Wireless Internet

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Grizz

Grizz

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Oct 26, 2007
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My new church decided they wanted me to have Wireless Internet instead of having it hard wired at only the church. Now I can 'roam' with my lap top anywhere. I know... might not be new to some of you... but wow... to me.... ~How Cool is this! :cool:
 
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I went wireless in 2000 and haven't looked back. It sure is great and it changed my computer usage habits. Before that I was strictly a tower user. But as power of laptops began to approach that of towers for ordinary use, it became a viable, reliable and wonderful change. The computer moved out of a room and developed legs, so to speak!
 
You know, it can be a huge time waster if you don't restrain yourself. I used to leave the office to write in a coffee shop and then they all put in free wireless and wouldn't you know it, I can no longer write in coffee shops!
 
Parson: A couple of reasons the computer/internet has helped. First of all, I'm dyslexic. I can't begin to tell you how much easier it is to type than to hand write. (from a guy who sells pens, go figure).

Also, all my study I do now on the computer. I have 8 sets of comentaries along with Hebrew and Greek lexicons. Numerous Bible Dictionaries and Maps. All available at my finger tips.

We also moved recently about 10-11 hours away from all our old friends and relatives. Being in contact with them via computer is a big comfort at/in a place that sometimes can be scary.

I'll welcome the distractions for now. :)
 
Grizz said:
Parson: First of all, I'm dyslexic. I can't begin to tell you how much easier it is to type than to hand write. (from a guy who sells pens, go figure).
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My niece says the same thing and she is severely dyslexic. She has gotten permission to take a laptop into her classes to type for the very reason you stated above.

Gratz on going wireless. Just make sure it's set-up so neighbors or people driving by don't leech your signal. It's not only about stealing your signal. You don't want idiots parking outside your house viewing questionable content so get protected and make sure that signal is secure.
 
Grizz said:
Parson: A couple of reasons the computer/internet has helped. First of all, I'm dyslexic. I can't begin to tell you how much easier it is to type than to hand write. (from a guy who sells pens, go figure).

Also, all my study I do now on the computer. I have 8 sets of comentaries along with Hebrew and Greek lexicons. Numerous Bible Dictionaries and Maps. All available at my finger tips.
Click to expand...

First, - on the commentaries and language books - I made a "U" shaped study desk during my second pastorate so that I could have about 5 or 6 books open at once in a semi-circle around me (convenient). The computer really helps bring everything together quickly! Computers just weren't around back when I was in school or in my first two pastorates.

I was one of the first missionaries that I am aware of to use computers in message prep (in Japanese). They REALLY make short work of writing a second (non-Roman alphabet) language. One of the interesting things about this is that in a computer club, in spite of my limited Japanese at the time - '89 - '90, I was able to out type most Japanese in the language. The reason being that in the Western cultures, typing has been around for a century and the keyboard has been standardized since the late 1800's. In Japan, there was no standard keyboard until recently.

Hand writing Japanese for me was painfully slow! I could do it but it was time consuming! The computer is a huge help!
 
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I'm from the old school as well. Use to have a dozen books open and surrounding me. Wow! what the computer can do for you. I still use a couple of study helps that are not available for the computer, it saves time, but .... what I find is that I now study/research the same amount of time, I just cover more area now.
 
Just adding an emphasis to what Canedriver said.
In your line of work, security is very important.
Notes about confidential counseling sessions with members could destroy families if they get into the wrong hands.
Personally, I believe a wireless system for a church is very risky.
 
Rifleman1776 said:
Just adding an emphasis to what Canedriver said.
In your line of work, security is very important.
Notes about confidential counseling sessions with members could destroy families if they get into the wrong hands.
Personally, I believe a wireless system for a church is very risky.
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I don't keep any counseling notes on computer. And I don't keep sensitive information at the church. I take it all home and file it.
 
I didn't see you address the security issue except to say you don't leave confidential notes on your computer.

I wasn't addressing that aspect although that is a key concern.

My concern is someone leeching your signal for criminal deeds. One of the news shows in past few months just addressed this issue. Guy didn't know someone was leeching his signal until cops came knocking with child porn warrants. He is finally cleared but cost him ALOT of money, his job, and most importantly his reputation.

It happened to my brother several years ago. Someone used his signal and a stolen credit card to get a computer drop shipped to a house that snow birds stayed in (empty during the summer). Fairly easy to clear up in that instance, but who needs the headache?

Wireless will make your job and life much easier if used correctly, but with it comes a certain risk. Ignoring that risk can be costly.
 
Rifleman1776 said:
Notes about confidential counseling sessions with members could destroy families if they get into the wrong hands.
Click to expand...

One thing that would be worth looking into is keeping your email application on an encrypted flash drive. There's a portable version of Thunderbird available, and Truecrypt is free too, so the only expense is the drive. That way, not only can you keep all your email available at any computer, it's also protected if someone gets hold of the drive.

http://www.pendriveapps.com/thunderbird-portable/
http://www.pendriveapps.com/truecrypt-disk-data-encryption-software/

Put Truecrypt on the drive itself, so you'll have it handy if you're on a different computer, and use it to create an encrypted partition taking up the rest of the free space. Install Thunderbird in the encrypted partition, and it will keep the emails safely stored.

Add in something like Minipad, and you can keep notes, addresses and appointments on the drive without worrying about who might get their hands on your computer while you're away. Put your car key on the keyring attachment for the drive so you never leave it behind.

http://www.pendriveapps.com/portable-pim-minipad/
 
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