For $15 (for the ad free version) this flash player represents a cheap way for churches to integrate their podcast RSS feed into a static site with the frills of a media player without the normal headaches.

In Gladwell-esque style Rice writes with precision and below-the-surface insight. … Rice helps us unfold the themes of human connection that we see in Facebook and social networking and how these elements have shaped us as communities and individuals.

Churches, at some point soon, are going to have to start reconciling the effects that social media is having on the Millenial generation and how our communication habits are being affected.  The effect of Facebook will soon effect how we present our message to the world online and how we communicate.  It’s very important that we remember the core tenants of what it means to be a Christ Community but at the same time adapt to the new, online surroundings.

I’m definitely looking forward to getting this book soon.  Check out Revelant Magazine’s review of The Church of Facebook by Jesse Rice.

An illustrated guide to seven ways to kill an idea.

Many times it easy to throw away new technology ideas and concepts upon first hearing them.  I still do it today, but when I was the lead developer at Lighting By Gregory I would constantly, and almost unconciously, review new technology ideas and concepts to determine if they would be helpful on our site.

Some made it through to implementation, some didn’t make it past my own thoughts.

Be careful about what technology you disregard.  When you find yourself on the ground floor of a new technology or service, you find yourself being one of few factors of keeping your organization from implementing a possibly innovating and useful technology that could easily be discredited.

I remember sitting at my kitchen table with my Dad in 1998 and trying to convince how ‘this startup search engine from Stanford was not just counter-intuitive but also could never usurp Yahoo as the leading search engine’.

My point is this: keep your mind open to all ideas because you never know when the service that doesn’t ‘fit’ will be just what you need to make the connection.

Maybe these questions are going through your head or maybe you have a limited view of exactly the web 2.0 trend is.  Miva Merchant, a superb ecommerce package, wrote a great write-up on their take of what web 2.0 is and, in my opinion, they covered a lot of good aspects of web 2.0 design that are valuable to all audiences.

The term “Web 2.0″ is something that keeps coming up and a lot of people do not know exactly what this term means and what it applies to. Typically this term refers to the new ways of sharing information along with user interaction and influence on a website, but a lot of what can make up what “Web 2.0″ is really can be noted as some of the new visual design trends of displaying your information.

Check out their in-depth and worthy article on the intricacies of Web 2.0; it’s definitely worth a read to gain a better understanding of the ever-changing design principles out there!

One thing to remember is that social media should not seem daunting.  Even though geeks talk in their own language (guilty as charged!), most times stuff is pretty straight forward and easy to implement.  It’s important to remember that sometimes the best approach can often times be the simplest approach!

Check it out on Media Outreach.

What is It?

Google Wave, at its core, is going to be a communications hub.  This hub will connect all of your Google Apps (Gmail, Google Talk, Google Voice, and Google Docs) with the outside social world (Facebook, Twitter, blogs, etc.).  Additionally, Google Wave allows for a whole level of online communication and will allow for people to collaborate on the simple things (ie. blogs) as well the complex things (chats, meetings, and eventually video if not already available).  Very succinctly, Google is wrapping up all of their ‘loose ends’ and putting a wrapper around them called Google Wave.

Why Should I Care?

In my opinion, churches and non-profits have the most to gain from service like Google Wave because of the idea that it will allow a cheap collaboration tool to allow organizations to collaborate, share ideas, and stay connected better than be done before.  As the Internet/Information age starts to settle, services and tools like this will become essential in the fabric of organizations that have a need to maintain communities while becoming more flexible to the changing technology climate.  I don’t want to step out on a limb here but I foresee that uber-communication hubs like Google Wave will become commonplace over the next 5 years and we could even see churches start to use hubs like this to build and strengthen not just online communities but the traditional church community that is becoming more digital with each passing year.

I can’t wait to jump in and see what else Google Wave holds.  Don’t take my word for it, though.  Check out Lifehacker’s recent Google Wave First Look or Google’s own frontpage demonstration video.

The most, Planning Center’s Facebook app, connects my Planning Center schedule with Facebook and, in my opinion, offers a cleaner and quicker preview of my Planning Center schedule.  Their other connection application, is an app for the iPhone which connects me to Planning Center Online and allows me to review and edit almost everything I might want to on the run.  This is also definitely worth a look.

So, if your church uses Planning Center be sure to check out these cool apps.  I think is this is an important demonstration how churches and organizations alike can integrate technology for the betterment of the community.  Adapting to different technology and reaching people in different ways will definitely fortify the effectiveness of Christian communities in our digital age.

My 10 Cents:

• I love Tweetie for Mac and iPhone.  I love the interface and ease of use.
• You can follow my tweets at http://www.twitter.com/bogopolis and http://www.twitter.com/timbogus
• I owe credit for this post to CollideMagazine at http://www.twitter.com/collidemagazine

There is no need to pay for an FTP program unless you need advanced features or consider yourself a super user. A quick Google Search for Open Source FTP Clients shows several available and viable alternatives for your organization.  (Find open source or free FTP clients for your platform by simply refining your search.)

The one I recommend most to my clients and advocate using for low to medium FTP maintenance is FileZilla.  FileZilla has proven to be a robust program, adaptable to most situations, and easy for computer novices to learn.

Why: FTP programs can become expensive, especially if outfitting multiple staff members with licenses.  While I recommend commercial applications for high-use situations, open source FTP applications are abundant and full-featured for most low-medium level end users.  FileZilla is an excellent and free FTP utility that is adaptable and versatile for even some high-end users.

When buying multiple software licenses, open source FTP clients can provide decent support for a fraction of the cost.

The biggest chunk of you? Those are the ones who say that churches ought to be doing anything to engage people–Twitter or not. At war with them are the 25% who think you can take your Twitter and put it where the stained glass window don’t shine.

It’s definitely an interesting, yet unscientific take on the use of social media in the church. Check it Out. (Via Church Marketing Sucks).

What: Twitter is a Micro blogging utility that combines social media into 140 digit ‘status’ updates. It’s often been described as a ‘Facebook status update tool’. Twitter holds promise that it will allow individuals, organizations, and companies to connect to their ‘customers’ in short, digestible tidbits. Look for Twitter to eventually find a proactive place within the church.