. Some example strategies for the current example might be: • “Deploy an email & phone call campaign to determine the number of service organizations in the city. Reach out to known senior citizen centers, civic organizations and local mission organizations and offer organized support from the church.” • “Provide online registration via the church website for volunteering on different teams and varying service projects.” • Develop a print, web & video campaign to promote internal awareness among church members; develop an external campaign using some of the same resources to provide community awareness.” Dynamic church leaders realize that once goals are set, knowing how to reach those goals is a key part of accomplishing the vision. More than the other steps, this is one many leaders gloss over in their desire to start putting action steps into place. However, a rush to action will often lead to motion, but no progress. Actions The final step in implementing vision is to define the specific action steps necessary to execute strategy and realize objectives. A critical aspect is to spread the work of the ministry across staff and volunteers. Most strong dynamic church leaders will actually give far more work to a staff member than they can possibly handle as a motivator to include volunteers in getting the work accomplished. Examples of action steps might include: • “Promote service opportunities through announcement videos during weekend services and on the church website.” • “Develop promotional information packet of various Christian Computing® Magazine

services opportunities. Promote all registration of events through online forms or via email to the church.” • “Coordinate recurring service efforts with local organizations. Find weekly, monthly, quarterly and seasonal opportunities.” • “Create an advisory group that includes at least four leaders in the community and local government leadership within 30 days.” Action steps matter because they provide many of the metrics for measuring progress towards reaching a goal. The actions are not dependent upon a staff member doing all of them, but rather making sure the work gets done. Without defining the actions, it is difficult to set realistic expectations or timelines for implementing initiatives. How’s Your Vision? At the beginning of a new year, leaders often cast new vision. Has your church cast a vision, set goals, applied strategies and defined action steps to accomplish that vision? How can your church leaders refine the vision to match the unique identity of the church? Be a strong, dynamic leader and apply these principles to accelerate your church growth! April 2010

special feature

International Conference on Computing and Missions (ICCM) at Taylor University, Upland, IN June 18-22, 2010

here can you go for lots of sleep, no computers, and bad food? Probably just about anywhere. However, if no sleep, an overdose of computers, and good food are on your agenda, you might want to check out the International Conference on Computing and Missions (ICCM) at Taylor University, Upland, IN.

We have a history going back over 20 years. (From the days of the XT and 286) ICCM was one of those first places where you could go to a conference and relax. Its «no ties allowed» statement on the website may sound a little antiquated now, and yet it speaks to a more formal time when ties at «Christian» conferences were pretty much mandatory (unless it was a summer camp). From the beginning it's been a «by missionaries - for missionaries» conference. As a result, even though it has a lot of influence from industry and academia, it has retained its mission/ministry focus. Everything is available for discussion from the technical how-to to the missional why-to. Missionary techies attend to discuss techie ideas with other missionary techies, and corporate techies go so they can share their training and skills with missions. It has also been completely organized by volunteer power. ICCM is a true grass-roots conference. Whether an executive, middle-manager, low person on the totem pole, end user, power user, developer, uber-geek, or geek-wannabe, everyone has a place and something to offer and something to learn. All the labels and titles are checked at the door. Every year we get speakers and participants from across the 50 States as well as Canada, Europe, and South America. Most years we also include Asia, Africa and Australia in that mix.

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ICCM's rich history started with the first conference in 1989. Today it has grown and spawned two other conferences - ICCM-Asia and ICCM-Europe. In the beginning, the basic guidelines were set down. Everything was done by volunteers - if someone didn't volunteer for a job, it wasn't done. No one would own it. Conversely if you wanted something done, all you had to do was volunteer to do it and then follow through. It would have at its core a “by the missionaries - for the missionaries” ethos. Even now, with more influence from outside, those in leadership are careful to think through the eyes of the missionaries they’re serving. As a result, the computer industry has changed, society has changed, but ICCM has, at its core, not changed. It has that ''movement feel'' of being loosely organized and yet those on the organizing committee are all committed to maintaining its ethos. Over the years, we've discussed topics like: The Role of the International Information Super Highway in Missions PC Installation and Training on the Mission Field Ministry Linux for Beginners And more recently: Blackberry Server and Handheld Administration Moving from File Server to Online Services Introduction to Ruby on Rails Virtual Office – Virtual Team April 2010

This year we have a focus on Social Networking and what that means in ministry. Birds of a Feather sessions (BoFs) provide an informal discussion setting for tackling topics like: Emerging virus vectors and what can be done about them? Pornography and other questionable content and what should our response look like? (both from a ministry and a technical perspective) What does it really mean to use technology to follow Christ's call? How do we provide a positive, meaningful experience to our end users from the helpdesk? BoFs also provide an outlet for walking to Ivanhoe's (the local ice cream shop), or taking a guided tour of our host's campus network, or even getting some exercise and playing Ultimate Frisbee. One-on-One sessions allow individuals or groups needing specific help opportunities to sit down with an expert and get the advice they need. In the early days there was a feeling of Microsoft vs the World (Linux, Mac, et al...) and many heated debates raged over which was the ''right path'' to proper stewardship. Over time, cooler heads, and the Holy Spirit, have prevailed to lead most of our discussions in a less heated more gracious direction that seeks to find the best technology for a specific task based on the task requirements rather than a specific experts bias. Not that we don't still have biases but rather that we're more interested in seeking the overall Kingdom good rather than our own self serving perspective. One of the highlights that really helped in this progression is our What's Hot - What's Not program on the last morning of the conference. This hour-long brainstorming session throws out for all to see, what are the new and cool and useful technologies and what are the new and cool and useless technologies. Another main feature hour of the conference is often a lighthearted Technology for Mission contest where participants highlight work they've done in the past year that could be useful in other settings. Entries are judged on Impact, Quality, Cooperation, and Re-usability. In other words; does the project promote the Kingdom? what is the technical quality / usability? does it encourage cooperation in the Body of Christ? and can other ministries easily make use of the idea? This contest provides a lot of entertainment, gives missionary techies Christian Computing® Magazine

an outlet for sharing their ideas with their peers, and it gives everyone insight into other ways to think outside the box. This quote is taken from the website's 1998 archive: ''Our focus is on the community of Christian Technologists. Who are we? What have we accomplished this year? What can we learn from each other, to work more effectively in the year to come? What do we need to know about advances in technology and mission computing opportunities?'' ''At ICCM, we gather for a unique experience of spiritual fellowship, information sharing and vision renewal.'' “ICCM focuses on building a community of relationships, providing a relaxed forum for people to meet personally and to share ideas, opportunities and experiences, information and expertise, to help us all better use our Godgiven gifts and skills in His service.” In the early years, the conference cost $185. This year it's only $275. Where else can you go for 5 days and spend that little. In many cases, that's less expensive than staying home. So if you're interested in Christian mission and ministry and you use a computer, come enjoy the hospitality of Taylor University and check out the International Conference on Computing and Mission from June 18 to 22, 2010. This article was a collaborative effort between: Roy Campbell, ICCM 2010 Chair T.R. Knight, ICCM 2010 Host Tim Young, ICCM 2009 Chair

April 2010

tech talk

Windows 7: New and Improved Applets

Dr. J.D. (Doc) Watson - docwatson3228@qwest.net

here is more in the Windows 7 applets than meets the eye, so don’t take any of them at face value. There are some very powerful new features hidden beneath the surface. Be sure to explore every option in all the applets to make sure you don’t miss something special. To help get you going, here are three of the improved ones and another that’s new. Improved Calculator While Win7’s Calculator looks like Vista’s, looks can be deceiving. This applet is no longer the simple pocket calculator it once was. For geeks and other serious aficionados, there are the programmer, statistics, and scientific modes. For the rest of us, even we can do more than just

simple ciphering. We can now do unit conversions, date calculations, and use an extremely cool set of “templates” that enable us to do things such as figure out gas mileage, hourly wages, mortgage payments, leases, and more without a spreadsheet. Figure 1, for example, shows the mortgage template. Select the value you want to calculate (monthly payment, down payment, purchase price, or term), enter the other fields as needed, and then click “Calculate.”

Fig. 1 The new Win7 Calculator is packed with useful features and functionality.

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Improved WordPad At best, WordPad has always been an anemic word-processor, useful for only the most meager of tasks. While it’s still not full-featured, of course, it is now at least quite useable. A new ribbon (the strip across the top of the window that shows what a program April 2010

Fig. 2 WordPad is finally a very functional (though still basic) word-processor

can do) makes WordPad easier to use, with choices displayed out in the open rather than in menus. It also has more formatting options, such as highlighting (Fig. 2), better bulleting, line breaks, and new colors. With all that—not to mention picture insertion, improved print preview, and zoom—WordPad is a very functional tool for creating basic word-processing documents. Also, as before, WordPad saves documents in RTF by default, but it now also saves them in Office 2007 (.docx) or OpenDocument (.odt) formats.

Improved Sticky Notes Many users have for years been using third party utilities that mimic the little yellow PostIt Notes that somebody at 3-M stumbled onto eons ago (the glue was invented by accident). Well, Vista tried but failed. Win7, however, makes them simpler and more functional. To create a Sticky Note, click “Start > All Programs > Accessories > Sticky Notes” and just type the text you want (Fig. 3). To format the text, just highlight it and press Ctrl+B for bold, Ctrl+I for italics, and Ctrl+U for underlining. When done, just click somewhere on the desktop outside the sticky note itself. To add a new note from here, just click the little plus sign in the upper left corner of any existing note. You can also change the color of a note by rightclicking and selecting the color from the context menu. To delete a note, click the little X in the upper-right corner. Sadly, many users who hate the default font (Segoe Print) are discovering there is no way to change it. Some get around it by deleting this font from their system, which then causes Sticky Notes to default to MS Sans Serif . The only other workaround seems to be to write your note first in an app that permits you to specify the font and then copyand-paste the text into a note, which will retain the formatting. I don’t know, though; all that seems pretty drastic just because one is a font Fig. 3 Win7’s improved Stick bigot. Notes applet is now very handy. Problem Steps Recorder If you are an IT pro, or just the geek your friends call when they have a problem, the new Problem Steps Recorder (Fig. 4) is for you. Since such users often have no clue on how to describe what’s going on, PSR explains it all. When an app starts misbehaving, all the user need do is click “Start,” type PSR, press Enter, and then click the “Start Record” button. All they have to do now is just work through whatever they’re doing and PSR will record every click and key press, take screen shots, and then package the whole thing into a single zipped MHTML file when they’re done. They now just e-mail it to you and you retain your reputation as a genius.

Fig. 4 Problem Steps Recorder records every step of a procedure for troubleshooting purposes

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April 2010

special feature

One Company’s Story of Using Web Video to Inspire Others

By Minnie Lamberth

xletree Media, an Alabama-based developer of online communication software for ministry, has a unique vantage point when it comes to the increasingly popular intersection between ministry and technology. Thousands of churches and ministries utilize their Web-based software solutions every day to bring their online ministries to life. “We continually hear incredible stories from our customers about how they use our products,” said Jason Otis, the company’s vice president of marketing. “We always like to share those stories. That’s why we wanted to create videos to show how technology is being used in so many different ways to accomplish the same goal – living out and sharing the Christian faith.” The challenge for Axletree Media was how to do that without losing the spirit of the stories. “We knew the self-promotion part would be in there, but the objective was to inspire people to do something on their own,” Otis added. “We wanted to get out of our own way and let our customers tell their stories.” Showing how these tools can help other organizations pursue their own missions came in the form of customer testimonials captured in eight short online videos that covered the stories of customers of various backgrounds with various needs – all using Axletree products. Outside of Axletree Media’s software, the common threads throughout the stories are part struggle and part inspiration. The customers in each case started with an opportunity to change their environment, which led to a search for something to help them accomplish that change. “Some stories are very practical, others are more personal, but at the end of the day what’s made them all successful is that the tools met their need,” Otis said. Beginning the Process As Otis and others with Axletree considered potential testimonials – with more than 8,000 customers worldwide the list had to be narrowed substantially – they tended to narrow in on customers who had had the most frequent contact with customer support. That makes sense, because those were the ones who were often trying to achieve a specific purpose – and were

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looking at how these technological tools could help make their work easier. Ultimately, the team settled on eight stories that provided an array of situations and opportunities that could be addressed with specific tools developed by Axletree Media. These included:

· A Louisiana disaster relief organization that needed help organizing volunteers after Hurricane Katrina;

· A large church creating videos for use in worship services and on the Web;

· The first online student ministry for a church with a traditional congregation;

· A customer running a home-based design business for ministries;

· A church volunteer with no technical skills creating a Web site for his small church;

· A denominational missions coordinator connecting almost 1,500 churches to missions opportunities;

· A communications facilitator helping small churches within a denomination get online quickly and cost-efficiently.

· A new real estate company establishing a Web presence

for their market. “These stories are meant to inspire, educate, and inform others that might have a hidden dream or a pent-up frustration and to encourage them to just keep moving forward,” Otis said. “It starts by finding the tools that do most of what you want to accomplish and then diving in with both feet. The rest will come.” As Axletree Media dove into this process themselves, they found there was much work to do before these finished videos were launched online.

April 2010

Working with Partners “Once we had the concept of creating videos with a core theme – our customer’s own stories – we then had to look at our capabilities and decide what areas made sense for us to partner with others,” Otis said. “We’re an intentionally small company, so any special projects we take on often require some partners,” Otis added. “One of the lessons we’ve learned is that it’s far better to own up to that reality early on. If not, we lose our rhythm on the things we’re best at.” The partner they chose was The Electric Company, a production company that helps other companies create online brands, especially through Web entertainment. “The Axletree project is a good example of what many companies are seeking right now,” said William Hamilton, president and CEO of The Electric Company. “Companies are wanting to connect on a more personal level to anyone who could benefit from their products, and rightfully so. Before the Internet, people drew from their personal experiences when deciding which products to use. If your neighbor was satisfied with a certain product, you’d trust their word and may invest in the same product. Now, because of the Internet, our community is much larger, but the same principal still applies.” Hamilton said that The Electric Company helps sort through these challenges of establishing an online presence. “We understand that people crave a personal connection with the products they use, and we also understand that millions of those people are spending a significant amount of time on the Internet, looking for content that not only entertains, but informs,” he said. There is also another consideration for marketing to an online audience. “The online audience has become immune to traditional advertising,” Hamilton said. “We don’t want viewers to feel as though they are being advertised to. We want them to be entertained and informed by the stories we tell.” Next Month: Pulling the Pieces Together “After we found the right creative and editing team, we started focusing on the process of pulling the project together,” Otis said. “It was a collaborative effort where our side managed

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finding the stories and the people who could come and visit with us, and Will’s side focused on developing the visuals and core message of each story.” In an article next month, Otis and Hamilton will discuss the logistics needed to make this project work.

April 2010

higher power with kevin

Using the Apple iPad in Ministry Kevin A. Purcell - kevin@kevinpurcell.org

he hype during the week leading up to Apple’s iPad launch on April 3rd was like the hype leading up to most of Apple’s launches. There were live appearances of the

device in popular media outlets like David Letterman’s show and most of the major news stations. The Internet was buzzing with more stories than most wanted to read.

I personally got caught up in it! After all the hype, however, one thing remained. This is a remarkable device for one thing – Ministry! When I pre-ordered my iPad, that was my primary purpose. I wanted to have something more than my iPhone to use but less than my notebook computer. And many Bible study producers are giving me what I wish. Next month I will do an in depth survey of the best Bible apps on the iPad. But this month I want to describe how I think the device will revolutionize my work as a Pastor and writer. Bible Study As a pastor I spend anywhere from 10 to 20 hours a week just studying the Bible. Add to that an hour or so per day keeping up with news and reading just for fun or enjoyment. I also read a lot of professional development books. For years, I have had very large collections of books just sitting dormant in my Bible study software libraries. Yes, as a perk of writing this column much of this is supplied to me at no cost. But the books I have really wanted to read came in packages that I paid for during my days in Graduate school. Those collections had Bible translations, reference books and commentaries. But they also had leadership books, preaching books, Christian living titles, and devotional style writing. And most of it sat inside my computer collecting digital dust. Christian Computing® Magazine

April 2010

Now with the iPad, I will be more likely to actually read this content. Further, I will carry my iPad around as much as I have my Kindle and more than my laptop. So when I am waiting for a friend to meet me at a restaurant for lunch, I will pull it out and do some languages study or read what the New International Commentary has to say about my passage for Sunday night. I will make notes, highlight portions of the Bible and know that they will sync up with the cloud and show up in my iPhone and in the case of one Bible software package, on my desktop or laptop PC as well. As I am reading a book by John Piper or Max Lucado, I may be inspired to write a sermon about a topic in his book. So I can highlight it, make notes, copy some quotes to Evernote (a notes and clipping software available for most computer platforms from http://www.evernote.com) or MobileNoter (a program that interfaces between iPhone, iPod Touch and now iPad and Microsoft’s Onenote from http://www. mobilenoter.com) and have them show up on my desktop for that week when I am really struggling for something to preach this Sunday. Preaching and Teaching When I preach and teach I often use visuals. Usually, I use slides created in Photoshop and run through our church’s MediaShout (http://www.mediashout) software on the desktop system in the back of the sanctuary. Sometimes I use PowerPoint run on my bulky HP notebook computer. I hate carting it to church and hooking it up each Wednesday, so some days I just don’t bother. What I am looking forward to doing is hooking up my iPad to the projector in our fellowship hall on Wednesday nights and running my presentations via that small device. Since it also plays video and music, I can do worship right there like a one man band. We are a small church and do not have a full complement of worship leaders on Wednesday nights since our music director teaches the youth boys, and our piano player leads the girls. But with my iPad, that may change a little. I plan to download the iPad version of Keynote (read PowerPoint for all of us Microsoft users) and use it to show presentations via my iPad and the projector. I will also likely use my iPad instead of printed notes sheets. Currently, I study my sermon text, come up with an outline and then write out a full manuscript. I then go the opposite way and pair down that manuscript into an outline and take those notes into the pulpit with me. It uses a lot of paper, but works for me. Why all the steps? The process helps me go over my completed outline three times – once in the original preparation phase, once in the writing phase, and once post writing. I will continue to do this, but now instead of printing twice, I will print zero times. I will take the manuscript and turn it into the outline and transfer it to my iPad. That’s the plan now. We’ll see how it works out. Communication Keeping in touch is very important in ministry. I use my iPhone all the time. But I am Gmail user and the folks at Google are planning to enhance their Gmail service for the iPad. I look forward to using this. Keeping up with church members, fellow ministers, and you, will be easier via the iPad with more screen Christian Computing® Magazine

