Greg Atkinson is a consultant, friend and partner with a select group of strategic partnerships. Greg works with these partner companies (listed in alphabetical order) and encourages you to contact him at greg@gregatkinson.com for more information on how we can be a resource to your church. Click on the logos to go to the company website.
Greg is Director of Creative Strategy and works as a consultant with BigBadCollab and churches to create innovative technologies for the Kingdom. Currently Greg is helping churches develop a tool for assimilation and discipleship with next steps for spiritual growth. If your church would like a web-based tool like this, contact Greg. We also do custom websites, logos and complete branding consulting and implementation.
We focus on your finances. You focus on your church. We’ve created a web-based system that allows your church to outsource all aspects of day-to-day financial management. Greg is also available for financial consulting for your church or organization.
HelpStaff.me is a church staffing company. If your church is looking for a new staff member or you’re a church leader looking for a new ministry position, contact Greg. Many organizations have hired employees to fill needs without having a master plan for their organizational goals and growth. HELPSTAFF.ME can do an overall assessment and help you set up your staffing more effiiently and effectively. Again, contact Greg for more info.
TruthCasting creates custom iPhone apps for your church. Greg is your connection to this amazing mobile resource.
Yesterday, with the announcement of ProPresenter 4 (for Mac) – my friends at Renewed Vision threw in one other big announcement: they’re making a Windows version. I knew this, but couldn’t blog about it before. Here’s the announcement that came in their email:
For 10 years, we’ve developed ProPresenter for Mac only, and have been asked repeatedly if there was going to be a version for Windows. Our answers were always the same:
• The tools that enable us to do what we do on the Mac aren’t as robust on the Windows platform.
• We have nothing against Windows, but felt we could make a more powerful and reliable product on the Mac.
• We’d rather focus on making the best software for any platform, rather than divide our efforts by supporting two platforms.
All of these answers were valid, and as the marketshare of the Mac has increased over the last several years, the question has become a lot less frequent. At the same time, however, we’ve been troubled by some things:
• There are a lot of churches that don’t have Macs, particularly overseas
• There is a great variety of Windows-based machines on the market that are seemingly very capable.
• A new computer purchase is often difficult in today’s economy.
• Many PC users get excited about our product only to be let down when learning it’s Mac only.
• Some organizations will not purchase a Mac just to run ProPresenter.
• If we can improve the worship experience on the Mac, why not use our expertise to do the same for Windows?
Through the years, a lot has changed. Computers have become far more powerful and technologies have evolved. We’ve kept our eye on Windows technologies that would enable us to create a quality ProPresenter experience for Windows users, and we now believe we have found the right tool set, and assembled the right team of people to make ProPresenter for Windows a reality!
So, the cat’s out of the bag. We’ll be keeping you updated via our website as this story unfolds. Until then, here are answers to some questions we thought you might have:
WHAT WILL PROPRESENTER 4 WINDOWS LOOK LIKE?
We have put a great deal of thought into the user interface of ProPresenter 4 on the Mac, so why ruin a good thing? We are building the Windows version to look and function identically. If you know how to run ProPresenter 4 Mac, you will know instantly how to run ProPresenter 4 Windows.
WILL IT HAVE ALL THE FEATURES OF THE MAC VERSION?
We are working hard to make sure that every feature of the Mac version is implemented in Windows. In some cases, a feature may be less robust on the Windows platform while others may work even better. Some technical realities beyond the scope of ProPresenter may have an impact (video codecs, shared storage, etc.), but we’re going to make sure these are minimal.
WILL I BE ABLE TO USE BOTH IN MY ORGANIZATION?
From the ground up, we have worked to ensure interoperability between ProPresenter 4 Mac and ProPresenter 4 Windows. This means you will be able to move files back and forth, and they will run largely the same way on either platform.
WHAT ABOUT THE ADVANCED AND ALPHA KEYER MODULES, OR THE PROPRESENTER REMOTE FOR IPHONE?
We’re not planning our initial release of ProPresenter 4 Windows to include any modules or iPhone remote functionality. Depending on market acceptance and customer demand, however, we may consider developing them in the future. Be sure to let us know your interest in these additional features.
WHAT IS THE PRICING OF PROPRESENTER FOR WINDOWS?
ProPresenter for Windows has the same pricing structure as its Mac counterpart. Single user licenses will be platform specific and sold for $399. However, a Site License for ProPresenter 4 will work on either platform, allowing unlimited use on any platform for a single campus, making our site license an even better value add. This means for a $799 site license purchase, you can run ProPresenter 4 on either a Mac or a Windows machine. Existing ProPresenter 4 site license owners will be able to download and unlock the Windows version immediately after it becomes available.
WHY ARE WE ANNOUNCING IT NOW?
Because site licenses of ProPresenter 4 will work on both the Mac and Windows versions, we want people to know these benefits before placing their upgrade orders.
WHEN WILL PROPRESENTER 4 WINDOWS BE RELEASED?
We don’t have a specific date for release quite yet, but are working towards Summer 2010. We will certainly have a public beta test for registered ProPresenter users prior to the wide release. Stay tuned for such an announcement in the coming months.
