Box.net: Free 50 GBs of Storage for Life

October 13, 2011 in Administration, iOS, mobile, Software, Web with 2 Comments

I love “The Cloud.”  Apps like Evernote, GoogleDocs, iCloud, and Flickr are great for share and freeing up space on your hard drive through free online storage.  One of my favorite cloud apps is dropbox.  Dropbox is a free app and online site that lets you store pics, docs, and videos and access them from any device. In addition to accessibility and its freeness I can easily share folders and files with other dropbox users or with a link from my dropbox “public” folder.  If you want to check out dropbox click this link and install the app.

If you don’t think dropbox has enough storage space for you check out BOX.net.  Right now iTunes has the BOX.net app (iPhone & iPad) for Free downloaded. You have today until December 2, 2011 to register or sign in to your account from the app to receive 50GB of lifetime storage on Box.net (usually $19.99).Check out both and see which you like more!  Share in the comments some of your favorite cloud apps.

Set World Records at Your Next Event

October 9, 2011 in Featured, For Fun, Fun, Media, Uncategorized, Web with 0 Comments

I was watching some podcast Brian Brushwood was on when I first discovered RecordSetter.com  This is a online, user-generated world record site.  (I almost feel foolish writing anything else because I know your brains are already spinning on this one.)  It’s easy.  After signing up, you post a video as proof.  They review it and then confirm you made or broke the record.

After hearing about this, one of our students immediately went and broke the record for number of times saying “pretty” before “good” in one breath.  He was beaten soon after by a girl from Canada, but rest assured that he considered it a matter of national pride to get this  record back in American hands!

So, we hosted a world record event and set a bunch of great ones that are being verified as I type.  As a fun promo for the event our staff broke several records including my own world record:

RIP Steve Jobs

October 5, 2011 in iOS, Mac, News with 1 Comment

It’s a sad day in the tech world.  Steve Jobs has passed away at the age of 56.

His impact on the world of technology  is undeniable, and the products (Macs, iPods, iPhones, Pixar) he championed have helped shaped the world we live in.

I had the opportunity to go to his keynote address introducing the iPhone in 2007.  It was an experience I’ll never forget.  In his honor, here’s a video of that presentation:

Part 2

Steve, you’re vison and innovation will be missed.

Quick Look at BookBook

September 27, 2011 in Gadgets, mobile with 1 Comment

I have never been a fan of cases for my phones, laptops, or my iPad. Don’t get me wrong, I have seen some cool looking cases but my top values are 1) to protect my device and 2) to keep it as thin and light as possible. I use Zagg’s Invisible Shield for my iPhone and for my Droid and I have stuck with Apple’s iPad case, it is super thin and protects the screen…And then I met BookBook.

Twelvesouth’s BookBook is not the lightest or thinnest but its vintage appearance and feel are awesome and as a speaker it is comfortable to teach from.  I serve at a four generational church and I find that the BookBook conceals my iPad in a way that is less distracting to those around me.  In the past I have been confronted for texting during church when I was actually reading my iPhone Bible.  Now with BookBook no one knows I am on my iPad and I can get my Bejeweled on…jk.  For some of you this may not be a big deal but for others this could be the cover you have been looking for.  A Case that brings enough tradition to your iPad to make it useable for weddings, funerals, and hospital visits.

I have had my case for about two months and have enjoyed its form and function, and to be honest I have enjoyed the attention too.  Here are a few pros and cons of iPad BookBook…

Pros:
•       Protection, inside (soft lining) and out (durable hardback).
•       Drool factor, people think it is a cool looking book, when they find out it is an iPad case they go nuts.
•       iPad becomes less distracting in a church service.
•       Zipper is super quiet (again, not distracting to others).
•       The smell…I love leather!

Cons:
•       Bulky for a Backpack.
•       While there is a slick design for viewing angles (Pic #1) there’s no design angle for typing (Pic #2).
•       First gen iPad causes the back to curve.
•       Price. While the hardback leather case is worth $70 that maybe be steep for some.

Pic #1

Pic #2

To check out a full description and pick up a BookBook head over to twelvesouth.com.

Sesame Street G: Glee Parody

September 22, 2011 in For Fun with 1 Comment

I thought this Glee parody was great. They nailed the characters.

If you are super into Glee and would like to teach a series on it, CYMT.org is publishing a teaching series on it.  You can download the first one, “Not Just a Loser,” HERE.

Guest Post: Using Multiple Accounts In Gmail

September 21, 2011 in Administration, Web with 0 Comments

It’s been a month since this feature has gone live, but I am just now getting to reviewing it: GMail’s multi-account login. It is the perfect feature for those that have two or more GMail accounts that they actively use. I have been running three different accounts, personal, business, and 78P’s, and this feature has removed frustration and mistakes when emailing. Here is a quick How-To in setting it up.

  • Sign in to one of your Gmail accounts.
  • Go to the top right-hand corner of the page where it says the address@clubbeyond.org and click “Account Settings.”
  • Look to the right side of the page at the end of the list, where it will say “Multiple sign in – off” and click “Edit.”
  • Click the “on” option and click all the boxes, then hit “Save.”
  • Go back to the “Mail” tab and go again to the top right-hand corner where it says the address of the account you’re logged in as.
  • Click that and select “Switch Accounts” and click “Sign in to another account”. It will tell you that the second account will be enabled for multiple sign-in.
  • Whenever you want to switch between the two, click the arrow in the upper right-hand corner again and select “Switch Accounts”, then click the other account you want to switch to.

