272 – A Podcasting Podcast

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This week WELSTech is all about how to create, produce and distribute podcasts, and we’ve recruited some of our favorite WELS podcasters to aid in the discussion. We set a new record for picks of the week, and there’s a cool new ministry resource and some great advice about web site images to boot!

The discussion:

Podcasting 101 – Pastor Tom Barthel from Christ in Baxter, MN, Philip Wels and Bob Martens join Martin and Sallie for what could be characterized as a robust conversation about podcasting, complete with a Google Hangouts crash to keep things real. Learn tips and tools for creating and sustaining your own podcast.

Ministry resources:

(28:47) PrayrList

Picks of the week:

Community feedback:

Coming up on WELSTech:

(50:17) Episode 273 – Teachers will want to tune in next week as Jason Schmidt and Emily Dittmar join us for an overview of the EdCamp “un-conference” format. (Release date – 01/29/13)

The featured artist:

(51:07) We close the podcast with the music of Stephen Bautista (www.stephenbautistamusic.com or stephenbautista on Twitter) – Who Will Tell Them

Get involved:

271 – Pinterest, Finally!

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This week the WELSTech Podcast is going “all in” with Pinterest, today’s top social network for the visually inclined. Listen for ways to use Pinterest to spread the good news!

The discussion:

A picture is worth … – Listen up ladies as WELSTech takes on the female dominated social network sensation, Pinterest. Martin and Sallie discuss the reasons churches may consider having a Pinterest presence and share ideas for pin boards themes that would work well for churches such as special holidays, inspirational imagery, advocating the church town, and a church events scrapbook.

The interview:

(14:05) Pinning the Good News – Katy Klinnert-Ellison, Creative Marketing Manager at Time of Grace, talks with Martin about the development of their Pinterest page and ideas for congregations who want to use Pinterest for outreach.

News in tech:

(30:41) From the Bible Glo Blog – Notes not appearing and other issues related to the latest release

Picks of the week:

WELS.net Features:

(38:54) New Calendar Desktop Wallpapers from Streams

Community feedback:

Coming up on WELSTech:

(51:41) Episode 272 – Tune in next week as we gather a “Podcasting Posse” including Pastor Tom Barthel, Philip Wels and Bob Martens to talk about how to produce your own podcast to spread the gospel. (Release date – 01/22/13)

The featured artist:

(52:25) This week we close with the instrumental music of flutist Jeannine Dennis – Celebration Medley

Get involved:

270 – Keep It Simple in 2013

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This week as we begin the 6th year of the WELSTech Podcast we look at reasons for simplifying presentations. We also share loads of great ministry resources, WELS.net finds and picks, plus a ton of terrific finds from WELSTech listeners.

The discussion:

A Story of Fresh Fish – Martin and Sallie kick off their sixth year of podcasting with the continuing discussion of the current WELSTech book selection, Presentation Zen, by Garr Reynolds. Chapter 5 of the book, titled “Simplicity: Why It Matters,”  looks at the benefits of simple, uncluttered slide design which communicates subtle, elegant messages.

Ministry resources:

Picks of the week:

WELS.net Features:

Community feedback:

Coming up on WELSTech:

(51:55) Episode 271 -Is there a place for the popular social image sharing site Pinterest in your ministry communication plan? Martin poses this important question and Sallie enjoys the response! (Release date – 01/15/13)

The featured artist:

(53:16) We close with the WELSTech debut of WELS musician and staff minister Benhur Khamrang (Reverbnation) – Amazing Grace

Get involved:

269 – 7 Best Picks of 2012

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This week WELSTech welcomes 2013 with a countdown of Martin & Sallie’s 7 Best Picks of the Year 2012. How many of these hardware, software, web and mobile apps do you use?

The discussion:

Best of the Best – To kick off the new year, Martin and Sallie share their annual picks of the year for 2012 in “7 Best” style.