This demo of what Sports Illustrated will look like and act on the new Apple iPad leaves me speechless. The future is happening right before our eyes. Check it!
Named one of the best science images of 2008 by the National Geographic News, Visualizing the Bible“… brings to light the interconnected nature of one of the world’s most familiar books.” The bar graph that runs along the bottom represents all of the chapters in the Bible. Books alternate in color between white and light gray. The length of each bar denotes the number of verses in the chapter. Each of the 63,779 cross references found in the Bible is depicted by a single arc – the color corresponds to the distance between the two chapters, creating a rainbow-like effect.
This chart was created by Chris Harrison, a Ph.D. student in the Human-Computer Interaction Institute at Carnegie Mellon University, in collaboration with Christoph Römhild, a Lutheran Pastor. Chris won the Honorable Mention in the NSF’s Science & Engineering 2008 Visualization Challenge.
This graphic is a registered trademark of Chris Harrison. All rights reserved.
Tuesday we met with a surgeon at UT Southwestern and praise God, he doesn’t want to do surgery, yet. He wants to watch things for 3 months and then do more testing then. So for now, we’re not having surgery and there’s always still hope for healing.
IF YOU’RE IN DFW: We’re having a prayer, worship and healing service this Friday night (tomorrow) at 7pm at Fellowship Dallas. If you’re in the Dallas area, you’re welcome to join us. If not, just pray from where you are. Thanks!
IN OTHER NEWS:
YouVersion launched http://onebillionminutes.com to celebrate people reading over a Billion minutes of the Bible on the JUST the YouVersion mobile apps. Pretty crazy to think how engaged people are in the Bible through their phone!
My friend, Don Chapman, just shared about his experience of looking for an inexpensive video solution. Here’s his latest article:
Video is the wave of the future – and here’s how your church can inexpensively get in on the action.
Since YouTube and other video sites have exploded over the past few years I’ve wanted to try recording some videos for WorshipIdeas (if you’ve noticed I’ve put several up in the past few weeks.) Even in the past few months I’ve noticed more and more video clips turning up in Google search results and on news websites.
I started my research in late August. It seems there are two extremes in HD video records: $200 and under (inexpensive) and $800 and over (expensive.) Since I just wanted to dabble in video (and didn’t know if I’d even like it) I wanted to go cheap.
The little Flip cameras are popular, but I tend to shy away from the popular as experience has taught me there’s probably something out there not as well known but twice as good.
I learned that a key to great video is to have an external microphone for the best sound quality. Internal mics produce crummy sound with lots of room noise. Unfortunately all the mini, cheap HD video cameras have only internal mics – except one!
The newly released Kodak Zi8 is the only mini HD video camera with an external microphone jack. I overnighted it and started playing with it.
Most of the new WorshipIdeas videos (except for the Kristian Stanfill video) were created on the Zi8. And unbelievably, my latest clip of the Jamestown church was aired yesterday on CBN News!! Let me restate that: a cable news channel just broadcast my clip made from a $180 video camera!! Here’s the clip:
The possibilities are endless for a church – man on the street interviews, skits, website greetings, sermon illustrations… great, clear and crisp Hi-Def video at an affordable price.
The Kodak Zi8 is not hassle free. If you want to shoot videos of your cat dancing and upload them directly from the camera to YouTube, you’ll have no problem. If you want to edit video (on a PC,) you’ll have problems.
I spent an entire day bashing my head against the wall trying to figure out how to get video out of the Kodak into my editing software. Here’s the problem: the video shot is proprietary – it’s in a modified QuickTime MOV format. But even though I installed QuickTime I still couldn’t get the video to work in my Sony Vegas video editing software. The included MediaImpressions software has a lousy editing feature that makes Windows Movie Maker look high-end. So here are the hoops I jump through to make great videos and edit them with the Kodak Zi8:
Buy memory. The Zi8 needs a memory card, purchased separately. I got a 16 gig SDHC card and have nowhere near filled it up yet.
Shoot video in 720p (the camera will shoot in 1080p but will not export in an editable form for Sony Vegas.)
Buy a “steadicam.” This is a contraption pros attach to their cameras to make the image steady so they can walk around and get action shots. Even though the Zi8 has image stabilization built in, you really need a steadicam if you’re going to move with the camera and want smooth and professional footage. I bought an amateur steadicam that works wonderfully – the Manfrotto ModoSteady is $99 and props the camera up against my chest for a very steady shot. Notice how I pan across the church in my video – that’s using the ModoSteady.
Once you have shot your video, plug the Zi8 into your computer’s USB slot and copy files to your hard drive. The first time you plug your camera into your computer it will ask you to install the proprietary software.
Convert to MP4. The camera’s videos are in the QuickTime MOV format. Even though I installed QuickTime the videos would play but without sound in Sony Vegas. Launch the MediaImpressions software you’ve installed from the camera and use it to open your videos (browse videos.) Select the videos you want to edit, then click “Media Converter” at the bottom of the screen. Convert settings: Manufacturer=Sony, Select Device Model= Sony PS3, click the edit button, resolution=1280×720, Audio Bitrate=128bps. The software will convert the MOV files into MP4 files.
Convert to AVI. Now that the videos are MP4, Vegas will play sound but not play video! So I found a weird little program, probably coded by some kid in his dorm room, that will strip something or other out of the file and turn it into an AVI file. Download MP4Cam2AVI Easy Converter here: http://sourceforge.net/projects/mp4cam2avi/
Now, finally, the video is ready to edit! Sony Vegas works much like Sonar in that you have different tracks to play with – video, audio, music, etc. I create a little bumper graphic, pick the videos I want, fade them in and out, add some compression and EQ to the voice to make it stand out, and throw in a little background music.
If you want to upload your edited video to YouTube, that’s yet another step. A YouTube help page offers rendering suggestions (I render to MP4) and a Google search for “Sony Vegas YouTube” found several settings. I tried a few – one setting rendered fine but when I uploaded the clip to YouTube the sound was out of sync. I tried another and it worked fine.
Whew! If somebody ever figures out how to easily shoot video, edit it and upload it without the hassle of codecs and converting, they’ll be rich.
Bottom Line: The Kodak Zi8 has opened up the world of video to me. Did I mention that within a month of shooting my first video I had a clip on a cable news network? It’s an affordable HD video camera with knockout, broadcast-quality video at a rock-bottom price. It’s the only mini HD recorder with an external microphone jack. PC users will have to jump through hoops to edit videos, Mac users may not have as many issues.
YouVersion Live gives you a way to interact with church services and other live events using your mobile device. You can follow along with message outlines and take notes, read related Bible verses and click through to the expanded passage, vote on a poll and see the results live, ask questions anonymously, give, request prayer, and take it all home with you on your phone. It works with any web-enabled phone, as well as any computer with an internet connection.
Mind mapping is something that I learned and began to truly appreciate through my friend, Tony Steward (Online Community Pastor at LifeChurch.tv). Up until recently it was always done on paper (Moleskin). Yesterday he sent me an email introduction to MindMeister. I was instantly interested! I signed up and watched their helpful tutorial video (it’s brief).
There are a number of ways that you as a Church leader could use this new tool. Whether it be as a Senior Pastor, Executive Pastor, Worship Pastor (leading a creative team), Small Groups – you name it – there’s a way that this can be a great tool and resource for your ministry.
You can share your mind map with friends. Share instantly any mind map with friends and colleagues. Invitees will receive an email with a link and – depending on what access you give them – will be able to contribute or just read.
Real-time collaboration. When two or more users open the same mind map at the same time you are in brainstorming mode. Every change you make will be replicated instantly to your fellow editors’ screens via our server. Through colour-coded effects they will see what you did and vice versa, no reload necessary.
Summary: MindMeister brings the concept of mind mapping to the web, using its facilities for real-time collaboration to allow truly global brainstorming sessions. Users can create, manage and share mind maps online and access them anytime, from anywhere. In brainstorming mode, fellow MindMeisters from around the world (or just in different rooms) can simultaneously work on the same mind map and see each other’s changes as they happen.
There’s a free version and a premium version that only costs $4 a month. $4 bucks a month! Check it out and let me know if you have something you’d like to share. I may have something I’ll share soon with you.
PERSONAL:
Today is 9/11. We pause to remember what happen on that tragic day. 9/11 is also my mom’s birthday. Mom: Happy Birthday!
The following is an announcement from Kent Shaffer’s blog that I thought was worth you knowing about and keeping an eye on:
LifeChurch.tv’s interactive online Bible, YouVersion, is about to take the interactivity up a notch and to congregations around the world.
It’s called YouVersion Live (October 2009 launch). And it allows pastors, conference speakers, teachers, and group leaders to share content and real-time feedback on mobile devices during live events. Essentially, YouVersion Live is interactive digital message notes that allow the audience to:
take notes and save them online
read the Bible
ask questions and get answers during the message
do surveys anonymously via a YouVersion Live poll
get extra content via blog links, YouTube videos, and other resources
share the message with a friend
request prayer
give online
It is easy to create a YouVersion Live message guide. All a speaker has to do is drag and drop the features he wants to use into his template on a super-simple YouVersion Live admin area. All an audience member needs is a web-enabled phone, netbook, or laptop.
Already over 1.8 million iPhone users have YouVersion on their phone, which is equivalent to 1 in 27 iPhones. YouVersion’s rapid growth means your user base already exists. All you need to do is use YouVersion Live’s super-simple admin panel, and you can take your audience engagement to incredible new places.
YouVersion Live launches in October 2009. Until then, you can sign up for updates atYouVersion.com/live.
Times are tough and I respect Igniter Media Group for trying to help out. Below are graphics from their newsletter they sent out yesterday. I have everything that Igniter has ever done in my media library. If you don’t, this might be a good opportunity to add them to your collection.
is the only mini HD video camera with an external microphone jack. I overnighted it and started playing with it.
video editing software. The included MediaImpressions software has a lousy editing feature that makes Windows Movie Maker look high-end. So here are the hoops I jump through to make great videos and edit them with the Kodak Zi8:
is $99 and props the camera up against my chest for a very steady shot. Notice how I pan across the church in my video – that’s using the ModoSteady.
