Mister Nifty

Of all the latest file-sharing technology on the web, I’m most excited about Dropbox.   Released at Tech Crunch 50 this year, Dropbox has changed the way people share files.    Here’s how it works.  A simple install will place a dropbox app in your system tray.  It will point to a directory on your computer which becomes your “Dropbox”.   You can specify where you want your dropbox to be located.  I placed it under My Documents > Dropbox.   All you have to do now is create folders and place files in this directory and it will automatically back them up to the dropbox website.  If that isn’t cool enough, you can install dropbox on another computer and it will automatically sync your directories.  When you save a file to one computer, it saves a local copy on the second computer within seconds (depending on file size).   This is a great way to sync frequently used files from an office computer to a home computer.

The most exciting feature about dropbox is that you can create shared folders with other dropbox users.  With shared folders, you can collaborate with other church leaders on events or projects.  An alert message pops up anytime your dropbox changes which allows you to stay up-to-date with what your shared users are saving/creating.  Here’s some practical applications for churches. 1. A pastor works on his sermon at home, saves to his dropbox, prints it at the office with no effort to transfer the file.  2.  A volunteer creative team can easily submit files from home when working on a project. 3. Install dropbox on all church computers linked to the same account.  This is a quick way to create a shared file system instead of purchasing a network drive.

If for some reason you lose your files or if you’re away from your computer, just download them from the web.  I use dropbox to sync our bulletin files with a volunteer who doesn’t have access to our color printer.   When they are finished, I simply open it on my computer and print the job.  Dropbox gives you 2 GB of free storage. If you want more, they have paid plans.  Check it out!!

I am very impressed with this tool that allows anyone to build a form and integrate it on their website.  Form Logix lets you code your forms (advanced users) or simply store your data on their server.  This is a good solution for churches who don’t know how to create forms or databases.  Simply drag-and-drop, name a few components, and publish your form.  Viola!! Your a forms expert.  It’s free for the taking.  Have fun!

If you get stuck, they have great tutorials to help you navigate this wonderful tool!

Use Mail Merge to help alleviate your data task nightmares. Check out my first ever screencast to show you just how to do it.

If you are tired of lugging your hardware across the nation or around the world, this free application is for you! My Goya Desktop is an application that allows you to have a computer within a computer. Basically, you login to the Goya site and it displays an online desktop. They have an impressive number of state-of-the-art features that cover all your work needs. They have an attractive email client, chat client, file sharing portal, notepad, calendar, online hard drive, file manager, contact manager, private messenger, media player, bookmarks, and much more. You can add cool widgets that tell you the weather and all various other forms of neato apps. This is a great application for those who don’t own a computer or those who are tired of dragging their computer everywhere. You can access your desktop from anywhere. The greatest part, you guessed it, IT’S FREE!!!

It’s official. I’m sick and tired of hearing people crying about data loss from crashed hard drives. It is insane that people will spend so much time creating documents, editing photos, and all various other file proceedures and never secure their data. The only reason people lose their data in our age is they are LAZY. My rule of thumb is, “YOUR HARD DRIVE IS GOING TO CRASH AT SOME POINT!!!!!!!” It is a mechanical device, it has moving parts. After a while, those moving parts are going to wear out, it’s just a fact of life and the second law of thermodynamics (degeneration of systems). You are not immune to hard drive failure. You need to stop what you are doing and back up your data right now. If you can’t afford to get an external hard drive use the following free online backup systems.

O dear keeper of church data, you for sure do not want to be left holding the bag when the entire church information drive is gone and you don’t have an extra copy. You literally can set your church back years by your laziness. If you don’t heed this warning, I promise you will learn the hard way. It’s no fun, I’ve been there, and yes I have a T-Shirt stand…I’ll sell you one if you want. God blesses those who backup. Jesus saves, start saving too.