Sallie’s Picks

  1. Pomodoro Productivity | Focus Time app
  1. Raspberry Pi
  1. Logitech Tablet Keyboard for iPad
  1. FreeBibleImages.org
  1. MathCounts
  1. Pinterest
  1. PicMonkey

Martin’s Picks

  1. Camtasia Studio
  1. Samsung Galaxy S III
  1. Google 2-Step Verification
  1. Google Drive
  1. Logitech Ultrathin Keyboard Cover for iPad
  1. Presentation Zen
  1. Google Hangouts

Coming up on WELSTech:

(43:48) Episode 270 – Join Martin and Sallie for the start of year 6 of WELSTech and chapter 5 of our WELSTech book discussion of Presentation Zen by Garr Reynolds. (Release date – 01/08/13)

The featured artist:

Get involved:

268 – Christmas Around the World

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Christmas comes to WELSTech as we share a special interview with World Missions Administrator Dan Koelpin about the important work of reaching souls around the world.

The interview:

(2:45) Merry Christmas to the World – Dan Koelpin, World Missions Administrator,  shares stories of his travels to WELS World Mission fields (47 countries and counting) and of the unique forms of worship he’s witnessed including joy-filled, dancing during offering collections. He’s seen mission field communication progress from 2-week “snail” mail correspondence to 14 second e-mail. And he is excited about the spread of the gospel via the cyber highway of the 21st century.

Coming up on WELSTech:

(23:10) Episode 269 – Ring in the new year with Martin and Sallie’s 7 Best Picks of 2012. (Release date – 01/01/13)

The featured artist:

(24:35) We close the podcast with the music and video of  Mike Westendorf (www.mikewestendorf.com and mikewestendorf on Twitter) – Emmanuel Has Come

 Get involved:

267 – A Tech History Lesson

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This very full WELSTech includes a countdown of ministry-tech milestones, an interview with Pastor Michael Schultz about his new call to head the production of the 2024 hymnal revision, news, picks and feedback. Don’t miss a minute of the WELSTech goodness!

The discussion:

Great moments in ministry tech history – Martin and Sallie look back in history at tech milestones that have had an impact on ministry including …

The interview:

(29:55) New Hymnal Project Director – Pastor Michael Schultz recently accepted the call to head the new hymnal committee and joined Martin and Sallie to share details of the many facets of the project which will lead up to the 2024 publication.

News in tech:

Picks of the week:

Community feedback:

Coming up on WELSTech:

(56:40) Episode 268 – Continuing the WELSTech Christmas tradition, Martin and Sallie are joined by Pastor Dan Koelpin, Administrator of the WELS Board for World Missions, for an interview-only podcast focusing on outreach in all four corners of the globe. (Release date – 12/25/12)

The featured artist:

(57:50) We close the podcast with the music of  Revelation, a music ministry of Wisconsin Lutheran College (www.revelationwlc.com) – A Voice Cries Out

Get involved:

266 – Tell The Story

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Listeners will enjoy this week’s WELSTech Podcast as we share ideas for great presentation storytelling, geek out with Martin’s Pick of the Week and uncover great treasure during our Community Feedback segment.

The discussion:

SUCCESs – Crafting the Story in the title of Chapter 4 of our current WELSTech book selection, Presentation Zen, by Garr Reynolds. Martin and Sallie explore the SUCCESs acronym for presentations and talk about the story boarding step of constructing great presentations.

Ministry resources:

(19:47) 6 Sets of Christmas Story Images from FreeBibleImages.org

News in tech:

Picks of the week:

Community feedback:

Coming up on WELSTech:

(54:33) Episode 267 -Martin and Sallie share their take on great moments in ministry-tech history and talk with Pastor Michael Schultz, the Director of the New Hymnal. (Release date – 12/18/12)

The featured artist:

(55:49) We close today’s WELSTech with the music of Joey Schumann and the Lutheran Ceili Orchestra (JoeySchumann.com | Joey on Facebook) – O Come, O Come, Emanuel

Get involved:

265 – 7 Best Mobile Tips

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On this final WELSTech 7 Best countdown of 2012 we share Mobile Device (a.k.a. tablets & smartphones) Computing Tips covering productivity, security, and much more. Also on the podcast, there’s news from Google, a couple of live streamed Christmas concert opportunities and even a Pinterest-worthy infographic.

The discussion:

Make the most of your mobile device – Martin and Sallie countdown the best tips, accessories and apps for tablets and smartphones.

