Web and Internet Resources for Churches, Nonprofits, etc.

updated 1/21/2010

This resource list is maintained by Danny Schweers. If you have a question or a new resource to add, click here to contact him or give him a call at 302 475-0998.

Five Ways to Update Your Website

1> Using Adobe's "Contribute" software:

A number of churches and non-profit organizations, including the Interfaith Resource Center, use Adobe "Contribute" software to maintain their websites. This $199 software package allows volunteers and staff to update their websites. Some of the people currently using this software are:

2> Using Coffee Cup Software's HTML Editor

Joann Reinbold at First & Central Presbyterian Church in Wilmington, Delaware uses Coffee Cup HTML Editor to maintain their website, which runs on Windows XP and Vista. Cost: $49.

3> Using browser-based updating

Get your webmaster to connect your website to one of these Web-based editing tools. Then you can edit your website from any computer once you have the username and password. That's the promise! At the moment we have no experience with these Web-based editing tools. If you do, please contact us. (Prices as of 1/1/2010.)

4> Using browser-based updating on sites built by the Digital Faith Community:

Websites created by the Digital Faith Community (DFC) are currently being used by Trinity Episcopal Parish, Wilmington, and St. Peter's, Lewes. DFC creates websites that can be updated from any computer without any special software; all you need is an Internet browser such as Internet Explorer or Firefox.

5> Firefox FTP Add-On

With the Firefox FTP Add-On, you can use the Firefox browser to download your website's HTML code, edit it, and upload it back to the server. This means editing code, but that's easier than you might think, especially if you are only editing text. Recommended by the Rev. Doug Gerts at First and Central Presbyterian in Wilminton, DE.

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GENERAL WEBSITE RESOURCES

ACCESSIBILITY and USABILITY

Websites can be accessible to those with vision and hand problems. Computers can be more easily used, and used without mice or keyboards.

PUBLISHING RESOURCES for Church Newsletters: Make attractive documents

Desktop Publishing: Many churches compose their monthly newsletters using a word processor such as Microsoft Word or WordPerfect. True page-makeup software does a better job: Quark XPress and Adobe InDesign are industry standards but a low-cost alternative is Serif Page Plus (PC-only), which also has PDF-editing capabilities.

PDF Document Conversion. Most software, even recent versions of Microsoft Word and Microsoft Publisher, allow you to save documents in PDF format (Adobe Reader format), which is the most universally accessible document format. There are also websites that will convert your document to PDF format, after you upload it. Here are three:

IMAGE EDITING SOFTWARE

Adjust photos and graphics. Google offers a free, easy-to-use image editor called Picasa. Also free is GimpShop. Also free is Photoshop Express, an on-line Web tool. The expensive industry standard is Adobe Photoshop software, but it comes in a less-costly version called Photoshop Elements.

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E-NEWSLETTER RESOURCES

Upload your list of e-mail addresses, upload your HTML newsletter or create it on-line, then send it. Each newsletter is e-mailed separately to everyone on your list. [8/22/208]

ON-LINE SURVEYS

Survey Monkey on-line surveys are easy to use. While many on-line tools are confusing, the folks at Survey Monkey do a lot to make things clear. This is a commercial service. [8/22/2008]

LISTSERV RESOURCES, DISCUSSION GROUPS, GOOGLE GROUPS, YAHOO GROUPS, ETC.

BLOGS

ON-LINE EVENTS CALENDARS

Once set up, these on-line calendars are easily updated by anyone with the username and password. No special software is needed. A great way to keep your church members informed and visitors as well. Some offer a way to send e-mails to invite people to events as well as a map function.

ON-LINE CREDIT CARD TRANSACTIONS, DONATIONS

To set up your website to allow secure credit card transactions and donations, you must contract with a company that provides these services. All charge a per-transaction fee and some also charge setup and monthly fees. To see how they work, go to the websites that use these services and make a small donation!

ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE

These software downloads protect your PC against viruses and other malicious pieces of software often embedded in email.

Internet Safety: Some Simple Rules

1. Never reply to an email asking for personal information or trust a link given in an email.

For example, suppose you are a Wilmington Trust customer and received the following email, asking you to re-activate your account.

X-Originating-IP: [76.96.62.62]
Subject: unlock your account
From: Wilmington Trust <profile@wilmingtontrust.com>
Reply-To: profile@wilmingtontrust.com
Date: Mon, 12 May 2008 15:16:05 +0200

Your Online Banking Profile Has Been Blocked
For your security, your online banking profile has been locked due to profile inactivity of your phone and unregistered account owner email. Kindly activate your account with your email and receive your bank e-statement:

Click Here to re-activate your Wilmington Trust account.

© 2008 Wilmington Trust Corporation.

If you get an email like this, trash it. If in doubt, use your telephone to call a phone number you trust. (That is, don't call the phone number given in the email; it may be spurious as well.)

The above is an actual email sent out by the thousands on May 12, 2008. Note that everything here looks good. The return address is to Wilmington Trust's website. But the link is not. The link would take you to a website asking for your personal banking information, a website run by thieves. Pray for them but don't let them prey on you.

Note, too, that if you opened this email while your computer was connected to the Internet, your computer automatically alerted the sender that you are someone who opens the messages they send. That means you can expect more of the same, perhaps better disguised.

2. Don't open email from unknown sources, especially if they have attachments.

If you open an email from a stranger, especially if it has an attachment, chances are good that, simply by opening the email, you have automatically sent a message to the stranger, who may be a spammer. Opening the email tells the spammer that you look at their emails. They think, “Oh, happy day, I'll send this unsuspecting person more email.”

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