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Misguided Technology Use


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I have to admit: I like to be "innovative" and "creative" just like the next tech geek and sometimes I take it too far for a spin in the seat, but this guy has has me beat. He's using Twitter to turn on and off his lights.  You have to see it to believe it. Control Lights with Twitter from Justin Wickett on Vimeo. But here's the challenge that I all think we can take away from this: Are we using technology properly?  Or are we creating uses that the medium never was intended for (and not ... Read More

Meatspace Monday 4 – CLT WordCamp – Taking the Online Community Offline


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This is the very first "official" guest post by Leo Wurschmidt (Twitter), Co-Founder and Marketing Director for Triune Designs. I've gotten to know Leo through this blog and another and have loved his passion and insight into marketing and the social media space.  It is an honor to open up my blog to those that are passionate about using technology for the Kingdom, and so thanks Leo for being one of the first. Charlotte finally put its name on the social media map - the Queen City hosted a ... Read More

Official Google SEO Guide Released


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Part of what made has made Google both super frustrating and super rewarding in terms of SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is that it's been something that would have made Winston Churchill blush: "It is a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma." And although he was talking about Russia, he might of well have been talking about Google's Search Engine monster. For those that have managed (by trial and error and sheer force of will) to discover how to get amazing page rankings, the ... Read More

LifeChurch.tv Holds BETA Test


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And was it a "success"? Sure, if the metric was that "it worked" and didn't blow up.  They've still got some usability issues to deal with (the chat screen is spam central) and perhaps some refresh issues, but otherwise it looked good. Those guys at LifeChurch.tv are pushing the boundaries and aren't afraid of doing something different.  That's a slamming success, if you ask me. Check the full 30+ minute screen grab of some of my testing during the Beta Launch.  Stay tuned, because it's only ... Read More

10 Free Ministry Website Creation Tools


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There is no choice: The new church, ministry, or organization has to have a presence online.  But getting started, especially for the less-technically-inclined, can be extremely daunting. Things that always have to be considered are hosting for your website, server setup, website creation, and content management (and that's not to mention the incremental financial cost, staffing, and limited time available to administer). But how does one choose the aforementioned services?  Where do you ... Read More

How I Get My Blogging Done


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I'm writing this post more for myself because I'm hoping to "steal" a lot of great ideas from you guys and learn how you guys manage the chaos of blogging. But first I have to share how I do mine.  Screenshot of one of my "northern star" apps after the jump. MiniTask is the bomb.  Probably because it's super easy and brain-dead-simple to use.  ... And it's green (one of my favorite colors) and it's built on Adobe Air, which is uber. With tons of functionality (much of which I simply don't ... Read More

365 Days as a Community Manager


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One of my "side" projects just turned 1 and the last 365 days have been insane. I could probably write a book about it: 12 chapters, 1 for each month.  Want to know something I find fascinating?  I can actually remember what happened each month by just looking at the traffic and metrics.  Neat, huh? So here are some preliminary thoughts about off the top of my head as I look back into the murky pathway that lead me here (by accident or on purpose... yet to be determined): now over 3 Million ... Read More

LifeChurch.tv Launching New Version of Internet Campus


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Big news: LifeChurch.tv is launching their brand new version of their Internet Campus Experience this Sunday and are asking for "volunteers" to help test it at their 1:00PM CST service (11.16.2008). Here's the official email request by Tony Steward: Hello Friends! This is a special ask for your online participation and help coming this Sunday. Here at LifeChurch.tv we have been in active development of a brand new internet campus tool to run our online experiences. We are almost ready to ... Read More

Tangle is Coming – Godtube 2.0


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Thanks to @DJChuang I received some very interesting but not so new news: GodTube is moving forward with their plan to release a Christian Social Network in early January 2009. I had blogged about this earlier in May when the first news hit the wire that they had received a loaded round of funding.  At the time, they had mentioned that part of their strategic growth plan was to expand their base of operations to include more social networking elements: In the coming months, the company will ... Read More

Build Your Own Ministry Twitter


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Twitter has ballooned to monstrous proportions in the world wide web and the every corner and segment of the online world has responded, from corporate enterprise businesses, to niche social networks, to non-profits, and of course the evangelicals and ministries. In addition to the the growth of Twitter, tons (literally) of alternative micro-blogging services have surfaced, each attempting to capitalize on the "140 characters or less" zeitgeist. Some, like Yammer, are aimed at private ... Read More