Churches: prepare to jump from Microsoft

The “once and future” Microsoft Vista operating system — originally scheduled for 2003, now pushed back to 2007 — will cost acquirers a great deal of money in new software and hardware. Not so much an update but an overhaul: quite costly in cash, learning curve, and environmental impact. (Discarded electronics are quite toxic, and… Continue reading Churches: prepare to jump from Microsoft

Don’t let expensive software stifle your church’s mission

I can’t speak to everything Donner Lohnes, a member of Unitarian Universalists of Puerto Rico, mentions in his comment — and do read it if you you are a seminarian or care about new churches in the UUA — but I can address one thing he notes: We can’t afford the $200 for Pagemaker and… Continue reading Don’t let expensive software stifle your church’s mission

Learn about Creative Commons: an animated story

It can be hard to get your head around the “some rights reserved” ideas the Creative Commons crowd has been advocating for about four years. A short, entertaining Flash animation would help, right? Here it is. I love to watch it just to watch it.

Published
Categorized as Open

Copyright, licenses and sermons

Nancy at DanceLessons wrote today about the need of small congregations who use the sermon manuscripts of ministers with permission and attribution. Good for her. These churches — many of whom I have in mind when I write this blog — have a need. So do published preachers, the a big reason for getting those… Continue reading Copyright, licenses and sermons

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Categorized as Open, Preaching

Dial 9 to get out: a reasonable PBX solution for churches

I normally write about the technical needs of small churches, but one resource has been hot, hot, hot in Linux and Open Source circles for the last few months is Asterisk PBX. A PXB is a “private branch exchange” — the kind of “dial nine to get out” and voicemail system that almost anyone in… Continue reading Dial 9 to get out: a reasonable PBX solution for churches

Fix the UUA: Demand open standards and open licensed resources

Think of a traditional wedding service. “Dearly beloved . . . ” This image of the traditional wedding service (no doubt) became traditional because most American Protestants used some variation (depending on which edition was authorized when the adoption took place) of the US Episcopal Church’s wedding service as their own. To a lesser degree,… Continue reading Fix the UUA: Demand open standards and open licensed resources