About Jeremy Smith

Jeremy Smith is a 26 year old youth worker at the Air Force Academy chapel, working for Club Beyond, and attending Denver Seminary for his Master”s of Counseling in Mental Health. He has been involved in Youth for Christ for eight years and absolutely loves sharing the life of Jesus with teens.  You can read more from him at seventy8productions.com.

Youth Ministry Garage Debuts Today

September 15, 2011 in News, Resources, Web with 0 Comments

I saw over on Doug Fields’ blog, that his podcast returns today.  It’s now called the YouthMinistryGarage and the new site launches at 5:30 PM EST.  I’m so excited the crew is back.  I got to see a little bit of the first episode and it’s the return of everything I loved from the version we did over at Simply, and I’m so glad that YS is powering the show now to help keep it going.

Here’s a little video tease of the opening:

I can’t wait to watch it again.  If you’ve never watched before this is a great time to check it out.

Guest Post: Social Media Can Increase Your Search Engine Optimization

September 2, 2011 in Administration, Web with 0 Comments

Social media is a wonderful marketing tool, if used correctly, but just using it to link to your website is completely under utilizing the power that social media can provide for you. Social media should not be your only way to get your content to customers, but it can provide wonderful success. Another way to get people to your website is from search engine results which can be improved through SEO (Search Engine Optimization).

Until recently, these were two separate marketing streams used to promote your website, but now it is possible for your social media presence to improve your search engine results. Google’s ranking is directly affected by tweeted links and Facebook shares from influential social media people as well as when it comes from multiple sources. That means if Barack Obama who is currently the third most followed person on Twitter retweets your website article on politics or fifty people retweet that same article in a short amount of time, your website will move up on the results pages at Bing and Google.

This does not eliminate good content, being an active social media user, or using SEO tools to improve your website, but it does mean that you will need to do some research on your product or service to produce better results. In future posts we’ll will look at a few ways that we can improve this social media and SEO relationship.

 

Jeremy Smith is a 26 year old youth worker at the Air Force Academy chapel, working for Club Beyond, and attending Denver Seminary for his Master”s of Counseling in Mental Health. I have been involved in Youth for Christ for eight years and absolutely love sharing the life of Jesus with teens.

I have been married to my wonderful wife, Ashley, for two years and try to be the best husband I can be. I enjoy tennis, web designs, and reading books. A secret introvert, you will find many of my ramblings come from weeks and months of thinking about these topics and how they can help ministry today.

Want to Learn to Code?

August 29, 2011 in Administration, For Fun, Software, Web with 1 Comment

I don’t know about you, but I’ve always wanted to really learn to code.  I feel like I know just enough to know about programming that I don’t know what I’m doing.  This weekend I stumbled upon Codecademy which is a free site that will teach you some basic coding / programming skills.  The lessons start out really easy (can you type your name?), and then get a little more difficult as they teach you some of the fundamentals.   You can also code along with your friends, and earn badges for the lessons you finish (Who doesn’t like badges?).

It might be a great thing for students that might be interested in coding but don’t know quite where to start.

Enjoy, who knows, maybe someday you’ll find yourself turning into a CodeMonkey.

 

Guest Post: Advice for the Web Consultant

August 26, 2011 in Administration, Web with 2 Comments

As I wrap up my involvement in a project for a local ministry as their free web consultant, I have some tips that I wanted to pass along to those who use web developers or web consultants. This has been a unique experience for me, as a web consultant does not actually get into the designing or programming process, but simply provides what expertise they can to the project as a whole and lets the clients and web developers use that information as they wish. This provides an outside look into a project that people might need a new prospective or fresh eyes on. Unfortunately, sometimes they cannot let go or still continue bad habits, even after being advised not to continue. Here are four tips from a web consultant.

Leave Your Emotions At The Door
In the last three different projects I have worked on, each team had started arguing with each other or the web developer working on the project. They wanted something that was not possible for the cost that they were willing to pay and started to either whine, get angry, or be defiant and stall the project. That does not mean leave your passion at the door. This is your company and you need to do the best for it, but when emotions stall progress, you need to reevaluate your position.

Remember Who Is The Expert
You know your product or service better than anyone else in the room. This is your baby and you know the whole picture for the project. But do not confuse knowing your product with knowing what is best for the website. If a consultant says you will get better results doing something, hear them out. If it is something small like adding tags to blog posts that does not cripple or alter the project, you might want to let that one go. It comes down to picking your battles wisely and holding on to what God has given you loosely.

Keep The Timeline And Budget In Perspective
Almost nothing is impossible to create on the web. Want to have an ecommerce shopping cart? Got it. Want to use a packaged content management system that gives you lots of options, bells, and whistles? Done. Need a to completely rework one of the components of our project for your specific needs? Can do. Want it all at the original cost and due date? NO DEAL! If you want more, you have to be willing to give somewhere.

Remember The Goal Of The Website
Is it really necessary to have an iPhone app for this website? Will enough value be added if you incorporate a Flash intro? We always need to know what the goal of the website is and not deviate from the final mission. Additions for the website might need to take a backseat until version 2.0. For those that are not a typical web designer, they can get lost in the “possibilities” of what could be and need to focus in on why they wanted a website in the first place and stay true to it.

 

Jeremy Smith is a 26 year old youth worker at the Air Force Academy chapel, working for Club Beyond, and attending Denver Seminary for his Master”s of Counseling in Mental Health. I have been involved in Youth for Christ for eight years and absolutely love sharing the life of Jesus with teens.

I have been married to my wonderful wife, Ashley, for two years and try to be the best husband I can be. I enjoy tennis, web designs, and reading books. A secret introvert, you will find many of my ramblings come from weeks and months of thinking about these topics and how they can help ministry today.

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