April 2010

to see email and write out longer communication. Social networking is a huge category right now. Churches are cashing in on the phenomena. I plan to do so as well with my iPad, following Twitter (http://www.twitter.com/kapurcell) and Facebook on the device. Writing letters is not something I do a lot of, but with Apple’s version of Pages (Apple’s word processor http://www.apple.com/ipad/features/pages.html) with me all the time, I can do a better job. And writing this column might not be as late each month. Entertainment You know what they say about all work and no play making Jack dull. It’s true of Kevin, too. So I plan to use my iPad for entertainment. I am looking forward to watching video, reading books, and surfing the web. I have some casual games to bide a couple of minutes of time. Keeping up with popular media also helps me to stay in touch with what people are thinking as I communicate the Gospel. One way that I think the iPad will help is interactive games. Few are talking about this, but

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Whil Wheaton (he played Wesley Crusher on Star Trek: The Next Generation) made a point that board games on the iPad is going to be a big category. I think he’s right. I like to play board games. I hate setting them up and tearing them down. My boys are just like me. So now we can open up a game on the iPad and play. It is not as big, but when you are sitting at a restaurant with slow service, it doesn’t have to be. And you don’t have to finish right then either. Conclusion This is just an overview of how I plan to use my iPad in ministry. Look back next month for more detail about Bible study on the device. Olive Tree, Laridian, Logos, Mantis, Tecarta and other Bible software publishers are all planning to do a lot with the new platform. And I’m very excited about the possibilities. If you got an iPad or have one on the way, comment below about how you plan to use it or have used it. We can learn from one another.

April 2010

nick at church

2010’s Hot Technology

Nick Nicholaou - nick@mbsinc.com

few times each year Steve Hewitt, Christian Computing Magazine’s Editor-in-Chief and I have the privilege of speaking at conferences about what’s happening in technology. We talk about the trends and products we think are hot and those that are not hot. Here’s a recap of what I shared at a recent conference. Hot: Cloud Computing Cloud computing is one of IT’s (IT is for Information Technology) hot topics, and has been for more than a year. Folks are almost giddy about using applications based on Internet access, like Google Apps. Cloud computing was originally defined as centralized data and applications on an Internet server somewhere. The idea is that by putting all your data on an Internet server, you no longer need to have a network server, no longer need to do daily backups, no longer need to hire a network administrator, and so on. It sounds like it will deliver huge savings! And with Google Apps being free for non-profits, even better! But all those savings come at a high price. Corporate America is not so excited about the cloud. Corporations see at least a couple of items that concern them: 1. Data security and protecting sensitive information (payroll records, etc) is not as good as corporations want. Though internal networks sometimes have security gaps, corporations feel they have more control over who has access to their data on their own networks than if that data is on an Internet server somewhere. 2. Reliable connectivity and uptime via the Internet are not as high as they are on well-engineered internal networks. There are a lot of possible reasons why Christian Computing® Magazine

the Internet may not be available at any given time, including downed lines, misbehaving Internet network routers, and more. And there are many possible points of failure between a company’s computer and the Internet server where the data may be located. In fact, Google Apps was down three full days and most of a fourth day in 2009! Users had no advance warning or technical support available, and simply could not access their data. So the cloud has been redefined to mean centralized data and applications on a server that is: • Accessible via the Internet, and • Located in a datacenter or in your server room. We have been strong believers in centralized data and applications since we first started engineering and supporting networks in the mid-1980s. Now that cloud computing includes using servers that can be located in your server room, we think that’s hot! And so does corporate America. Hot: Windows 7 & 2008r2, Exchange 2010, & Office 2010 We’ve been working with Windows 7 since January of 2009, and have found it to be solid and stable. We began recommending it shortly after its commercial release in the fall of 2009, and continue to consider it a good successor to April 2010

Windows XP Pro. We have also been working with Windows 2008r2 (Microsoft’s latest network operating system) since it was in beta, and it is good. Likewise, Exchange 2010 is solid. And though we haven’t worked with Office 2010 yet, we hear great things from colleagues who have, so it looks like it’ll be good. WTG, Microsoft! Hot: For non-AT&T Cellular Customers— The Droid Our clients are nationwide in urban and rural areas, so the coverage map is important to us. So we standardized on the Verizon cellular network some time ago because it had the best nationwide coverage. The problem, though, is that we couldn’t use iPhones, even though they were hot. When Verizon began offering the Motorola Droid, I was more than ready to give up my Palm Treo. The Droid is a terrific phone with a great operating system! It has the potential of becoming king of the smartphones— unless Apple decides to sell iPhones on networks other than AT&T. If Apple releases a Verizon version of its next iPhone, Android phones will have a big challenge. Both are good smartphones, and hot! May the best smartphone win! Not Hot: Cellular Network Specific Devices While we’re on that subject, let me say that the way phones are sold in the U.S. is bad for the consumer. By tying a device (phone, smartphone, etc) to a specific cellular network, the consumer has to decide to pay penalties to switch if they’re locked into a contract. That’s bad. The strategy has been good for AT&T, though, allowing it to rest on its big-profit haunches rather than improving its network and providing good service. Not Hot: iPad The iPad looks hot, but it doesn’t do much more than games and function as a reader. With a price tag $240 higher than a Kindle, it’s hard to justify it as a reader. So far, it seems only those who are diehard Apple folks love Christian Computing® Magazine

them. And wouldn’t you know it: Apple decided the 3G version will only connect to AT&T cellular networks. Shame on you, Apple. So that’s what I think is hot and not hot so far in 2010. Nick Nicholaou is president of MBS, a consulting firm specializing in church and ministry computer networks, operational policies, and CPA services. You can reach Nick via email (nick@ mbsinc.com) and may want to check out his firm’s website (www. mbsinc.com) and his blog at http://ministry-it.blogspot.com.

April 2010

launching online

Isn’t Open Source Socialistic? By Russ McGuire - russ.mcguire@gmail.com

e’re continuing the series on “Launching Online” – capturing the decisions faced and lessons learned in launching a new online ministry/business. Last month we talked about the decisions we faced in choosing our development platform – what operating system, database, and primary programming language we would use in launching our service. As you’ll recall, we settled on the LAMP stack – Linux, Apache, MySQL, and PHP, all of which are open sourced, and in large part because there is so much other open source software available that runs on LAMP. So, this month, we’ll dig more deeply into open source and specific decisions we made relative to the launch of our ministry/business. Socialism vs. Capitalism? When I first started writing publicly about technology issues from a Christian perspective, I received a note from a reader attacking open source, and specifically Linux, from a proclaimed Christian perspective. This reader equated the open source movement to socialism and claimed that Microsoft products were essential to the spread of the gospel. This obviously challenged me to more deeply consider these claims. Let’s start by understanding what “open source” is really all about. There are lots of projects that are considered open source and they follow a number of different models, but what makes someChristian Computing® Magazine

thing “open source” is that the “source” is “open.” In other words, the actual programming code is available to anyone who wants it. Almost always the source code is published on the Internet and can be downloaded without having to sign a non-disclosure agreement or pay a fee. However, open source is generally released under a software license which defines how it can be used and modified. The most common license for open source projects is the GNU Public License (GPL), but there are many other licenses that have important differences. (For example, when I launched Living Stones Ministry, I worked with my lawyer to develop an open source license that prohibits use of the software in a way that is counter to the glory of God.) Open source licenses allow folks to freely download and use the software and encourage further innovation by modifying the licensed software. Some open source projects are one man efforts, but the best known ones are huge efforts involving hundreds of developers spread around the world. These developers generally come from many April 2010

Christian Computing速 Magazine

April 2010

different companies, volunteering either their company’s time or their own personal time to advance the goals of the project. Although the developers don’t all work for the same company, that doesn’t mean that open source projects are characterized by anarchy. Large open source projects have well defined hierarchy, with project leaders, sub-projects, and project schedules (all using open source tools to stay coordinated, of course). In fact, given the diversity of developers in employer, geography, time zone, native language, and culture, large open source projects are even more dependent on good project management than proprietary corporate efforts. All of this contrasts pretty dramatically with how commercial software projects are developed, where a single company generally develops and controls the product, charges for its use, and does not allow anyone to access the source code, except under special circumstances with very strict controls. Does Open Source Honor God? But the key question is whether or not open source is “socialistic” or even more importantly whether or not it is honoring to God.

Christian Computing® Magazine

Dictionary.com defines socialism as “a theory or system of social organization that advocates the vesting of the ownership and control of the means of production and distribution, of capital, land, etc., in the community as a whole.” Usually “the community as a whole” means the government, so socialism makes everyone dependent on the state as the owner and controller of all assets and resources. In contrast, Dictionary.com defines capitalism as “an economic system in which investment in and ownership of the means of production, distribution, and exchange of wealth is made and maintained chiefly by private individuals or corporations, esp. as contrasted to cooperatively or state-owned means of wealth.” In open source development, investment is made by private individuals (and sometimes corporations) into an asset that is then available to the community as a whole. Most contributors to open source invest their time and resources because they believe they will benefit directly from it – either monetarily by building businesses around the project (e.g. providing consulting or support) or by generating good will for their main business or by gaining valuable experience that will help them in their long term

April 2010

career. Their contributions are not coerced by the state, but are a free-will offering to benefit the community, and by extension, themselves. At its most communal, the open source movement reminds me of the early church as described in Acts 4:32 “Now the full number of those who believed were of one heart and soul, and no one said that any of the things that belonged to him was his own, but they had everything in common.” (ESV) But most of the time, it’s just another way to operate a business – through more collaborative forms of innovation. Do I believe that the open source approach to software development is honoring to God? I think it certainly can be – as much as any other approach. And as much as any other approach, it can be dishonoring to God. It’s not the approach to development and licensing that is the determinant. Why Open Source? As I mentioned last month, we chose PHP as the programming language because of our comfort working with it and the availability of open source. Our service is a social network for Christian families, especially those that home school. There’s a growing set of solutions available for launching a social network, including Ning, WackWall, SocialGo, KickApps, Dolphin, Kootali, etc. Most of these solutions make it easy to create a social network in minutes that works just like all the other social networks that use the same solution. But the need that we are trying to minister to requires different functionality. It requires the definition of a family structure and the recognition of the authority of parents. That means that we’re going to need to write new software that is unique to our service. An open source solution gives us the benefit of a fully featured starting point. It takes hours to deploy, rather than minutes, but once the basic Christian Computing® Magazine

functionality is up and running, we have complete access to the source code to make modifications. That means that we can create the unique capabilities that are required to set our service apart from all the secular services that are already out there. Another benefit of open source software is that there’s a community of developers that are constantly adding new capabilities. However, if we’re making changes to the software, then integrating newly developed capabilities from others back into the software that we’ve changed may become a challenge. And considering that challenge, when selecting a specific open source solution, will be the focus of next month’s column. Until then, keep “launching online” to the glory of God! Russ McGuire is an executive for a Fortune 100 company and the founder/co-founder of three technology start-ups. His latest entrepreneurial venture is Hschooler.net (http://hschooler.net), a social network for Christian families (especially homeschoolers) which is being built and run by three homeschooled students under Russ’ direction.

April 2010

big ministry - small resources

Android Attack

Bradley Miller - bradley.w.miller@gmail.com

his month’s article will be a small departure from the frugality side of things, but it could be a very important thing to consider as new technologies start showing up in your church environment. I don’t consider myself too much of a cell-phone snob. I resisted the iPhone mania and have soldiered on with my firm allegiance to Sprint. (Disclaimer: My father is a retired traffic engineer for Sprint, having worked for them for over 35 years, starting way back during the United Telecom days.) My phone upgrades have been more of a splurge when the mood strikes me rather than a “gotta have the latest thing” mentality. In November my old trusty Palm 700WX finally gave it’s last . . . succumbing to corrosion around it’s charging port. I weighed out my options and decided to stay with Sprint and moved to a Samsung Moment running on Google’s Android Cupcake 1.5 platform. This isn’t a review of the phone, from what I’ve read they all seem to have some teething problems and need a little update here and there to fix glitches. Mine seemed to have a voracious discharge rate, and even cutting back all the services like Bluetooth/GPS/etc... to the minimum it was still almost dead before 5 PM. I learned it’s a small “feature” that understates the battery life. I need to have it flashed to a new system update, but I had quite a few issues trying to find a store that was equipped to do the update. That’s where being on the bleeding edge of technology can sometimes leave you needing a transfusion or two. The versatility of this new generation of smart phones is what I appreciate the most. Under the previous Windows Mobile 5 platform, there were applications, but it was difficult to download/install/pay for them. This Christian Computing® Magazine

phone merely requires being plugged into it’s charger on a regular basis, keeping it’s content/data safely (?) tucked away in the Google cloud. I can go through the 20,000 or so applications available and add new functionality at any time. I recently added a ringer profile to silence my phone at a certain time at night, and also to go to vibrate mode on Sunday mornings. (That will be very handy!) Some things that I see as impacting churches directly are the following things: I’ve always been fascinated by barcodes - the whole machine to real world interfacing type of thing. At Xerox I built a barcoding system to track supplies and materials as they came into our local April 2010

center. I also added barcoding and a portable scanning system to get copier meter readings for a large manufacturing facility we managed. The latest addition to phones is the ability to use onboard cameras to capture and decode barcodes, and the most intriguing aspect is the QR (quick response) Codes that can store 4296 characters (alphanumeric). A lot of new phones can read these codes (they are very common in Japan - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/QR_Code). This could be very significant to allow people to create QR Codes to share data. For instance, a small group could have their address information encoded and with a quick code scan the info could be instantly imported into a phone for navigation. Perhaps bulletins could include web links for more information via smart phones – either more details on an event or perhaps links to the Bible verses for the day. http://www.morovia.com/free-online-barcodegenerator/qrcode-maker.php -- Free online QR Code Creator. Google Docs has a Widget that will also create QR Codes. Since deepening my faith I have always tried to have God’s word close at hand. Over the years the revolution of the PDA and the ability to take texts along with me in a small convenient form factor has been very appealing. This reached a new level when I found the YouVersion application for my phone. Not only was I able to take the Bible, but I was also able to take a variety of translations, as well as add notes and things to personalize it. I still am endeared to my old faithful leather Bible with my ever increasing handwritten notes, but this isn’t the only trick for this application. The part that truly makes me curious is the YouVersion Live part of the software. It allows a church to put up an event, or notes, and allow two-way interactivity with the patrons there. You can add prayer requests, participate in polls, and even give online. (That last one is a matter of question in my mind, but one has to test their heart on that application.) I can see this being an interesting way to Christian Computing® Magazine

get feedback and participation on sermons. You can see more about this at the YouVersion web site: http://www. youversion.com/about/live Technology is all up to how you use it. I can look at a variety of software and hardware items and see a cornucopia of applications…and, I usually can’t wait to dive right in and tackle it. For me this can be summed up by: Romans 12:9 (NIV): 9 Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. 10Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves. 11Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. 12Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. 13Share with God’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality. We need zeal, and that spiritual fervor – and meeting people where they are. Whether that was on a dusty Roman road, or online in a new virtual world where our phones and other devices can be used as trumpets to spread the good news…it still comes down to people, one soul at a time for Christ.

April 2010

church web strategy

Church Website Communications Teams and Content Strategy Research Part 2 Drew Goodmanson - drew@monkdevelopment.com

n the last issue of Christian Computing Magazine, we shared results from a recently completed Monk Development research study, Church Website Communications Teams and Content Strategy. (http://www.ccmag.com/2010_02/ ccmag2010_02dgoodmanson.pdf) In the article, we touched on the makeup of various church communications teams. We discussed the sizes of the teams, different roles and responsibilities, and how tasks were assigned to full-time, part-time, volunteer, and outsourced church communications team members. As we continue to release findings about church website communications teams and church website content this month, we will discuss targeting non-Christian website users, search engine optimization in large churches, whether churches are effective with sharing the gospel on their church website, various methods of optimization to bring in greater un-churched website traffic, usage of church video, church mobile websites, and giving online. Targeting Non-Christians Online In our recent study, the un-churched are reached effectively through “I’m New” related sections, recovery groups, care fellowships, un-churched sensitive text, and position papers or doctrine. As referenced in previous articles, “I’m New” content indicates website content and areas that are directed Christian Computing® Magazine

towards new visitors, which often includes information about service times, driving directions, doctrinal statements, church staff, worship style, and what to expect. As previously published at ChurchWebsiteGuide.com, (http://www.churchwebsiteguide.com/church-websites/topvisited-church-website-content-churches-over-1000-members/), “I’m New” content is the second most viewed content for churches larger than 1000 members at 24% of monthly church website traffic. The only content that gets more traffic is homepages, at 28%. A table with the content most accessed by large churches 1000 members and greater is included below. Search Engine Optimization in Large Churches As for search engine optimization in our seven member large church study, three churches have a modest inApril 2010

Church Website, 1000+ Members, Top Content Accessed Homepage I’m New/Information Media Total Events Media-Sermons Media-Other Media-Articles Giving Blog Gospel

Average % Pageviews 28.23% 14.09% 17.72% 7.87% 7.37% 2.31% 1.84% .30% .12% .05%

house presence, three are looking for it, and one (Redeemer Presbyterian Church, New York City) is actively ignoring it. From congregational studies we’ve conducted, over 17% of new visitors found their church first online. We believe that this will be a growing trend as people continue to turn to search engines as the primary vehicle for getting their questions answered. Search Engine Optimization and ranking for keyword terms important to your church becomes more important as people turn increasingly to Search Engine Result Pages (SERP’s) for answers. SEO for Churches, More than just the Church’s Name The director of communications from Willow Creek Community church mentioned how new people have come to his church, drawn to after-school tutoring programs or 12step and or other such addiction programs. People looking for addiction programs in Chicago are able to locate his church through a Google search for “addiction programs chicago” with a bit of carefully planned search engine optimization. Search Engine Optimization involves Links and Content Doing well in the links category depends on the quality and quantity of inbound links you have, whereas content is how much copy you have, targeted on the keywords that are important to your church. We will discuss keyword competitive analysis on other websites that are ranking ahead of your church on a Google search engine results page at a later time, but keeping track of the competitors who are outranking you in Google SERP’s is a great way to start thinking about a SEO strategy that will help your church website rank higher.

about so as to be as effective as possible in communicating to the un-churched through their church website. Some of the topics include: • Search Engine Optimization •

Local Search Listing Optimization

•

Google Analytics

•

Church Research

•

Strategy

•

Directory Submissions

•

Forum Involvement

• Trends and Technology • Yearly Benchmark Reports Redeemer Presbyterian Church- A Deliberately Non-Optimized Church Website? Redeemer’s staff members are actively ignoring optimization of their website because their ministry philosophy involves drawing as little attention to themselves as possible so as to drive down what they call Christian-tourism. In essence, Redeemer is trying to keep more seats open for the lost on the street that may randomly walk in, as opposed to helping Christians find their particular church. Christians looking for churches in New York City find out about Redeemer from many different sources, while Redeemer’s size and multiple services all across Manhattan seem to indicate that Christians are not having a hard time finding them, despite Redeemer’s “anti-Christian-tourism” stance. The Gospel According to 50+ Church Analytics Church Website Guide’s (http://www.churchwebsiteguide.com) aggregated analytics data on over 50 churches indi-

Church Web Optimizer for Church Websites A great place to start thinking about some SEO strategies for your church website is at http://www. churchweboptimizer.com/mediafiles/church-web-optimizer, listed you’ll find some of the major capabilities that our research has shown churches need to be thinking Christian Computing® Magazine

April 2010

cates that when evaluating gospel related content against all the other available content on all church websites, only 1% of all the visits generated by all collective church websites is gospel centric. Gospel content also had about 1 minute of average time on page logged per visit. So while every visit is different, our data indicates that the average gospel reader is only going to give your gospel message a minute or less for evaluation. Perhaps of some encouragement is the fact that the average bounce rate on Gospel messages is about 44%, which while not the best bounce rate, it is certainly not the worst. A 70% bounce rate would indicate a failed message. Finally, the exit % on Gospel messages is also decently low; it appears that while most people give a gospel message only a minute to look it over, when people leave the page, around 60% of them are not leaving the website immediately. Success for Churches With Video The director of communications at Central Christian Church found that a lot of people were watching a lot of the videos being pushed out to the congregation, and it was having a great impact in terms of people understanding the message being brought to them. Much like Second Presbyterian Church discovered, Central Christian Church finds that their most effective and engaging content is a set of video series about changed people, their stories, and their testimonies, which in turn changes other church members’ lives in a real and tangible way. Church Website Content- Could Less Be More? Park Community Church has what they term an eventdriven philosophy. This means they have been deliberately trying to pare down the size of their church website by asking their ministries to think less about putting static information up, billboard style, on their church website, and more about actively trying to get people to connect with the church in a more engaging next step through events. For the most part, instead of relying on advertising on the church website, the average church ministry person is encouraged to personally seek out and invite people to connect with their ministry. This strategy has a two-fold benefit of reducing church website content upkeep and clutter, and also pushing congregation members to be more intentional about connecting people to ministries. Going With Mobile Church Websites In terms of mobile topics, seven churches want to go with mobile sites eventually, one church is in the process of building a mobile site, and another one has had their mobile site up and running for some time now. There seems to be a consensus that the ability to minister to people anywhere and anytime Christian Computing® Magazine

they have reception is one of the greatest opportunities made available to ministries today. Giving A more thorough report may be in the works later, but the quick answers to the aforementioned title are that all churches surveyed have online giving capability, very few allow credit cards, and one has an ATM like paying device in the lobby along with the basket and online giving. Church Communications Team Director Advice The seven church communications team directors in our large church study had a significant amount of wisdom in terms of advice for churches both small and large, a large portion of these anecdotes and experiences will be shared in a future article. Christian Leadership Alliance National Conference 2010 Christian Leadership Alliance (CLA) is an association that serves more than 9,000 members working in more than 4,500 organizations worldwide. The former Christian Management Association and the former Christian Stewardship Association joined together in April 2008 to create Christian Leadership Alliance—the nation’s leading resource for enhancing the organizational effectiveness of churches and para-church ministries. The Monk Development team will be hosting the Ministry Internet and Technology Summit at this year’s ChrisApril 2010

tian Leadership Alliance National Conference here in San Diego, California at Town and Country Resort & Conference Center, Monday, April 19—Wednesday, April 21, 2010 Come see us at our booth, and stop by one of the twelve workshops about internet and technology for ministries, churches, and businesses, we’d love to connect with you. The 12 Topics Include: • A Look Into The Near and Distant Future of Online Ministry

“How to have more time for ministry!” Do you want to save time, get more done and have fewer headaches? Then Donarius Church Management Software will make it easy for you to track your members, contributions, pledges Starting at $59.97 and more. Imagine what you can do with the for the base version with 25% off for small churches extra time! Donarius will also: Download a free demo at: • Print your tax receipts www.donarius.com • Show the giving pattern of your members • Print your church directories 1-888-479-4636 • Send personalized letters, emails and text Nuverb Systems Inc. messages to keep your members informed “Software tailored for you”

• How Interactive Media Values Can Transform Your Ministry • How to Successfully Raise Funds Online • Online Ministry Opportunities, Challenges, and Lessons • The Case for Online Kingdom Excellence • Delivering Income Solutions through Data Strategies • Lost in Translation

• More Tools In Your Website and Social Media Communications Belt • Information Technology: What’s Hot and What’s Not • Ministry Growth through Email Communication Best Practices • Ministry IT Round Table If you’d like to know more about our participation at this event, you can email info@monkdevelopment.com or check out CLA’s conference homepage here: http://www.christianleadershipalliance.org/conference/2010/ Hope to see you at CLA 2010!

• The Three “I”’s in Internet

Christian Computing® Magazine

April 2010

ministry communication

A Useful, Inexpensive, and Easy-to-Use Tool to Create Web Graphics That is Helping Change the Face of Website Development Yvon Prehn - yvonprehn@aol.com

nyone who has the most basic skills in computers can use this program to create incredible-looking graphics for the web including custom website headers and graphics. In fact, you probably already have this program and aren’t even aware of all it can do. The program I’m talking about: Microsoft Publisher. Surprised? Read on to see what I mean and how this is part of a larger development in current website creation. The changing face of website development In the past much website development was expensive and done primarily by twenty-something, uber-geeks who were able to intimidate church leaders and church secretaries with the mysteries of html and Photoshop. Most churches decided that the time and money to learn these things was something best left to “the experts.” Because they couldn’t afford anything else, churches often had their first website created by a volunteer, a young geek, who was initially excited about it. The church received a website, but for many, many churches I’ve interacted with, the once-excited volunteer has lost interest. The church now has a website that is stale and sad and nobody knows how to update it. What to do now? Fears of html, Photoshop, and goodness knows what other technical demons, still plague many church offices with fear. Many people in the church office feel like they can’t do the work a website requires. Remember the end of The Wizard of Oz? The “Great and Powerful Oz” had intimidated Christian Computing® Magazine

Dorothy and her friends on their journey until the little dog Toto pulled back the curtain and revealed a little old man at a machine pulling levers. I’ve learned that website creation is a lot like that. Though I’d worked in print publications for many years, websites scared me for a long time. I just didn’t think I could ever learn all I needed to create a decent one. I’m not a young geek; I’m 61-years -old. I was honestly told in career counseling to never have anything to do with computers because my mind (creative type that I am) simply did not work that way. The wizards of websites had me terrified. The recession was my Toto Dorothy didn’t have the courage to challenge the Wizard, her little dog revealed the reality to her. If the recession had not drastically changed my ministry, (sponsorship for travel and seminars totally gone) I may have never peeked behind the curtain of serious website creation. I knew God called me to train and encourage church communicators, but I had to find a different way to do it and the web was the obvious April 2010

choice. To see the end result, check out my new site at www.effectivechurchcom.com. I won’t go into all that I’ve learned to get me there in this article. I want to share just one tool and one process that will give you an idea of how simple seemingly complex website creations can be. The intimidation of website headers Many website templates and various creation programs are currently available. For many of them, a “custom” website header is very difficult because most webmasters tell you this has to be created in Photoshop. Photoshop is a great program, but it is also very expensive and a major challenge to learn to use effectively. You can also use Illustrator to create custom headers, but it is even more difficult to use. The end result that you get from either one of these programs is a .jpg file of a certain size that you can upload onto the website program. Again, most designers will tell you that Photoshop is the best way to create this. But you can do it in Publisher and it is super simple to do. I’ll go through how to do it in a minute, but if you want to see a little video where I demonstrate this, plus download a free PDF tutorial that describes it, go to: http://bit.ly/9b4VPb. If for some reason the bit.ly link doesn’t work, go to www.effectivechurchcom.com, then the How-to tab, Website Creation and then this topic: How to create a custom website header in MS Publisher 1. Get the size you need for the header. I LOVE WordPress.com and strongly recommend it for churches for free websites for ministry, but there are many other free programs on the web you can use. WordPress has the exact size you need under the “Custom Header” section for the template you are using. 2. Go into MS Publisher and change the measurements

to PIXELS. To do that, go to Tools, then Options, Measurement Units and select Pixels.

3. Go to Page Setup, click “Custom” and enter in the

measurement you got from your website.

4. You will then be taken to a page that will be the size of your

header.

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5. Create your header—add pictures, text, whatever. 6. Tadah! Here is the magic part—did you know you can

save a Publisher file as a .jpg? I didn’t know that either! Just click on “Save as” and keep scrolling down past the labels that say Publisher file….there are a large number of the types of files you can save it as. Click on .jpg.

7. You will then notice you have the option of dpi settings.

For the website header, click 96 dpi. You need to do that for it to be the right size and resolution for the web. (If April 2010

you want to save something as a .jpg for high resolution printing, click 300 dpi—I’ve started doing that so the many publications I produce for folks for bulletin inserts etc. can also be printed). 8. That’s all there is to it! You now have

a resizable .jpg file that you can use however you want. You can use it as a website header, but you can also save it in a higher resolution and it will work in any print publication.

This is just one example of how easy many of the tasks in website creation have become. I’ll be sharing lots more of them through my website in the coming weeks. Please sign up for notification of that training at www.effectivechurchcom. com and don’t let website creation fears keep you from effective online ministry.

Christian Computing® Magazine

April 2010