Lausanne Blogger Network
You can purchase copies of 'Transform your work life: Turn your ordinary day into an extraordinary calling' in most book shops in South Africa (Exclusive books, Wordsworth Books etc.) - or you can order the book online here (it is shipped overnight in South Africa, and anywhere in the else in the world).
Download a few chapters from the book here.
Monday, June 28, 2010 at 11:23AM Indeed, there is proof! For the record, I am NOT platform agnostic!
I wonder if we'll be using iChat in heaven!? Thanks to Kevin for sending this through! He knows that I am both passionate about Christ, and quite passionate about Apple Macs!
Thursday, April 29, 2010 at 10:13PM In the short video in this post I show how I use my Apple iPad in my work and ministry.
I got a 16 Gig iPad courtesy of the University of JHB who paid me to examine some Masters and PhD scripts - hard work, but well worth the effort!
I ordered my iPad from Amazon.com (since it is not for sale in South Africa yet). It was a quick and painless affair. FedEx delivered it within a few days.
This is a great piece of hardware, I am particularly impressed with the 10-12 hour battery life with full wifi, screen brightness and sound etc. Moreover at a price of less than R4000 I can see many people using the iPad as a primary computing device. R4000 is a lot of money! But, if you're in the market for a new computer and have been saving (or have some benefactor, as I did) then it is money well spent for an ultraportable, ultra-useful computer. The only problem I can foresee is printing... You will have to email your documents elsewhere to print them. I have it on good authority that the camera dongle (which has a standard USB connector) will let you pull files from an ordinary USB thumb drive.
Don't hold your breath for the 3G version in South Africa. Knowing ICASA and the cellular carriers it will be many months, maybe even a year, before they can work out a deal to allow it into the country. Plus, I believe the 3G uses the new microsim card which has not been adopted by any cellular providers in SA. Rather go for a wifi version (which is cheaper and works in SA) with either a MiFi or joikuspot on a Nokia phone (as you'll see me using in this video). With this solution I can use it in the car, anywhere in my office, in the airport... I'm not reliant on public or corporate wifi.
I use a number of applications specific to my work (Bibles in English and Greek, Keynote for Powerpoint presentations, Pages for Word docs and Numbers for spreadsheets). The device is small and light and works great with any bleutooth keyboard (I had an OLD foldable keyboard that I bought back in 2002 for a iPaq - amazingly it picks up the keyboard and works like a charm!) I keep various talks, sermons, powerpoint presentations and videos on the device. I also keep PDF copies of my books. So if ever I get asked to speak at an event I always have something on hand. The screen is the perfect size to replace paper, and the touch interface makes it a perfect device to read from and preach from.
As I mention above, I also use it for PDF's (I carry quite a few documents for various work and ministry related tasks. Not the least of which are our current GDOP Conference program, speakers lists, budgets, etc.) and it does a great job with my calendar and contacts.
Of course the email client is also great! I have 4 of my accounts running on it throughout the day. I also run twitter and facebook on the device for the work I do for Lausanne's social media and social networking team.
In this video you'll also see how I connect it to the Internet via Vodacom 3G in South Africa. Also, because the wifi in our office is locked down to run via a proxy server I set my iPad up to run via my Macbook as a base station with internet sharing (just as a hint, my friend Cois uses a PPoE connection at his office, which the iPad doesn't do via wifi. So, you can use the same internet sharing method to connect via PPoE. If you're not sure how to do this drop me a line).
iPad for Ministry (in South Africa)! from Dion Forster on Vimeo.
See the video here: http://www.vimeo.com/11324210
By the way, this post was created using the squarespace application on the iPad. There is no native squarespace app for the iPad, I am still using the iPhone application. However, I do have the wordpress app for some of my 'other' blogs. (all iPhone apps run on the iPad by the way).
How do you think you could use an iPad in your work or ministry? Is there any use case where it could be a better tool than a laptop or desktop computer for you?
Dr Dion Forster
Hi X,I have the 16gig wifi - if I had the money I would have bought at 32gb, but since mine was paid for with income I got from marking some PhD's and M's for UJ I had to stick to my budget.I paid the same price [as you quoted], but got it a bit cheaper (the Rand was sitting at R7.32 to the US$ when I bought mine). However, I did pay close to R1000 in shipping and import duties to be sure to have it in the country legally.Personally, I think it is worth every cent! It is my 'go to' device for most tasks (web browsing, email, calendar, book reader, word, powerpoint, logos bible software, my blog apps etc.) You will need to spend a few rand extra to buy the VGA dongle if you want to use it for presentations (I don't have one yet, I use the iPod RCA connector to plug it into my data projector via RCA).The wifi version is completely useable in SA (see my post http://www.dionforster.com/blog/2010/4/29/using-my-apple-ipad-for-ministry-in-south-africa.html for details on how I connect it to the internet when out of the office). I have since done away with the Joikuspot E51 option - my 3G contract with MTN expired on the 26th of April so I cancelled it and opened a 3G contract with Nashua and got the mifi as the dongle (it can connect to a PC via USB, or it can be used as a stand alone wifi hotspot). It is perfect. I leave it in the same little carry case I have for my iPad and have always on internet.They keyboard is fantastic (I also have an OLD foldable Bluetooth keyboard that I got with my Compaq iPaq almost 10 years ago! It works like a charm - in fact any bleutooth keyboard works), but real deal clincher is the battery life. They advertise 10 hours, but I most often get up to 12 hours of constant use with the wifi enabled. It just goes on and on and on.It is a great device to 'preach' from (I bring my documents in via word into 'pages', or via PDF into dropbox or goodreader). I use skype (of course only voice is possible since there is no camera). I also use it with the Kindle app and iBooks (I'm currently reading Malcolm Gladwell's new book What the dog saw and Brian Mclaren's A new kind of Christianity)- then of course it is a fantastic iPod and the Video on it is amazing! I often use it in coaching sessions to show short videos to the persons I'm sitting with, somehow it is less intimidating than a notebook for that. if you look on my blog you'll see the video 'how to start a movement' which is one I often show when I'm trying to help leaders to care for their staff.NOW, that being said, I have wondered over the last little while whether it may not in fact be better to buy a great little netbook that has USB ports, a dedicated keyboard, a camera for skype and Windows with all the apps one already owns... For a Windows user that may be an option. I am quite committed to Mac so the iPad suites my habits and patterns nicely.What don't I like about it. First, it draws too much attention. As a minister (even one like me in the corporate environment) that feels uneasy! You'll know what I mean! I constantly find myself justifying to people that it only cost 'R3500'... Second, I miss being able to get media on and off via USB. The only way to get stuff on and off is via iTunes sync, or wifi and dropbox. Also, it is a pain that it doesn't do true multitasking. For exmaple, if you're on a skype call you can't go out to check something in your diary or check a contact, if you exit skype it cuts the call. Small problems, but still not great.I hope that helps you in making your decision.Blessings,Dion
apple, iPad, ministry in Church, Computers, Gadgets, Social media, Technology Sunday, April 11, 2010 at 2:51PM The 1st Apple iPad in South Africa (perhaps!) This is my friend Cois' iPad. I'm sorry that the video is taken sideways (and upside down!) please tilt your head ;-) It could be user error... It's the first time that I've taken a video with my iPhone where it hasn't autocorrected the aspect ratio...
The iPad is amazing! It would be an incredible tool for someone like myself who attends far too many meetings during the day (needing to have access to my schedule, my 5 email accounts, all my documents and spreadsheets, have a Bible and of course the ability to show promotional videos and copies of my books). If I had one of these I could simply carry the one piece of hardware with me everywhere and have everything I need to get my job done!
Watch the video if you can and let me know what uses you could have for a device like this. Who else wants an iPad!?
apple, iPad, technology, workflow in Apple, Computers, Gadgets, Technology Monday, April 5, 2010 at 5:25PM Yup, the Apple iPad wifi version was released in the USA on the 3rd of April. A friend of mine who is currently in the US (Cois) managed to get one and says it is amazing!
Here's a great PC Magazine review of the Apple iPad.
It's time for me to harvest another kidney so that I can get an iPad! Can you imagine having the Olivetree Bible reader on that thing plus all my sermons, Powerpoint slides, and a copies of all my documents!? Man, that would be a great tool!
Anyone else planning on getting one when the FINALY get released in South Africa? I'm sure the CORE technologies, Project3 or the Apple iStores will stock them in the next few months.
apple, iPad in Gadgets, Technology Sunday, February 14, 2010 at 7:23PM The Apple iPad is attracting a lot of attention. I know that there are a few VERY exclusive people who have iPad's to try. However, the ordinary consumer will have to wait 60 days before being able to get their hands on one of them. Let alone those of us who live in places like South Africa where it will probably take another year before Apple releases the iPad with 3G! Still, I love my iPhone 3G and would LOVE an iPad 3G!
If I had the money I would pre-order one! However, there are a few more pressing priorities at the moment. So, I have come to appreciate what I already own - I have a 3 year old iPad (in South Africa.... Sort of!)! And, what I own is Sony Vaio UX 180 P.
This photo was taken when I was attending the Oxford Institute at Christ Church, Oxford University in August 2007.
My little portable computer is a Sony Vaio UX 180 P. It is a Windows XP device with a touch screen, a 30 gigabyte hard drive, 512MB or ram, wifi, bluetooth and a 3 hour battery life. It is the perfect travelers computer! It is smaller than a DVD case, in fact small enough to put into a big pocket on one's 'cargo pants'!
It runs a 'normal' operating system and 'normal' versions of MS Word, MS Outlook and the google Chrome browser. This means that I can simply plug in my backup USB flash disk that has copies of all of my documents and files on it and work away! Moreover, since it has a USB port I can connect to the internet using my 3G modem wherever I am and get my email, browse the web, and even use MS Outlook to connect to corporate server.
In this picture you'll see the iPod I owned in 2007, my old Nokia phone (a great big brick!), the UX 180 is docked in its docking station (that adds a VGA port, firewire, ethernet, and 4 USB 2.0 ports). You will also see my batterygeek external battery (this battery gives me an amazing 20 hours of battery life for the UX 180! On my Macbook Pro it gives me an additional 5-6 hours). I also have a cheap foldable Bluetooth keyboard that I can use with the UX 180 P.
So, until the iPad arrives, (and of course until I get some royalties for my books and don't have a washing machine to fix, kids school activities to pay for, a car to service and a few other pressing things to pay for), I shall be using my UX 180 P as a 'road warrior' computer!
Just as a final note - if you have not yet used dropbox it is a MUST HAVE for a person who uses more than one computer. Dropbox is a free service (for 2 Gigabytes of backup, after which you can choose to upgrade your space for a fee). You install a small application (which I have on my Macbook, my iPhone and my UX 180 P), then it creates a folder in your documents folder. Any file that you drag into that folder gets updated on Dropbox (you can even log into dropbox if you don't have your computer with you, and download the file you want to work on and then update it!)
While I was working on my most recent book 'Transform your work life: Turn your ordinary day into an extraordinary calling' (Struik Christian Media, 2010 - the book is due out in May), I used this little tool (in conjunction with my Macbook and my UX 180)! If I found that I was waiting to go into a meeting and the person I was meeting was running late I simply connected did some editing and knew that when I got back to my office the most up to date version of the file would ALWAYS be on my computer! Moreover, if my computers got stolen, or my house burnt down at least I would have backups of these (and other) critical documents 'in the cloud'.
I would suggest you consider using dropbox - it is free! OK, back to work for me! And then when I've done editing the article I'm working on I'm going to hop into bed with the Amazon Kindle application for Windows on my UX 180 P and continue reading Malcom Gladwell's new book 'What the dog saw'!
Oxford, Sony, Vaio, apple, getting things done, gtd, iPad, technology, ux 180, workflow in Apple, Computers, Gadgets, Technology Sunday, November 4, 2007 at 8:59PM 
The thing is hard to type on. It's too slow. It's too big. It doesn't have instant messaging. It's too expensive...or cheap. It doesn't support my work e-mail. It's locked to AT&T. Steve Jobs secretly hates puppies.
YET, time gives you 5 reasons why it is the invention of the year....I agree! And, I don't even own one! How I wish I did!
Anyone out there willing to 'donate' one for research purposes?
Technorati tags:iphone, best invention, gadget, cool, desirable
Saturday, October 27, 2007 at 10:50AM Yup, last night I gave in to the Steve Jobs distortion field - in the cold and wet I raced through the traffic to get to one of my favourite places on the planet, the iStore in Menlyn Park shopping centre in an affluent subburb of Pretoria East...
I have been anticipating the release of Leopard for some months now, and in the last few weeks I've been looking forward to the 26th of October - what a joy when the iStore staff phoned me to come to the worldwide launch of Leopard! So, like all Mac fanatics I went!
Now, before I explain the heading of this post let me just say that I currently own the following Apple computers:
You can see that we are a thoroughly Apple household!! We LOVE MACS!!!
So, you may be asking yourself, how could I possibly say that Leopard could NEVER compete with Vista!??? Well, the answer is simple - Leopard is just in a completely different league!!
Ha ha! Yup, Vista from my limited use, is to Windows XP what Windows ME was to Windows 95... Nothing but eyecandy and instability!
Leopard on the other hand is FANTASTIC!!! And yes, I am biased, but it is faster, more stable, and it looks even better than Tiger. I love the new Mail application, the new style sheets and eye candy, you can add 'to do' items and sticky notes directly in mail, the new Safari browser is FAST and user friendly, it also allowes you to 'snip' active elements from web pages to add as widgets in Dashboard. Of course the new Finder is magnificent! It has 'cover flow' that lets you see the contents of files within the finder (without even having to open an application like Word, Excel, Adobe reader, Keynote, or the Preview image viewer)... It is just fantastic!
So, yes, I bought a copy of Leopard last night - I aslo happened to see a cracked, working, iPhone! It is magnificent. If the guy who had the phone reads this post, would you mind dropping me a line? I'd love to stay in touch.
So, Steve Jobs and Apple, WELL DONE!!!! This is a great upgrade that will make my life so much more efficient and pleasant. It was worth going out in the cold and the wet, and the Apple iStore in Menlyn is still one of my favourite places in the whole world!!!!
Technorati tags: Apple, Vista, Leopard, better, iStore, Menlyn
Thursday, October 25, 2007 at 8:19PM 
For all the Macheads out there that have been waiting for the official release of Mac OS Leopard (AKA the Vista shamer...)
It's been released in the USA. I hope to be able to get my copy on Saturday (please Lord!)
If you're interested in following a live, blow by blow, geekfest of leopard feature discovery you can follow the constantly updated Gizmodo Leopard blog here.
Wohoo! I can't wait!
Thursday, October 25, 2007 at 6:55PM 
So much of my life revolves around text, reading it, thinking about it, writing it, and of course trying to disseminate it to others. Anything that can help to manage and record my use of text more accurately is always welcome!
Just this afternoon I was reminding my students how important it is to provide detailed and accurate references in their work! Of course this not only aids verification, it also helps others who are doing similar research to find sources of use.
Here's a great tutorial from the Microsoft team (yes, Lord, I repent, Steve Job's I'll also be sending you a letter of apology)...
I use MS Word for Apple Mac, however, if there is anyone out there us MS Word for the 'dark side' please let me know if it works, and how it works!
Thursday, October 18, 2007 at 5:54PM Yup, 16 November 2007 will truly be the most significant day of this year for Megan, Courtney and I. On the 16th of November we will celebrate the miracle of our son Liam's birth. At this time last year Megan, as about 23 weeks of pregnancy (some way into her 5th month) had already been in hospital once in labour... It was one of
the scariest and most difficult times of our lives! Liam was born just 3 weeks later... Many of you will remember that he was just 1kg at birth (do a search for Liam, or click on December 2006's archives) to see some pictures....
Liam spent 3 months in the neonatal ICU and almost left us a few times... However, God is faithful! Even to heretical theologians!!! Liam truly is a miracle child! So come and celebrate with us on the 16th of November. I'll give you some advance warning - if you would like to send Liam a message of blessing, or some form of
encouragement (remember, I am his dad... He'll need all the encouragement he can get!!!), then please drop a comment on the blog on the 16th. We will save all the comments and print them for him so that he can remember, one of the most special forms of love in Christ, is the body of Christ loving itself through its members!
Now, what will the SECOND most important day of 2007 be? Well, go to http://www.apple.com/ and take alook at the countdown to the release of the new version of Mac OS X,
leopard! I can't wait, Leapard is going to BITE M$ Vi$ta's BUT! Wohooo!!!
As far as I know only Pete, Wessel, and I are Mac addicts... Any others lurking out there?
Technorati tags: Premature, 26 weeks, Miracle, Liam, Birth, Apple, leopard
Thursday, August 9, 2007 at 11:27AM 
If you were hoping to see some deep theological reflection as my first post from England you may be dissapointed! Here's a photo of me (taken in Photobooth on one of the Macs here in the Regent street Apple Store in London). Happy Women's day to all the significant women I have the joy of sharing my life with (Megie and Courts in particular).
I arrived yesterday after a 26 hour marathon trip via Dubai! Today I head out to Cambridge, spend the evening with some friends and colleagues, and then back to London on Friday to be with Richard and Michelle!
I am off to Oxford on Sunday.
Check back for more 'real' posts and updates on the Conference, papers, and other more scholarly things (I don't have wifi coverage currently... That accounts for this quick and nasty post from the Apple store).
I am MISSING Megie, Courts, and Liam... I'll post again as soon as I have wifi...
England, apple, regent street Thursday, June 28, 2007 at 6:12PM Today we ended the June General Committee meeting of the Education for Ministry and Mission Unit. These are always incredibly stressful meetings since we have the responsibility of making some very tough and conflicted decisions about the lives of our student ministers.
Thank God the meetings are done, the Theological Society is finished (week before), now I look forward to hosting some visitors from Cambridge in the UK, Garret in Chicago (US), and a Colleague from Detroit! Visitors are always a wonderful blessing. They bring new insights, energy, and a great sense of connectedness with this great wide world, and God's great church all over the world.
Just to mention three books that I am currently reading that are SO worthwhile (each for different reasons).
Firstly, I would strongly encourage all of you who are seeking a fresh and novel approach to orthodox Christian Theology to read Brian Mclaren's 2004 book "A generous orthodoxy". This has truly been the most encouraging, and gently presented, approach to Christian truth and the cause of the Gospel of the Kingdom of God that I have read in a long while. It is set to be my book of the year!
Secondly, I have been reading (for a book review in the Journal 'Studia Historiae Ecclesiasticae') a centenary festschrift on Cardinal Yves Congar edited by Gabriel Flynn, entitled "Yves Congar: Theologian of the Church" (2005). It has reminded me again of the discipline of working for the reform and renewal of the Church from within its fellowship. Congar was a leading light in Vatican II, a contemporary of Bernard Longeran, Karl Rahner, and Courtney Murray. His ecclesiology has lead in large part to the Catholic church's renewed ecclesiology and role for an 'educated laity' in the formulation and renewal of the evangelisation of the world.
Lastly, I have been reading a book by my favourite author, Bill Bryson, entitled "The life and times of the thunderbolt kid" (2006). This has to be one of the funniest, and most poignant, books I have read in a very long time. I have laughed so hard that I have almost bust a stitch!
Oh, and for the gadget freaks, take a look at this GREAT video review of the iPhone that gets released tomorrow evening in the US!
It was put together by David Pogue, a Mac fanatic with a great sense of humour.
Bill Bryson, Congar, Mclaren, Theology, apple, books, generous orthodoxy, iphone, reading 
