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 …

  • Personal Computers
  • The Web and early church web sites
  • HymnSoft
  • WELS.net – 1996 archive | Streams added in 2005
  • Share video online via YouTube and Vimeo
  • Live streaming – Synod Convention 2005
  • 2005 – FinalWeb web hosting partnership
  • Online learning – MLC | WLS
  • 2006 – ShopWELS.net
  • Web 2.0 and the social web
  • 2007 – WELS Connect
  • 2007 – iPhone and mobile computing – WELS Mobile Relaunched
  • 2008 – WELSTech debuts | 2012 – WELSTech adds video

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:

  • (46:24) yesHEis.com – Shareable Gospel videos
  • Always Clear Downloads Extension for Chrome

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:

262 – Surprise, Surprise

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The WELSTech Podcast is full of surprises this week as we discuss the next chapter of our current book selection, Presentation Zen, Martin unboxes and boots up a brand new computer, and Sallie has the latest news from Pinterest!

The discussion:

Planning Analog – The third chapter of our current WELSTech book selection, Presentation Zen, by Garr Reynolds makes for an interesting discussion as Martin and Sallie talk about the benefits of “unplugging” for brainstorming your presentation. Also in this chapter are helpful guidelines for creating presentation handouts.

Ministry resources:

(15:38) Logos 5 Release

News in tech:

An Unboxing + Picks of the week:

Of interest:

(49:50)  Live streaming of the WELS 2012 West Regional Choralfest

  • Pops Concert – Friday, November 16 at 7 p.m. Central
  • Sacred Concert – Sunday, November 18 at 2:30 p.m. Central

7 Best:

(50:39) 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:

(1:02:57) Episode 263 – Join Martin and Sallie along with WELS Director of Information Services, Dan Rebers, for our Thanksgiving Week podcast as we share tips for PC (and Mac) maintenance. (Release date – 11/20/12)

The featured artist:

(1:04:15) We close with the music of L. A. Miller – Your Peace

Get involved:

261 – 7 Best Conferencing Tools

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This week on WELSTech we countdown the 7 Best Video and Webconferencing Tools, useful for sharing the Good News from a distance. There’s also discussion of news in the tech world, a live streaming event and many great ideas from the WELSTech community.

The discussion:

We’re counting down again – This month’s 7 Best list focuses on video and webconferencing tools. These tools are great for anything which needs to get done at a distance – Bible class, meetings, tech support, etc. Martin and Sallie share a list of freebies that can take care of your needs.

  1. TinyChat
  1. Mikogo
  1. Vyew
  1. Oovoo
  1. Join.me
  1. Google Hangouts
  1. Skype – Skype and Messenger Coming Together

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

News in tech:

Picks of the week:

Of interest:

(33:25)  Live streaming of the WELS 2012 East Regional Choralfest

  • Pops Concert – Friday, November 9 at 7 p.m. Central
  • Sacred Concert – Sunday, November 11 at 2 p.m. Central

Community feedback:

Coming up on WELSTech:

(47:19) Episode 262 – We continue the current WELSTech book discussion of Presentation Zen by Garr Reynolds, this time looking at Chapter 3, Planning Analog. (Release date – 11/13/12)

The featured artist:

(48:27) We close the podcast with the music of Corban Creek – Epitaph

Get involved:

260 – East Meets West

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Join us for a very special WELSTech Podcast as we span the globe with Martin joining from Hong Kong and guest host Jason Schmidt along with Sallie in the U.S. Our edtech chat this week covers the Moodle Learning Management System (LMS) as well as an interview with John Dorn about the Edmodo LMS.

Note: With our WELSTech Audio/Video Engineer (a.k.a., Martin Spriggs) out of the office exploring the opposite side of the world and presenting at a translator’s conference, today’s video podcast is posted in two parts – the primary show and the interview. We look forward to supplying the normal single video format upon Martin’s return.  Thanks for understanding!

 

 

The discussion:

Moodle mania – Jason Schmidt, Technology Coordinator at Bennington ISD in the Omaha, NE area and guest edtech correspondent for WELSTech, talks with Martin and Sallie about the popular open-source, free Learning Management System, Moodle.  Watch as Sallie demonstrates a Softaculous automated install of Moodle in under 3 minutes!

The interview:

(15:20) Edmodo in action – Science and Technology Teacher John Dorn from Illinois Lutheran Schools in Crete, IL talked with Martin and Sallie recently about  his schools adoption of the Edmodo Learning Management System.  John shares tips and tricks he’s learned through training and experimentation with the system, such as setting up a consistent user naming scheme.

  • Voki – Create speaking avatars to deliver audio instructions – Great for preschoolers and early readers
  • Quizlet
  • Edmodo training resources & webinars

News in tech:

Picks of the week:

Community feedback:

Coming up on WELSTech:

(59:19) Episode 261 – Martin and Sallie countdown the 7 Best Video and Webconferencing Tools for connecting with others. Note the special recording date and time (11/07/12 at 2:00 p.m. CST) means the podcast release will be delayed a bit.

The featured artist:

(1:00:55) We close the podcast with the music of The Branches Band (www.branchesband.com|Facebook) – Nothing But the Blood

Get involved:

259 – Christ In Media

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WELSTech hits the road this week as Martin and Sallie interview leaders of the recent Media Outreach in World Missions Conference from the beautiful Media Arts Studio on the campus of Bethany Lutheran College!

The discussion:

Conference recap – Martin and Sallie review highlights of the Media Outreach in World Missions Conference held recently at Bethany Lutheran College. There participants from around the world joined in discussions about using technology to collaborate and produce creative content for sharing the Gospel message with all people!

Four of the conference leaders sat down with Martin and Sallie to share their thoughts on the challenges presented at the conference.

The discipleship challenge with Paul Hartman:

(8:18) Pastor Paul Hartman, director of WELS Multi-Language Publications, has a vision for sharing God’s Word with the world which includes creative usage of technology. Pastor Hartman shares his thoughts on nurturing Christians from a distance.

The cultural challenge with John Lawrenz:

(21:25) Dr. John Lawrenz from Asia Lutheran Seminary has experienced more cultures than WELSTech listeners have experienced different versions of operating systems, and he shares his thoughts on how to bridge cultural challenges to sharing the Gospel.

Picks of the week:

The creative and technological challenges with Jas Lonnquist and Mike Klebig:

(44:45) Husband and wife team Mike Klebig and Jas Lonnquist are members of Apostles in San Jose, CA and “Godly Geeks” who were moved to action as they implemented media solutions in their own congregation and then shared those solutions with others. They talk with Martin and Sallie about right-brain creativity and left-brain tech solutions.

Coming up on WELSTech:

(1:12:12) Episode 260 – EdTech week on WELSTech returns with a special twist! Not only will we be joined by our semi-regular co-host Jason Schmidt and have a great interview with teacher John Dorn about using Edmodo in the classroom, but listeners can also look forward to WELSTech “going global” as Martin joins our Hangout from Hong Kong! (Release date – 10/30/12)

The featured artist:

(1:14:05) This week we close the podcast with the Reformation music of Koine (www.koinemusic.com | Facebook) – God’s Word Is Our Great Heritage

Get involved: