Comments on: Masonic Technology

By: Bro. Jim

Bro. Jim — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 00:25:08 +0000

My first visit to this blog and have come away with a mince wealth of knowledge that I hope to incorporate into my Lodge.

Thank you for posting this information so others like myself can take our Lodges into the new direction.

By: Shane Stevens

Shane Stevens — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 17:07:20 +0000

Re: David

Watch for my first post to address that very issue

By: David Berger

David Berger — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 15:06:13 +0000

I like the premise for this Blog and would like to offer up something for you investigate. Since most everyone is carrying a cell phone today, but may not be able to check their e-mail regularly, could you do a piece on group SMS text messaging systems? Meeting, Event and Funeral notifications could all be sent to members this way. Can these systems by “grouped” so possibly a Masonic District could invest in the software for a number of lodges to utilize?

By: Shane Stevens

Shane Stevens — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 20:18:27 +0000

Re: Rich

Yes very good idea. My hopes are to provide very basic tools to begin and dive deeper into the ins and outs. The problem I have ran into is that for many members the idea of installing software is something that will prevent them from using the tool. I have had to teach people how to email, so I know that unless the tool is very easy to use they will not even try. Perhaps if we can show them the usefullness of electronic tools, train them how to use them, and provide support then maybe we can move them towards the offline resources??

I will, however, consider including offline resources for those comfortable enough to utilize them. Thanks for the idea.

By: Rich Vazquez

Rich Vazquez — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 14:59:13 +0000

Shane,
When discussing FOSS online tools, remind folks they can be used offline as well. For instance, CiviCRM can be installed on a computer that is not on the internet. That would get rid of the security concerns. When they decide it’s ok to move online, they can do that.

By: Matthew Costa Roberts

Matthew Costa Roberts — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 13:47:11 +0000

@ Shane Stevens,

It’s rare to see a public educator that understands the benefits of FOSS.

By: pligg.com

pligg.com — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 13:30:34 +0000

Masonic Technology…

Welcome to Masonic Technology, a blog dedicated to sharing information about the usage of technology in Freemasonry. Over the course of the next few months this blog will house articles, how-tos, and reviews of various online tools that can be used to …

By: Shane Stevens

Shane Stevens — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 12:37:05 +0000

Re: Richard

There are many online surveys that may do the job for you, but the one that seems to be used the most by the organizations I deal with is Survey Monkey ( http://www.surveymonkey.com/ ). It is free, and easy to use. The only pitfall is that your lodge members will have to have access to the internet. The surveys can be emailed (it even allows you to create your own email list), or linked to from any location. You can view your data in real-time as it is being collected, and the site analyzes the information for you and shows it in graph form.

Hope that helps and thanks for the comment.

By: Shane Stevens

Shane Stevens — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 12:28:27 +0000

Re: Vitruvius

As a public educator, I not only see the wisdom in Open Source, but also the necessity. I have many students, for example, that do not have Word, so yearly I introduce my classes to OpenOffice. To make this software available to all I have placed it on CDs that the students can “check out”.

My portion of this blog will be focused on ONLINE tools, free and easily accessible, that Lodges and their officers can use to increase productivity.

Thanks for the comment

By: Vitruvius

Vitruvius — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 04:30:51 +0000

My question would be: do you ‘get’ the wisdom and pragmatism of FOSS (Free and Open Source Software)?

If not, then all your qualifications and chatter are, frankly, just ‘pissing in the wind’…

Have Fun,
V.