The WELSTech month of “Awesome Apps” continues with a rundown of Martin and Sallie’s go-to mobile utilities! From weather to shopping to travel, there’s an app for that. Plus, we share news of a new program to address child abuse and neglect as well as a new online Bible study for women. And the community feedback bag holds lots of interesting tech in ministry goodies as well!

Utilities – We call those devices in our pockets “phones,” but that’s probably the understatement of the century. They have the ability to do so much more that connect to others for a voice conversation. This week Martin and Sallie focus on the plethora of utility apps that can enhance your ministry efforts, productivity, pocketbook, and life, in general.

WELS Women online Bible study

If Sallie’s pick of the week intrigues you, learn more about Habitica and Task Management in this week’s featured video.

Episode 545 – Next week Martin and Sallie talk awesome communication apps . Release date: Wednesday, April 18.

April is “Awesome Apps” month on WELSTech as Martin and Sallie share some of their favorite apps that can provide a boost to your productivity, ministry activities or just plain enjoyment of your smart devices. In this episode the “focus” is on photo apps including cameras, photo management, editing and sharing. Don’t be satisfied with just “taking pictures.” Up your game with these awesome apps!

Photo apps – The best camera is the one you have with you! And these days, your handy smartphone camera offers quality and features which result in stunning photos. Martin and Sallie share their favorite apps to extend your smartphone camera capabilities, including capturing, editing and sharing.

Untangling Audio Cable Confusion from Church Tech Today

Watch President Schroeder’s 2018 Easter Message.

Episode 544 – Awesome Apps month continues with a deep dive into a variety of mobile app utilities. Release date: Wednesday, April 11.

The last installment in WELSTech’s “back to the basics” March focus is all about presentations. From classroom to Bible study to conferences, most listeners will agree that presentations are common across all ministry and non-ministry related roles. Jason Schmidt joins the conversation about tips and tools for great presentations. There’s a new Chrome OS platform and affordable robots for classrooms included in this week’s discussion as well.

Present that – Jason Schmidt from Bennington Public Schools in Omaha, NE co-hosts this week, and he’s all about #appsmashing your way to great presentations.

The first Chrome OS tablet is here

‘Tis the season to register!

Polling tools for your presentations

Enjoy the MLC College Choir singing In My Father’s House.

Episode 543 – April arrives with a focus on Awesome Apps, and the week 1 discussion is all things related to mobile photography. Release date: Wednesday, April 4.

WELSTech’s “back to the basics” March focus continues with a look at two favorite tools – calendars and task managers. Perhaps tips shared for each will unlock listener’s super powers! And you won’t want to miss the lively discussion of technology in worship based on a recent article by Pastor Caleb Bassett.

Trusted systems – At the center of personal and professional productivity are two basic tools – calendars and task managers. Martin and Sallie share their recommendations for each as well as ideas for churches and schools to capitalize on the power of these basic tools.

Print My Cal

Let’s rethink how we think about technology in worship

Watch Pastor Caleb Bassett’s Worship Conference presentation, Screens in Worship: Dos and don’ts – but mostly don’ts

Episode 542 – Jason Schmidt helps Martin and Sallie close out “Back to the Basics” month with a discussion of Presentations. Release date: Wednesday, March 28.

WELSTech continues the “back to the basics” theme as we discuss technology that has a lengthy life-span but is still very relevant today. The week we look at document management. Plus, the community feedback mailbag is overflowing with WELSTech goodness from listeners & viewers.

Best practices – Knowledge workers are in the business of creating and collaborating on documents, which makes the need for document management policies and training important in our churches, schools, and personal lives.

Drew Willems, Technology Director at Lakeside Lutheran High School in Lake Mills, WI, talks with Martin and Sallie about how they use G Suite for document management at Lakeside. Plus Martin and Sallie explore the topic further with a discussion of other solutions, use cases, tips, and questions to consider.

Calling all presenters!! Submit your ideas by May 31 for a session at #EdTechLead19, WELS Education, Technology, and Leadership Summit, happening June 25-27 at Kalahari Resort in WI Dells – welsedtechlead.com/call-for-presenters

Visit the WELSTech Photo Challenge Album on Flickr for royalty free seasonal images including …

Check out the translation work at StoryWeaver and an overview of Google’s involvement in the project in our video of the week.

Episode 541 – We go back to the basics of calendaring and task management. Release date: Wednesday, March 21.

WELSTech is going “back to the basics” in March and tackling old technology that is still very relevant today. Email is one of those oldies but goodies. You might be surprised what email can do for you today. Tune in for that plus a BIG announcement about next summer’s EdTechLead Summit and how you can earn a free night at Kalahari Resort!

Email for the win – Email has been around since we began using the Internet (way back when!), and despite the multitude of communication methods available today, email is still the right tool for the job in many instances. Brush up on your knowledge of email as Martin and Sallie share their preferences and reference resources for administrators.

National Day of Unplugging – March 10

Lesley Bergemann reports that teachers at Good Shepherds in West Allis, WI are using FastDirect for parent communication, but that doesn’t mean they can leave their classroom web pages empty.

Check out the full complement of Drafts screencasts, including this Overview.

Episode 540 – Martin and Sallie talk the basics of document management with Drew Willems from Lakeside Lutheran High School. Release date: Wednesday, March 14.

The last WELSTech episode in February finishes off a month-long focus on training. Today we are joined by MLC Professor Rachel Feld to discuss school websites and how to approach training faculty members who are already stretched too thin. An interesting challenge, but there are tools and techniques to help. Rachel talks about a $99 pencil, Sallie brings some plugin goodness, and Martin finds his “waze.”

Websites for classrooms – Martin Luther College Professor Rachel Feld joins the conversation with tips for training teachers to manage classroom web sites. It’s not always about tech savvy teachers switching to the latest shiny technology. Instead, adopting tools school wide and committing to long-term usage, ongoing training, and support may be the wiser strategy.

InsertLearning.com

Joe Dexter from Emanuel in New London, WI shared information on the pending demise of 600 MHz wireless microphones.

Appropriate for the season, check out Koine’s Lenten Hymns and Music playlist including this week’s featured video, O Dearest Jesus.

Episode 539 – Tune in as WELSTech goes back to the basics, exploring the nuances of the tech tools we rely on daily to get our jobs done. Release date: Wednesday, March 7.

February, designated as “training techies” month on WELSTech, continues as Martin and Sallie discuss training social media ambassadors. See how those folks can provide great channels for the message of the gospel to reach people your church can’t. We also received some excellent first-hand feedback on the Livestream MEVO camera.

Image courtesy of Alyssa Bream https://alyssabream.com/free-resources/ Click image to view larger

Social training – Martin and Sallie discuss ideas for coaching members of your church to expand the reach of church social media communication by liking, sharing, and commenting on posts.

Samsung unveils world’s largest SSD with whopping 30TB of storage

Register for the Lutheran Women’s Missionary Society (LWMS) 2018 Convention happening June 21-24 in Green Bay, WI. Early bird registration savings ends April 1.

Learn more about Summer continuing education classes offered at Martin Luther College and get registered!

Tune in to the latest Together Video Update to learn about WELS Home Missions from Pastor Jared Oldenburg and Nicole Balza.

Episode 538 – MLC Professor Rachel Feld joins the conversation about training techies to manage your church and school website. Release date: Wednesday, February 28.

February, designated as “training techies” month on WELSTech, continues as Martin and Sallie are joined by Peter Frank of Concordia Technology Solutions to discuss church management software. Their picks of the week have a Google theme including timers and calendars, and there’s some great community feedback.

Working with the church database – An important function of the church (and school) office is maintaining information on members and prospects. This is typically done using a database with a special name … Church Management Software (CMS). Most CSM solutions allow for multiple users to enter data, which is both a blessing and a responsibility for those who oversee the CSM. Martin and Sallie share tips for maximizing the effectiveness of the volunteer’s work in the CMS.

Peter Frank from Concordia Technology Solutions shares insights on working with volunteers and Church Management Software. Peter heads the team behind two popular CMS tools – Shepherd’s Staff and Church360º Members & Ledger.

Upcoming Men of His Word Conferences

Concordia Technology Solutions Resource Center

New this week from the Concordia Technology Solutions YouTube channel is The Value of Tracking Church Attendance (and How to Do It!).

Episode 537 – Tune in for tips on equipping members to be church social media ambassadors. Release date: Wednesday, February 21.

February is “training” month on WELSTech as Martin and Sallie dedicate each show to discussing ways to train your volunteers for those important tech tasks like worship projection. Kristen Tetteh also joins the show to talk about Faithlife’s Proclaim software. She brought with her a special discount code!

Worship projection – Volunteers are key players when it comes to the work to be done in churches and schools. This week we look at one important “techie” role volunteers play in worship – controlling the worship projection. Martin and Sallie share tips for equipping volunteers to carry out their duties with confidence and without errors.

Meeting the unique need – Kristen Tetteh joins Martin and Sallie to share an overview of Faithlife Proclaim Church Presentation Software, including the history of how the software was born to meet the needs of congregations. She gives us a behind the screens look at the software screens and the vast Pro Media library included with Proclaim.

Kristen also shares a special offer for WELSTech listeners. Visit proclaimonline.com/welstech for a three-month free trial of Proclaim with the promo code WELSTECH.

The current Interactive Faith online Bible Study, Isaiah: God confronts and comforts his people, with Pastor Daniel Habben from St. John’s, Antigua wraps up this week, but you can still enjoy the video archive and downloadable study guides.

Worship projection media

Learn more about Faithlife Proclaim from the large selection of videos on their YouTube channel including this week’s addition to the WELSTech instructional video playlist, How to Use Proclaim Church Presentation Software.

Episode 536 – Training techies on church and school management software. Release date: Wednesday, February 14.