Unfortunately, my mouse usually takes the brunt of my frustrations. The "program" can be purchased (seriously) at www.screensmasher.com.
The views expressed on this blog are solely my own and are not representative of my employer.
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Monthly Archives: August 2007
Bringing the Church into the 21st Century
August 7, 2007 – 11:30 pm
I’ve been busy the last few weeks attempting to get my church to tread into this century. There’s more we could be doing via the Internet, but it’s difficult to steer a large group of people to adopt new technologies for communication. So here’s a list of a few things I’ve incorporated over the last few weeks:
1. A blog specifically tailored to a new Bible study class covering the book The Worshiping Artist. Why we hadn’t tried this before, I don’t know. Discussion seems to be going well thus far. Also, the leader of the study (also the Worship Pastor of the church) is updating it himself. If you’re interested, check out www.fbcgt.org/dale . I’m also working on getting staff members to blog about their points of interest.
2. A forum for all church members. It has yet to be published, but if you’re reading this then you’ll be treated to a sneak peek at www.fbcgt.org/thehub . Forums may be a little foreign to some people, but they’re highly useful once understood. They will, hopefully, be used for the multiple ministries at the church, events around our city, for each individual Life Group, and also for leaders and other groups that might require a certain level of privacy for their discussions. I may be most excited about the prospects of this forum, but I’ve also been in this position before of starting a forum for a church, only to have it’s popularity wane in relation to the amount of time it’s "new."
An aside about the forum – it’s called theHub because I’d actually already created a forum called "the forum" using different software than what I’m currently now using. I had been using bbpress, as it syncs with wordpress, our publishing platform, somewhat easily. Unfortunately, it’s not as mature as some other options out there. One of the main problems for me in regards to that is the inability to restrict certain discussions to certain people or groups. So I turned to the big daddy of forums, phpbb. While I’ve never used it before, I’m learning it and liking it. And I like the sound of "theHub." It is a central meeting place, after all.
3. Video Podcasts. We’re not doing this yet, but we’re very close to it.
Slowly, surely, and with many a technical glitch to go, the church creeps ever onward into the vast, uncharted waters of the Internet.
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Why don’t you take a Kissimmee vacation? The irony in that is that it’s close to Disneyland and I just posted about a Baptist church.
Ridiculous Coincidence
August 4, 2007 – 12:39 am
I bought a computer for my grandmother recently. Before you start thinking that I’m the best grandson ever, she bought it with her own money; I was just the middleman. We bought her a Dell because I received an email with a “Back-to-School” special that was right in her price range, even giving her more computer than she needs.
Since we wanted to install the system this Sunday, when I head up to Waco to see her and the rest of my family, and since the last time I ordered a system from Dell (a refurbed desktop) it came from Round Rock, I told my grandmother I’d have them ship it to me in Georgetown, just a few miles from Round Rock, in hopes that it would arrive via free 3-5 day ground shipping before Sunday.
After checking the tracking number, I was shocked to see that the computer was being shipped from Tennessee! I was saddened by the fact, but chalked it up to the fact that my grandmother’s computer was not a refurb unit, and, ergo, was not being shipped from Round Rock. Oh well.
I just checked the tracking number again tonight (Friday). Where is the computer currently sitting? At a DHL station. In Waco!
I’m scheduled to receive the packages on Monday, one day after I’ve gone to visit her.
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Brought to you by a drug rehab recovery center in Malibu. Really? Really.
Deaf to Hi-Def?
August 1, 2007 – 10:47 pm
I read an article today in Creative Cow Magazine (www.creativecow.net) about the “war” between hi-def and lo-res. You wouldn’t think those two factions would have so much animosity towards each other, but who am I to dictate cultural policy?
As it stands, the “war” centers on the fact that, contrary to supposed opinion and many long-held prophesies, the adoption rate of hi-def content viewers is vastly inferior to the numbers of the lo-res youtubers. The article cited the following as barriers to more hi-def viewers:
- poor sales of the PS3, which includes a blu-ray hi-def dvd player
- the need for repurchasing, at a premium price, your entire dvd collection
- the cost of hi-def televisions
- the ability to receive and record hi-def programming via cable or satellite (meaning you don’t have to buy more content)
On the other hand, Youtube has ushered in the age of democratic video – by the people, for the people, all the time, anytime, with any content, at resolutions heretofore unwanted by professionals. They’ve had tremendous growth. If your video goes viral, you could have millions of viewers, worldwide. Youtube is an independent content producers’ best outlet, and, as with the web itself, content is king. Content trumps clarity.
As long as your story is clear, today’s kids don’t care how it looks – just that it speaks to them. Make them laugh with singing silk trees, make them cry with an old man singing a Coldplay song, make them think, make them stop. Whatever it is, just make it and get it on the web – that seems to be the moral of this “war.”
As the article asked, will this year be the year of hi-def? Like last year and the year before it were supposed to be? I doubt it. The solution now, as the article also suggested, is to be ready for both. If you make content and have the ability, create your movies with both technologies in mind, in hi-def and web-ready. If you lack the equipment, shoot lo-res, upload, and call it a day.
What do you watch more? Your hi-def TV or that certain youtube video that everyone’s seen a million times?
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