  1. Accessories
  1. Security
  1. Maps
  1. Productivity
  1. Note Taking
  1. Cloud Services for File Syncing
  1. Bible Apps

But we aren’t done with 7 Best list yet. Join us on January 1st for our 7 Best Picks of 2012!

News in tech:

(29:50) Gmail, meet Google Drive … and behold 10GB file transfers

Picks of the week:

Of interest:

(38:30) View the live stream of

  • Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary’s “Sing a Song of Christmas” concert on December 9th at 3:00 or 7:00 p.m.
  • Martin Luther College’s Christmas Concert on MLC TV on December 8th at 7:30 p.m. and December 9th at 4:00 p.m.

Community feedback:

Coming up on WELSTech:

(58:05) Episode 266 – We continue the current WELSTech book discussion of Presentation Zen by Garr Reynolds, this time looking at Chapter 4, Crafting the Story. (Release date – 12/11/12)

The featured artist:

(59:25) We close the podcast with the music of a new Japanese addition to our WELS artist lineup, Kaori Egawa – Angels’ Christmas Carol

Get involved:

264 – iPads in Education

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This week’s classroom technology WELSTech Podcast is all about iPads. Gail Potratz shares her insights, we interview Jon Beilke and Nate Hochmuth from Salem in Greenfield, MN about their very recent implementation of iPads, and we even have iPad “Picks of the Week.”

The discussion:

The other side – On past education focused podcasts, we’ve spent a lot of time talking about Chromebooks in the classroom. Today Martin, Sallie and our semi-regular classroom technology correspondent Gail Potratz from Emanuel in New London, WI explore the ins and outs of 1:1 iPads in the classroom. Gail also shares some of the experiences of Kathy Brandt who uses iPads in her 3rd and 4th grade classroom at Pilgrim in Menomonee Falls, WI.

The interview:

(18:26) iPads in WELS Education – Teacher Nate Hochmuth and Principal Jon Beilke from Salem in Greenfield, MN share their very new experience of 1:1 iPads in the 7th and 8th grade classroom.

Picks of the week:

WELS.net Feature:

(50:15) Check out the improved WELS Mobile beta site at m.wels.net.

Of interest:

(53:25) View the live stream of Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary’s “Sing a Song of Christmas” concert on December 9th at 3:00 or 7:00 p.m..

Community feedback:

Coming up on WELSTech:

(1:06:00) Episode 265 – Next week we wrap up our 7 Best series with a countdown of the 7 Best Mobile Computing Tips. Send us your favorites for the list by Sunday.  (Release date – 12/04/12)

The featured artist:

(1:07:15) We  close the podcast with the music of Michael Schroeder (www.michaelschroeder.com and on Facebook) – The Reason For The Season

Get involved:

263 – Clean Up Your Tech

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This week on the WELSTech Podcast we equip listeners to handle all those “slow computer” projects they may tackle over the Thanksgiving break. Guest host Dan Rebers from the WELS Information Services office lends his expertise in this area.

The discussion:

Thanksgiving tune-up – With the holiday break often comes the task of much needed computer maintenance. Martin and Sallie are joined by Dan Rebers from the synod Information Services office to discuss the Dos and Don’ts of upkeep of computer hardware and software.

Ministry resources:

(22:50) Memrise – Memory drill Web 2.0-style – Recommended by LifeHacker

Picks of the week:

7 Best:

(36:20) Coming up in December … 7 Best Mobile Computing Tips. Share your favorite hardware, apps and tips for a productive mobile experience.

Community feedback:

Coming up on WELSTech:

(53:47) Episode 264 – Gail Potratz, tech coordinator at Emanuel in New London, WI, fills the WELSTech guest hosting chair next week as we talk iPads in education. We’ll also include an interview with Jon Beilke and Nate Hochmuth from Salem in Greenfield, WI about their recent implementation of 1:1 iPads in their 7-8 grade classroom. (Release date – 11/27/12)

The featured artist:

(54:40) We close the podcast with the instrumental music of In His Service (www.adagioconcepts.com) – Praise God From Whom All Blessings Flow

Get involved: