ccmag2010_12

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

December 2010

No. 12

10 cover story

Churches Rely on ServiceU’s “Total Giving Solution” to Weather the Economic Storm By Lauren Hunter 3 editorial

Contributing Editors Dr. J.D. “Doc” Watson Lauren Hunter Terry Wilhite Yvon Prehn Nick Nicholaou Kevin A. Purcell C. Brian Smith Russ McGuire Drew Goodmanson Bradley Miller Michael Curylo Copy Editor Gina Hewitt Corporate Home Office

Goodbye 2010, HELLO 2011!

Steve Hewitt - steve@ccmag.com

14 ACS ideas to impact

New Families in Church this Christmas?

from ACS Technologies

16 accelerating the dynamic church Dynamic Churches Keep Ministries Aligned

from Fellowship Technologies

17 higher power with kevin Christmas Geek Gifts

Kevin A. Purcell - kevin@kevinpurcell.org

20 nick at church IT, 10 Years After Y2k

Nick Nicholaou - nick@mbsinc.com

22 tablet time Does Tablet Computing Really Matter?

By Russ McGuire - russ.mcguire@gmail.com

26 ministry communication Three of the Biggest Communication Mistakes of 2010

Yvon Prehn - yvon@effectivechurchcom.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.

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

Christian Computing® Magazine

December 2010

editorial

Goodbye 2010, HELLO 2011! Steve Hewitt - steve@ccmag.com Well, it has been an interesting year! And, while it was better than 2009, I am looking forward to 2011. One of the exciting parts about being Editor-in-Chief of Christian Computing Magazine is that I get to know in advance about exciting things just around the corner. However, one of the frustrations is that I can’t talk about them. However, 2011 promises to be a very exciting year for CCMag! There are several new and exciting programs coming on the market in 2011 that plan to use Christian Computing Magazine as a source to make their new services public. I am looking forward to sharing them with you soon! In addition, we have a new column planned for next year for a specific group of Christian computer users. Hopefully this will debut in the January issue as well. Because all of the details are not finalized, I can’t share that with you either, but keep watching! And, finally, CCMag MAY be on the verge of their next step in adding a new method of distribution as well as developing community with our readership. Again, I can’t give you any more details at this time, but hopefully, after the holidays and during the first part of 2011, we will have an exciting announcement. So, as we finish 2010, I look forward with great anticipation to what 2011 holds! For now, let me wish you all a Merry Christmas and, as you celebrate the New Year, be sure to watch for our first issue of 2011 for some exciting announcements!

Together We Serve Him,

Steve Hewitt Editor-in-Chief steve@ccmag.com Christian Computing® Magazine

December 2010

Press Releases Announcing Partnership: United Methodist Communications and LOGOS Management Software Answers grassroots requests for church management software

In an effort to provide local churches with organizational software that will help them manage membership, financial contributions and accounting practices, United Methodist Communications has partnered with Logos Management Software, Inc., a leading church management software company based out of Santa Paula, California. The partnership was formed in response to numerous grassroots requests for church management software from TechShop customers. As the technology ministry of United Methodist Communications, TechShop offers discounted software, hardware, and website solutions to local churches and other church-related organizations. “We’ve listened to our customers and have responded with a top-notch solution from a leading management software provider,” said the Rev. Larry Hollon, chief executive of United Methodist Communications. LOGOS exists to streamline the processes of the church by providing an intuitive system to store the congregation’s information. That information becomes useful through reports, searches, a customizable quick access toolbar providing shortcuts for commonly used routines, and more. “We are excited about this partnership,” said Tony Ferraro, Chief Visionary Officer of Logos Management Software. “Partnering with United Methodist Communications is allowing us to bring affordable solutions to churches around the world and directly impact ministry in a tangible way. We are looking forward to helping United Methodist churches significantly impact their productivity and efficiency levels to better carry out their ministry visions.” Logos Management Software, Inc. is a privately owned and operated corporation that currently serves over 6,000 churches, schools and non-profit organizations. Ninety percent of their customer base is in the church environment. As the communications agency for The United Methodist Church, United Methodist Communications seeks to increase awareness and visibility of the denomination in communities and nations around the globe. United Methodist Communications also offers services, tools, products and resources for communications ministry. Christian Computing® Magazine

December 2010

Press Releases Fellowship Technologies Releases New Group Management Tool for Churches Web-based church management software company Fellowship Technologies released an entirely new way for churches to manage ministry groups. The new Groups 2.0 update to their flagship software, Fellowship One, features a new group-finder for church websites, updated group management controls and an innovative Span of Care feature for managing across multiple group types. Hundreds of dynamic churches already leverage Fellowship One for managing their community groups. In this latest update, the groups tools have been expanded to include new ways of providing oversight, accountability and easier management of multiple groups. Unlike other group management applications, the new Fellowship One groups solution allows for unique creation of dynamically generated groups for real-time oversight, trend-spotting and instant follow-up. Some of the key features of Groups 2.0 include: • Newly introduced Span of Care allows church leaders and lay leaders to manage across multiple groups or even geographical regions. • Group finder functionality integrates seamlessly into the church website with complete branding control. • Anytime, anywhere secure access to member profiles and group communication tools. • Group leader tools allow for connecting with prospects, members and other leaders. • Google Maps, which pin-point the locations of groups in their community. • Complete branding control for website. “Fellowship One Groups is the culmination of several years of development with graphically rich tools for group leader accountability,” says Curtis Harris, director of community for Fellowship Technologies. “Over 200 churches went through an extensive Beta testing program and contributed insight for an innovative set of church group management tools.” Stonegate Fellowship, of Midland, Texas, was one of the churches in the Beta program of Groups 2.0 and has already benefitted from this new group management tool. “A handful of staff members trained about 75 individual lay leaders and a single large group training with over 100 small group leaders,” shared Jessi Russo, Christian Computing® Magazine

“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 $63.97 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” December 2010

Press Releases the champion leader of Fellowship One for Stonegate Fellowship. “Groups 2.0 gave us greater visibility for our various groups that didn’t get as much publicity on any given Sunday. It’s helped our people see and connect in groups that they previously didn’t know even existed.” Fellowship Technologies is excited about this major release as it lays the foundation for many more innovative future releases. To learn more about Fellowship One Groups and see the features and gallery of examples from churches currently using the new software, please visit http://bit.ly/F1Gups. 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.

Logos Management Software, Inc. Announces One of their Biggest Software Updates Yet Logos Management Software, Inc. a developer of leading church management software, today announced that it has launched the one of the biggest software updates in the 30 year history of the company. After talking with users,

Christian Computing® Magazine

December 2010

Press Releases shadowing users in their work environment, and pouring over feedback from customer surveys, Logos introduces Version 9 of both Logos II (church database management/census) and Logos Accounting. Both applications boast an improved interface and increased usability. • The traditional menu structure has been replaced with new, easy-to-navigate ribbon, giving immediate access to many more routines • The Skills / Talents / Ministry reports have been expanded for increased volunteer matching • Customizable quick-access toolbars allow each user to add icons to any routine • Built-in command bars in data entry routines to make editing tasks more intuitive • Video tutorials have been added to the command bars for easy retrieval, plus the ability to select a tutorial from anywhere in the program • Reporting has been enhanced • Increased usability to contributions, attendance, child check-in, and event registration make the user flow more fluid.

Christian Computing® Magazine

December 2010

Press Releases “Version 9 of Logos Accounting and Logos II Church/Donor Management is one of the most far-reaching upgrades to these solutions since we originally moved Logos software onto Windows,” said Wes Haystead, President of Logos Management Software, Inc. “Not only does the new versions provide our users with a host of much-requested new features, the entire user experience has been streamlined. Our attractive and efficient new ribbon makes moving within the solutions easier than ever. This has great significance for the many organizations coming new to Logos, simplifying the learning curve to get staff members and volunteers productive with the system quickly.” About Logos Management Soft ware, Inc. Logos delivers solid church data management, a fully featured fund accounting system, and community software solutions to churches, non-profits and schools. Discover the efficiency of a well-designed office system with features like: easy child check-in, individual and visitor information, highly flexible profiles (skills and roles), confidential contribution records, and groups & attendance tracking. Easily customize features to fit your operation. For additional information, visit www.logoscms.com

Email Just Got Easy: Icon Systems Partners with BombBomb Icon Systems and BombBomb have partnered, tying together their systems to provide ministries with a video e-mail solution inside the Icon system. The integration allows for hassle-free contact management with no importing or exporting of contact lists before sending e-mails. Instead, your e-mail addresses are automatically pulled from Icon every time a list is selected in BombBomb - using the latest data for every send. This means simple setup of every e-mail blast! It’s not just easier. It’s also more effective. Every email you send becomes more personal and powerful to your contacts, because BombBomb was built to include video in your e-mail newsletters. Your message can be presented face-to-face, taking it above and beyond typical text and pictures. Other BombBomb features include: pre-built e-mail templates, straightforward e-mail editing, comprehensive statistics, scheduled sending and auto-responders all of which help alleviate the workload on the staff, allowing Christian Computing® Magazine

December 2010

Press Releases ministries to do what they’re called to do, minister. Most churches send a combination of video and non-video e-mail messages. Either way, BombBomb ensures your e-mails are delivered, tracked and always uses the latest contact information stored in IconCMO. With BombBomb, growing and retaining a congregation is easier and more effective than ever. Spreading The Word isn’t just for Sundays anymore. Use BombBomb and Icon System’s integration to spread The Word every day, online - with your face and your voice. Learn more about the company - Visit the BombBomb Team. Learn more about the mission - Visit the Africa Mission. About BombBomb.com: Founded in 2006, BombBomb assists small organizations solidify and grow relationships with an easyto-use, low cost, video-centric email system. BombBomb provides exceptional customer service to each and every client, never overlooking the value of personal touch. Viewing businesses as missions, BombBomb is an active philanthropist in Kenya. www.bombbomb.com

About Icon Systems Software: For more than 18 years, Icon Systems has been developing high-quality software for non-profit organizations. The company was founded in 1992 by Robert Gifford (President), who previously headed research and development for Great Plains Software and helped create Great Plains Accounting and Dynamics, two highly popular accounting software systems. Icon Systems’ software is currently used by thousands of nonprofits nationwide. Since its founding, Icon Systems has become legendary for its commitment to highquality products as well as outstanding service and support. www.iconcmo. com

Christian Computing® Magazine

December 2010

cover story

Churches Rely on ServiceU’s “Total Giving Solution” to Weather the Economic Storm

By Lauren Hunter

here have been a lot of people who have suffered during the latest economic downturn, but maybe no one group as much as churches in general across the United States. In headlines from coast to coast, research studies are finding that church giving has reached its lowest point since the Great Depression. A headline from the Grand Rapids Press reports that “Giving to churches declined to 2.4 percent of a donor’s income, lower than during the first years of the Great Depression; an additional $172 billion could be available if church members tithed 10 percent.” Noted generosity and stewardship expert, Brian Kluth, conducted the second annual State of the Plate survey and found that nearly 40% of churches across the country experienced a decline in church giving and offerings in 2009, representing two consecutive years of significant decreases. “Churches today are in unchartered waters financially,” says Kluth. “After the October 2008 stock market drop, 29% of churches experienced a decline in giving and this past year the number has climbed up to 38% of churches. Multiple research projects last year documented the sharp decline in church giving and our research this year shows things have only gotten worse for a growing number of churches.” Online Offers More In these tough times, church leaders are looking for ways to make it easier and more convenient for Christian Computing® Magazine

church attenders to give, even in smaller amounts. That is one of the reasons that many churches are considering companies that offer a total giving solution for all of their giving needs. “Today’s congregation is more mobile than ever,” says Tim Whitehorn, President and CEO of ServiceU. “Attenders are not just sitting in the pews listening to a Sunday service. People access church in so many different ways. They are accessing church online, downloading podcasts, or using apps for their mobile phones. Convenience is paramount in today’s everchanging, fast-moving society.” One of the ways to increase giving exponentially is by offering online giving. For instance, Friends Church in Yorba Linda, California has seen its online giving increase from 5% to 45% in just the past four years. “It makes it easy for our attenders to include their giving process as a part of their regular online banking without having to remember to physically go in each week and tithe,” says Christy Moore, Project Director for Friends Church. “With the newest changes ServiceU has made to its recurring payment tool, many of December 2010

our attendees have commented about how simple it is to use. Our givers especially like being able to have greater control over payment start and stop dates, as well as how often their giving occurs.” These changes include numerous different applications to its popular TransactU product, as well as adding a number of different upgrades. “We’re always working to improve our software to enhance the user experience, and to make the online scheduling and donation experience intuitive, secure, and easy to work with,” says Whitehorn. “We have completely redesigned many aspects of TransactU, which now includes new navigation functionality, retooled online giving and registration page layouts, and enhancements of the overall technology platform for better browser support, Clean URLs, and CSS best practices to make sure our customers have the best experience. These new enhancements dramatically improve the experience that a church member or guest has when they make an online donation or register for an event on your website.” Reaching Younger Generations It is also important that churches are not leaving younger attenders behind. Most young adults in their

Christian Computing® Magazine

20s and 30s rely on their ATM and credit cards, and most likely don’t attend their church more than twice a month, yet have a heart willing to support their local church. When a church provides congregants with a way to donate online via the church website, it opens up giving to this generation of youth and meets them with the tools they are familiar with. Online donations provide people with one of the easiest ways to help people give more and give regularly. Going Mobile According to the Pew Research Center, six in ten adults - 59% of all adult Americans - now access the Internet wirelessly. This research demonstrates that more adults of all ages are wirelessly accessing the Internet than ever before, and much of that online activity includes financial transactions. In addition, a recent USA Today article entitled, Technology: Social Networking Transforms Giving says, “Organizational and church leadership no longer gets to decide how their donors will give and interact with their organization. It’s now the responsibility of the leadership to understand the ways and habits that are native to the donor.”

December 2010

That’s why ServiceU has enhanced its TransactU Web-based online giving solution to facilitate and encourage mobile giving. “With the ability to pay your mortgage, your electric bill, and even make money transfers on your mobile phone, adding the ability to make a charitable donation to the list is a logical addition,” notes Whitehorn. “We are excited to be leading the way for churches and nonprofits to connect with their communities wirelessly.” Mobile giving functionality will dramatically enhance the user experience when a church member or visitor navigates to a church Web site on their cell phones. By making the donations page easier to view and access on a mobile device, churches and nonprofits can embrace the new mobile lifestyle of their congregations and communities. In order to make this new enhancement seamless, TransactU’s donation Web pages have been redesigned and are now completely compatible with mobile viewing. Secure giving Web pages are now optimized to fit on small screens, with fewer clicks necessary to make online donations. Even if an organization’s Web page is not yet mobile friendly, when using TransactU, donors will be able to easily and clearly navigate to

Christian Computing® Magazine

the online donation page where they can safely and securely give online. Kiosk Giving People today are in a hurry. It is only as you sit in the church pew and the collection plate is passed that you realize you have no cash and you have left your checkbook at home. This is a dilemma for many these days. In a world where paper currency is seldom required, society has learned to live with a debit or credit card close at hand. This leaves churches with questions of how to deal with this growing problem. One innovative answer is the giving kiosk. ServiceU has added kiosk system features into TransactU to enable any Windows PC to be locked down and converted into a giving kiosk, meaning that no expensive hardware is required. Positioned in a church lobby, or the foyers of non-profit organizations, a giving kiosk can be ready to assist those wishing to donate by using their debit or credit card. “We feel this new giving kiosk system combines the most convenient, safe, and relevant aspects of online giving in one comprehensive system, and we know TransactU kiosks will dramatically improve

December 2010

donor relations with churches and nonprofits,” says Whitehorn. The number one reason people donate using a giving kiosk is convenience. Many potential donors feel that they would like to give or register for an event, but by the time they get home they forget or have other things to do. Additionally, many feel uneasy writing down their credit card information on paper registrations to be collected and processed later. Secure kiosks for the sole purpose of making a donation will provide members with the opportunity to give at the time they feel inspired to do so, and to feel confident that their kiosk transaction is conducted with industry leading security measures. “TransactU Kiosk couples unparalleled convenience with state-of-the-art security features to make kiosk giving the first choice for churches and nonprofits to connect with their communities,” says Whitehorn. “With TransactU’s kiosk features, your organization has a wide range of options. Because a kiosk enclosure is not required, any Windows PC can be turned into a secure giving kiosk. Or, your organization can choose a kiosk enclosure that best fits your budget.”

Christian Computing® Magazine

The debate regarding giving kiosks in the church lies in the fact that some consider them too worldly for a Godly setting. Churches are weighing new technologies and conveniences versus tradition. But in order for the church to change with the people it seeks to serve, it has to change with the times as well. Giving kiosks save time and money, two things in today’s world that are precious commodities. Regardless of how your church decides to move forward with the Great Commission it is important that you offer your donors alternatives to faithfully support their church. And, a company that offers you the total giving solution for your members including online giving, mobile functionality, and donation kiosks is the only way to keep costs down and be effective in today’s fast-paced world. Lauren Hunter is a contributing editor for CCMag, owner of Lauren Hunter Public Relations (http://www. laurenhunter.net), and blogs at http://churchtechtoday. com.

December 2010

ACS

ACS ideas to impact

New Families in Church this Christmas?

from ACS Technologies

round Christmas, many churches find themselves stuffed to the rafters. It’s a great time to connect with new church visitors and to reconnect with returning members. As families flock to church to celebrate this special time of year, it may be easy to get distracted by the crowds and let security fall by the wayside. However, the busy holidays are an essential time to focus on the security of your children’s ministry. There are many facets to a careful child security plan. Churches need check-in procedures that return kids to the correct adults at the end of services. The special needs of children, including potentially serious allergies, must be communicated to volunteers and staff. Churches also need volunteer and teacher screenings, as well as a wellthought-out plan for responding in an emergency situation. This article, an excerpt of the white paper “How Secure is Your Children’s Ministry?” looks at the ways today’s ministries can help ensure the safety of the children they’ve been entrusted with. According to the National Incidence Studies ofMissing, Abducted, Runaway, and Thrownaway Children, more than 350,000 family abductions occur in the U.S. each year—that’s more than 1,000 incidents each day in which a child is taken in violation of a custody agreement. The abductors include estranged parents, stepparents and grandparents.Careless churches could become easytargets for family abductions if they don’t take care. Unlocked doors, distracted kids, trusting volunteers,and lax security measures all increase risk. Many churches still depend on older, manual security systems for these threats. Numbered stickers and attendance sheets are popular tracking devices. But if these manual systems fail, churches are at risk of costly lawsuits Christian Computing® Magazine

and a damaged reputation. Old, manual methods of tracking check-in and checkout, with hand-marked lists or numbered stickers, leave the burden of judgmentat pick-up time up to the volunteer, who could very well get overwhelmed by eager parents and kids at pickup time. In contrast, imagine a world of children’s ministry without checklists or clipboards.Upon check-in, returning families would swipe a security cardat a kiosk placed in a convenient location. The child’s information would be confirmed, and then two security badges–one for parent and one for child – would be printed. The badge would also featurea bar code and the child’s photo and important information such as food allergies. New families could visit a second, hosted kiosk, where a greeter would guide parents toenter the child’s information. Then the same detailed securitybadge would be printed, along with directions to the appropriate classroom. At pick-up time, volunteers are free from registration lists and numbered stickers. Instead of making a judgment call about the person picking up the child, the volunteer would be sure they were doing the right thing. What about the volunteers who spend three hours with your ministry’s children on a Sundaymorning? Is December 2010

your church doing everything possible to ensure those volunteers can be trusted? Internet security companies can also help ministries conduct valuable background checks onvolunteers so they can maintain the highest level of integrity, as well as maintain a database of volunteers that outlines their special qualifications. Though every ministry hopes to avoid an emergency, only the most naïve avoid preparing forone. Intentional preparation and planning is the key to success should an emergencyoccur, especially during a service, event or activity time. If such an event should happen, couldyou quickly identify and locate all the children in your care? Software tools enable ministries to setup “information handlers” who are responsible for disseminating information in different areasof the church. Once the children’s ministry begins on a Sunday morning, reports of all childrenand class locations can be printed and given to these information handlers to disseminate. Playground and parking lot attendants can be given these reportsas they secure the property in the event of an emergency. Once your children’s ministry security process is in place, don’t be afraid to let your congregationand your visitors know about it. Publish information on the process and insert it into the weeklynewsletter or bulletin. Post it on your Web site. Announce it from the pulpit and encourage smallgroup leaders to pass along the information about children’s security. Ask for advice. Also, share your process with your insurance company. Insurers are always interested in how their customers are reducing their risk through measures like these. It may even result in adiscounted premium. To get started on your church’s plan for a safe and secure children’s ministry, download “How Secure is Your Children’s Ministry?” today.

Christian Computing® Magazine

December 2010

accelerating the dynamic church

Dynamic Churches Keep Ministries Aligned

from Fellowship Technologies

hat happens when various ministries of the church slowly drift from sharing information and process? Often unintentionally, they become an island unto themselves. It happens slowly,!CCELERATING 4HE $YNAMIC #HURCH over time, because of a change in per- ¸ sonnel, processes or technology. Regardless of the cause, the result is a misalignment with the vision and the goals of the church leadership. The Vision Of The House The single best way to help staff and volunteers maintain a unified front is to articulate – frequently – the vision of the house. That’s the unique calling and vision of the church, and it needs to be shared, repeated and shared again. It’s common when a ministry has some success in a new endeavor for a slow change of the ministry focus to occur. These ministries shift from being in alignment with the vision to being aligned with their individual goals and objectives. Dynamic churches that constantly evaluate and reinforce the vision of the house are more likely to find alignment drift early and make small course corrections. It’s possible to be so busy doing a good thing that we can miss the bigger picture of staying in alignment and doing the great things!

delivering the most effective results. Leaders of dynamic churches aren’t afraid to make hard changes, even for things that are going well. The best time to change is not when things have degraded to a point of failure, but early, when it’s easy to redirect effort toward the unique vision of the church. To learn more about keeping ministries aligned, visit fellowshipech.com/trends for more information and to sign up for the free Dynamich Church Trends newsletter.

Keep Asking “Why?” One of the easiest ways to self-align your ministry is to ask the simple question: “Why are we doing this thing?” The answer must line up with the over-arching vision of the house. When the answer doesn’t line up – no matter how good a thing is being accomplished – it needs to be evaluated and probably modified or cut. It can be really hard to say “no” to good ideas. However, ministry needs to be effective, not just popular. Even growing ministries need to refocus their efforts from time to time as a way to ensure that the limited time, people and resources are in alignment with the vision and Christian Computing® Magazine

December 2010

higher power with kevin

Christmas Geek Gifts Kevin A. Purcell - kevin@kevinpurcell.org

or a number of years we have shown you how to put together a Christmas card CD or DVD with free software that might make your favorite Geek’s day. With the advent of netbooks and other ultra-portable notebook computers, the optical disc seems like it is going the way of the floppy drive. For that reason, we are going to do the same thing but instead show you how to set up a free USB flash drive with all of the free goodies. First, let’s look at some flash drives. Any old drive will do, but you might want to make it special since it is the real gift. A CD or DVD is a throwaway item, but a flash drive is something the recipient will likely use over and over. One company that has some pretty cool USB drives is USB.BRANDO.COM (go to http://usb.brando.com/usb-memory_c041d015). For example, they have dozens of USB pendants for a necklace, some with a Christmas theme like this USB Snowman for $22-$36 (http://bit.ly/f0YfMW). But one of the most useful is this USB webcam/flash drive for $33. It is 2GB of storage and has a VGA web cam also (http://bit.ly/foGUxR).If you go over to ThinkGeek.com (http://www.thinkgeek.com/index.shtml) they have a number of flash drives, too. The best one is a Swish Flash USB Knife with a 2GB-8GB flash drive built into a Swiss Army Knife with a pair of scissors, nail file, Christian Computing® Magazine

December 2010

screw driver, knife, pen, and LED flash light (http://bit.ly/ecKPgj). It costs from $55-$100 depending on the capacity. There are many other Swiss Army Flash drives here: http://bit.ly/e0RCsJ These are just a few ideas. There are hundreds of them all over the Internet. If you don’t care about how unique the drive is, just pick up any old Flash Drive. The next step is to put some software on it. There are a few different approaches to take. You can just find your favorite free software and download it and then put the file on the drive. Add some personalization like family pictures and home videos and you have a nice gift. However, I think the better approach is to use one of the many USB drive launcher applications that come with a lot of great software for free. My favorite USB drive launcher application is PortableApps (http://portableapps.com). First download the suite which you can get here: http://portableapps. com/suite. It already includes a lot of great software for free like a version of Firefox, ClamWin antivirus application, KeePass password manager, OpenOffice.org office suite, and some other great apps. After downloading the suite you will run the installer and point it to your USB flash drive. Make sure you put in the root directory, which means don’t put it in a folder. It runs better from the root directory. So in explorer just choose the drive letter assigned by Windows to your flash drive. See http://bit.ly/gv46ti for details on installing. The other information about how to add more apps can be found in the support list here: http://portableapps. com/support/portable_apps_suite. You can add a lot of applications. Here are a few recommendations: • BPBible Portable – a simple Bible study tool - http://bit.ly/fOdAV6 • Sudoku Portable – a fun Sudoku game - http://bit.ly/gmfe3n • LBreakout2 Portable – a fun Breakout style game - http://bit. ly/e4lJr1 • GIMP Portable – a powerful image editing program - http://bit. ly/gr3kPO • Google Chrome Portable – a much better Internet browser than either Firefox or Internet Explorer - http://bit.ly/gstD9p Christian Computing® Magazine

December 2010

• Skype Portable – great for video chat; we use it to talk to missionaries in our worship services - http://bit.ly/eHTUcF • Audacity Portable – great audio editor/recorder; we use it to record our worship services at church - http://bit.ly/ggkKNP • InfraRecorder Portable – a CD/ DVD authoring tool – http://bit. ly/fmWudb • VLC Media Player Portable – a media player that can handle any file format you through at it http://bit.ly/gJl0vi • VirtualDub Portable – a video editor - http://bit.ly/i4Yh4z • 7-Zip Portable – a file compression tool like WinZip http://bit.ly/ecnSWA There are others. Just check out the list and descriptions and choose the ones you want to add. Or just add them all if you have enough space. If you download the application’s installer it will automatically add it to the menu if you follow the instructions here: http://bit.ly/gA9DFF. Maybe you would like to go a little further and do more than just get them a cool flash drive. I’ve been putting together some great Christmas Gift Buying Guides at the tech site I write for called Notebooks.com. You can find them all at http://notebooks.com/tag/giftguide-2010/. We have gift guides for Moms, Dads, Kids, Teenagers, and more.

Christian Computing® Magazine

December 2010

nick at church

IT, 10 Years After Y2k Nick Nicholaou - nick@mbsinc.com

e’re at the end of the first decade of the millennium whose beginning we weren’t supposed to have survived! There were many crazy predictions— by others— that Y2k would be the end of civilization as we know it. Now, ten years after Y2k, what is the state of IT and its impact on The Church? Hardware Extremely powerful computers with multiple processors are becoming more and more affordable, making it possible for average users to accomplish great things. The way we compute is changing, however, and manufacturers are already making shifts in their product lines. The smartphone (like iPhones and Androids) and the tablet (like the iPad) are revolutionizing how we compute! Notebook sales are declining significantly in light of these devices (another Steve Hewitt and Nick Nicholaou prediction made a few years ago) and will continue to do so. Desktop sales are also declining in favor of these capable portable devices. One of the results of their proliferation will be the growth of Cloud technology, where applications and data are on datacenter servers somewhere and accessed by these devices. Mac market share continues to grow in the church niche, though it remains where it’s been for many years worldwide (about 10%). The Mac OS has been improved to help Macs work well on networks and share data, and we’re grateful! The next challenge we hope Apple will address is enterprise support. Next-day onsite support and accidental breakage contracts would help us adopt Macs so much eagerly, and would be a Christian Computing® Magazine

win-win for all involved. That level of support is one of the reasons Dell has become the hardware standard in the enterprise. Pervasive Internet In the early 1990s Steve Hewitt, CCMag Editorin-Chief and I predicted the Internet would become so pervasive that we’d even see trucks on the road with corporate website addresses on them. Most in the audience laughed because we were so audacious. That prediction certainly came true, and the Internet is now a part of most Americans’ lives. In fact, some websites are even famous for their Super Bowl commercials! I recently served a ministry in very rural central Ohio. I was stunned at the slow-as-molasses Internet connections in that area! There were even times I was without a cellular signal! It was a good reminder that many still do not have reliable broadband connections. The impact of this reality is huge as we look at current IT trends. The Cloud is on the horizon— in fact many are already benefitting from some of its early advantages. But for many in the U.S. it will not be a resource or tool they can depend on until broadband becomes as pervasive for rural populations as it is for urban populations. Inexpensive technology is availDecember 2010

able to help ISPs (Internet Service Providers) reach rural areas, but their return on investment— even when based on inexpensive solutions— will not be large. If The Cloud is to become the next computing platform, spreading broadband is essential. Software This has been a good year for Microsoft Office users! Microsoft released versions 2010 (for Windows computers) and 2011 (for Mac computers), and their improvements were significant! Our firm recommends these versions be adopted and deployed ASAP since they bring better and more productive capabilities to users. Microsoft also updated their server operating systems, and the hypervisor (my favorite is still VMware and is free for most churches) has become a mainstream network platform. That will continue to grow since it is becoming the foundation for Cloud strategies. Church management software systems are growing in their focus and their ability to help us serve our congregations well. Some ChMS providers are moving to Cloud-only offerings, which will unfortunately leave rural churches behind. My firm’s preference is still a locally run system that has a Cloud option.

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Church IT Roundtable A grassroots movement began this decade for those working or volunteering to help their church in this crucial field. Every church team member is impacted by technology, and the better their systems are set up, the more effective they can be in fulfilling their mission. This group meets in various locations around the U.S. twice yearly and is a terrific resource. Attendees share their information and expertise because we’re all on the same team. I encourage you to help spread the word further and, if you haven’t yet, get involved! The CITRT website is simply www.citrt.org. Well, ten years after what was predicted to be the end of the world, we’re still here and church IT continues help facilitate the building of The Kingdom in many new and great ways. I’m excited to see what the second decade of this millennium brings and the impact it will have to help us reach more for Jesus.

December 2010

tablet time

Does Tablet Computing Really Matter?

By Russ McGuire - russ.mcguire@gmail.com

his month I’m shifting my focus from sharing lessons we’ve learned launching Hschooler.net to discussing the impact that tablet computing is likely to have on our lives as Christians Tablet Computing? The iPad is one of the most disruptive product launches in the history of computing. Analysts believe that the success of the iPad is impacting the entire industry. The first victim was Netbooks. Netbooks were the hot new category in 2008 and 2009, with monthly year over year growth figures ranging from 179% to 641% throughout the second half of 2009. The iPad was announced in January and launched in April of 2010. By April, Netbook growth had fallen to 5% and has since gone negative. Given Netbook limitations, many people considering buying a Netbook realized that the iPad could do everything they wanted from a Netbook, in a more convenient package, with a simpler user interface, and, to be honest, a “cooler” image. The next victim was Notebooks. Many people who were considering buying a Notebook were less convinced that the iPad could be a credible replacement. But, as iPads reached the market and users gained experience (“technology lust” took hold), many of those Notebook customers decided that the iPad was the choice for them. For the second half of Christian Computing® Magazine

2009, Notebook growth had mostly hovered in the 30% range. Between the iPad announcement and its launch, Notebook growth stayed in the 20-35% range, but in April, Notebook growth was cut almost in half, and by August it had gone negative. Interestingly, unlike the iPhone, competitors have been quick to launch very credible alternatives to the iPad. Apple sold a million iPads in the first month of availability. Samsung announced and launched the Android-based Galaxy S Tab in September. It took Samsung about two months to reach the 1 million sales mark. RIM, the maker of the popular Blackberry smartphone line announced their PlayBook tablet in September, but the product has not yet launched to market. Early reviewers, however, are comparing it very favorably to the iPad, and given the loyalty of Blackberry users, I would expect sales to be brisk following launch. Despite the sudden success of tablet computers, this is not a new concept. I bought my first Tablet computer early in 2006. Since I wasn’t convinced that a pen-based interface (state of the art for tablet computers at the time) was going to meet my needs, I went with a convertible December 2010

model – the Toshiba Portege M405. By flipping the screen around, it could either be used as a tablet or a fairly standard notebook computer. This compromise made it pretty big, bulky, and heavy to use as an actual tablet, and the Windows XP Tablet edition operating system wasn’t overly effective either. I used it almost exclusively in Laptop mode. Microsoft took another shot at a more effective tablet form factor and operating system with the “Origami” concept, which became the UMPC (Ultra Mobile Personal Computer) upon official launch (also in 2006). Unfortunately, the concept never really translated into meaningful sales. I summarized the challenges in a blog post at the end of 2006, which I summarized with this plea: “Will anyone be able to bring a UMPC product to market in the $500 range, with long battery life, the power of ‘real’ Windows (XP or Vista), usability, portability, ubiquitous network connectivity, and contextual relevance? I sure hope so!” Well, it may have taken Apple 4 years, and of course they didn’t deliver a Windows-based system, but I think the iPad delivered on these criteria – finally resulting in market success for tablet computers. Jumping In In August of 2010, I joined the crowds and bought my second tablet computer – this one an iPad. This device (obviously) is a winner. I’m often asked what devices I’ve been able to replace with my iPad. For starters, I’ve replaced my iPod with the iPad. You can’t stick the iPad in your pocket, but I’m not the type to go running with an iPod anyway. I mostly used my iPod in my office at work and when traveling (on the plane and in the hotel room). The iPad works perfectly Christian Computing® Magazine

December 2010

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December 2010

well for those locations. The iPad has all the capability of the iPod interface, but with the feature richness of desktop iTunes. I’ve also replaced the Kindle with the iPad. The Kindle App for the iPad makes all of my Kindle books available and even synchronizes where I am in each book between my Kindle and my iPad. Since I’m already taking my iPad with me, there’s no longer a need to take the Kindle as well. For e-mail connectivity when traveling, the iPad has replaced my laptop. While I often would travel with just my smartphone, the e-mail experience on a phone is still a bit limited compared to the laptop. The iPad mail application is a beautiful thing, making it easy to connect to all of my e-mail accounts and to have confidence I’m seeing all of my messages in all their formatted glory. Composing and replying to messages is a step up from most smartphones, but I’m still not a total fan of on-screen virtual keyboards. I’ve had my eye on the upcoming iPad cases that have a built in Bluetooth keyboard to overcome this limitation, but I’m not sure yet whether that’s going to make the combination bulky enough to be a problem. The calendar on the iPad is also a beautiful thing, with reliable connectivity to my Exchange calendar for work and Google calendar for personal use. The iPad has also replaced my notebook – the paper kind. I now take the iPad into meetings where I previously would always take an ink and paper notebook. I use the Notes application and thumb type notes from the meeting. I then can e-mail the notes to myself and others on my team, as appropriate. The iPad has also replaced my Bible for group Bible studies. I’ll write more about this in a future article, but suffice it to say that the wealth of resources that are available is a huge blessing as we gather to share insights from God’s Word. What’s Not to Like? So, is the iPad a perfect replacement for notebook computers? No, it’s not. I’ve already mentioned the lack of a physical keyboard, but probably the biggest Christian Computing® Magazine

challenge for me is the kludginess of doing simple cut-and-paste on the iPad. Yes, you can do it, but the process is much more difficult than it is using the trusty mouse and keyboard shortcuts. This one limitation keeps me from using the iPad for many of my everyday tasks, including serious writing (like this article – written on my laptop), keeping up to date on blogs I read, and updating my own blog (which relies heavily on cutting and pasting headlines and links from other blogs). The tablet is clearly changing the face of computing, but it’s not yet a perfect replacement. Expect more next month as we continue to explore this exciting area of computing. 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 four homeschooled students under Russ’ direction.

December 2010

ministry communication

Three of the Biggest Communication Mistakes of 2010 Yvon Prehn - yvon@effectivechurchcom.com

very year I interact with many church communicators, and every year it seems like some of the same mistakes are made by many churches which keep them from being as effective as they could be in communicating the gospel message. Following are three of the biggest ones I’ve seen this year. I don’t want to just complain, so I have included links to other “how-to” articles that will help you solve the problems. Church Communication Mistake #1: Thinking that simply having a website is enough As I have evaluated many church communication websites this year, I have lost count of the number of websites that obviously were created by a company selling a template (my apologies to those companies, it is not your fault what is done with them after you sell them) that looks good, but they are failures in communication. The problem is that the church seems to think that just having a website means something. The websites usually have great looking graphics on the home page, scrolling notices of various sorts, lots of labels, but if you click on any of them at most you find a paragraph of content. You never get a sense that a real person cared about anything other than certain slots are filled. No explanations of the why of the church or faith, no evidence of a personality behind the tiny amount of content. Simply having a website isn’t enough—a website is a minimal expectation for any church today just as essential as an entry in the phone book. But, if your website says little more than a phone book entry, it won’t accomplish much more either. What is really sad about this is that a church that only Christian Computing® Magazine

fills in informational blanks is missing a HUGE opportunity for outreach. For specifics on what ministry areas you miss: http:// churchcommunicationsblog.com/2010/12/07/ministry-opportunities-your-website-may-be-missing/ For a series of free videos on how to create your own website: http://www.effectivechurchcom.com/2010/06/webinar-videoshow-to-create-a-website-with-wordpress-the-basics/ Church Communication Mistake #2: Assuming graphic images communicate the same meaning to everyone who looks at them Images should be used only if they add to the message expressed primarily in words. They are not sufficient in and of themselves to communicate much of anything. They may look nice, they may create an emotion, designers may congratulate each other on their brilliance, but if you want to communicate a significant Christian message, images alone won’t do it. Some of you may object: “But, a picture is worth a thousand words.” Whenever I hear that statement, I always respond with the question, “What thousand?” December 2010

People often make the first statement as some sort of understood truth that images say more than words do. That is simply not true. Reality is that the same picture can mean as many different things to as many people who look at it. Not convinced? What would you say a picture of the American flag means to: • A Marine just out of bootcamp? • A terrorist who has been water-boarded? • An immigrant just granted political amnesty? • An Al-Qaeda sleeper cell member? • A member of Congress? It’s the same flag—but we all bring different histories, experiences, loves, and hates to any image from flags, to puppies, to clowns. No image, picture, or graphic is self-explanatory. Images do not fully communicate the complexity of the Christian message. Images do not give time, date, location, and let you know if child care is provided. Images can stir up emotions, but they don’t make practical connections. We need words. Let’s choose them as carefully as we do our images. For an article by Gerry McGovern, international guru of web marketing wherein he summarizes research on the ineffectiveness of images used in secular advertising, and my comments on it go to: http://churchcommunicationsblog.com/2010/12/06/ why-it-is-incorrect-to-think-that-graphic-images-mean-the-same-thing-to-everyone-who-sees-them/ Communication Mistake #3: Using the Apostle Peter’s methods to reach Paul’s audience Some pastors (particularly in my age cohort of Baby-Boomers) have trouble understanding why altar calls don’t seem to work the way they used to. Newcomers to church don’t understand them, or if they do respond, sometimes the same person responds every week or makes a public profession of faith only to go on living no differently than before he made it. This is part of a much larger problem of communicating the Christian message to a post-Christian world. We may know in our heads that the world no longer shares our value system, but when we attempt to translate that into action, it’s easy to forget what that actually means. The following illustration might help. Christian Computing® Magazine

December 2010

When the Apostle Peter preached to the assembled group of observant Jews at Pentecost and thousands immediately responded, it’s easy to forget that he was preaching to a group of people who knew the Old Testament message, who understood sacrificial atonement, who expected and were looking for a Messiah. For this audience all he had to do what show how Jesus fulfilled the criteria as Messiah and challenge them to decision. He got a huge response. Paul’s ministry was primarily to the Gentiles and he used a different approach. One illustration: One night the Lord spoke to Paul in a vision: “Do not be afraid; keep on speaking, do not be silent. For I am with you, and no one is going to attack and harm you, because I have many people in this city.” So Paul stayed in Corinth for a year and a half, teaching them the word of God. Acts 18:9-11 He was not talking to a group of people who grew up hearing the promises of Messiah. This audience had never seen a lamb sacrificed in recognition that they could not meet the demands of a holy God. Paul taught day after day, explaining, teaching God’s Word, giving them the background necessary to understand why it was important that Jesus died and why they needed to live life differently once they trusted him as Savior. The Greco-Roman world was filled with many gods, but to trust one solely for salvation and to change one’s moral behavior because of it was a radical idea for most. Application: We live in a world like Paul’s where people (as hard as it is to understand) may know nothing about the Christian faith or what it actually means to live it. We cannot assume anything in either our written or verbal, web or print communication. In all your communications you need to explain as much as you can, as clearly as you can. Ask if people understand. Explain again. Be prepared; you may irritate some of the long-time church members. When they express impatience with reading your explanations of things they already understand, ask for their prayers that your church clearly communicate to people who know nothing about Jesus as the only source of eternal life. For a free, reproducible Christmas gospel presentation that clearly explains what it means to become a Christian, go to http://www.effectivechurchcom.com

Christian Computing® Magazine

December 2010