Tag: computers

A bang command for UCV on DuckDuckGo

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There are some good reasons for using the DuckDuckGo search engine and even for making it the default search engine on your browser so you can just type search terms right into the location bar (address bar) at the top of your screen.

This post goes into just one reason: the bang command. If you click on that link and then scroll down, you can see why bang commands are useful.

The bang commands in this post link to their results so you don’t have to type them into your browser to try them out. Just click on them.

!ucv principles for kids / for grownups too (see link in item found)
!ucv small groups / where everyone has a voice and is heard
!ucv vision statement / !g “… exactly what it says on the tin”

Those examples used the new bang command !ucv
/ (given nothing to search for on a website, a bang command displays the home page)

Even if you don’t make DuckDuckGo the default search engine on your browser, you can maybe still use it in the browser search box. This is usually to the right of the location bar (address bar) at the top of your screen, as it is in Firefox.  Click on the dropdown symbol – if there is one in the search box – and select a miniature version of the featured image in this post after you have typed the search term.

Here are some other bang commands worth knowing:

!yt Vancouver Unitarians / YouTube

!gb “Singing the Living Tradition” / Google Books

!gr “Singing the Living Tradition” / Goodreads

!b becoming a Unitarian site:cuc.ca / Bing

!i Vancouver Unitarians  / images

!m Unitarian Church of Vancouver, 949 West 49th Ave, Vancouver, BC V5Z 2T1  / map

!ucv technology / drop-in sessions, first Sundays, for help with any or all of the above

Please spread the word. Send people this copy-paste of the title of the post with its embedded link:

A bang command for UCV on DuckDuckGo

Thank you.

Website Training: How Did It Go?

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How did it go? Well. It went well. The class on February 23 was the first in the series described in Carolyn Grant’s Website Training post. And it went well.

Kudos to RevealMax instructor Luke Zukowski, pictured, ably assisted by UCV volunteers Galen Elfert and John Henderson. The class progressed in a single session to the point where we each can create a post like this one, a news post – to use the term Mary Bennett suggests in the UCV Website Usage Guide.

The next class in the series is on March 16. The subject is how to create a post that describes what has yet to take place and so is termed an event. The embedded links in the Events List are to events.

Here is Mary Bennett on these terms:

When people ask me the difference between news post and event, I say simply: If it has a date, time, and a place, it’s an event.

Again, the February 23 class was on how to create a news post. This news post you are reading may change over the next several days to include feedback on the class from others who attended.

The workshop was well organized and clearly presented. I learned what I needed to create and edit news posts. Great and prompt attention to each person’s questions/needs. Thank you! —Rob (February 24)

It is great to have a group of people knowledgeable in WordPress, etc. Good questions and comments. —Randall (February 24)

I thought the teaching and backup were excellent. Thanks, I learned a lot! —Melody (February 25)

I thought the workshop was excellent. It was short and to the point. It gave me the facts that I needed. —Michael(  February 25)

The training was excellent. —Sheila L (February 28)

Website Training

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Free Computer Training 

Learn how to use our wordpress website

All sessions held in Hewett Centre, UCV Saturdays from 1 – 4 pm.
February 23, 2019 – Topic: How to access our website and post news items.
March 16, 2019 – Topic: How to create events on the website.
June 1, 2019 – Topic: respond to needs expressed from those attending the first two sessions.
(Scroll down to the bottom of the page to find links to the events on the web.)
Learn the Basics: 1-3 pm with instructor and 3- 4 pm Practice with volunteer coaches.
For Intermediate Level: 3-4 pm in Biddle for experienced web users to ask questions and work on a project with instructor and volunteer support. Instruction with Luke 3-3:30 pm and practice with volunteer coach 3:30 .- 4 pm

Who is this aimed at? How many people from each group can attend?

The sessions are aimed at volunteers of UCV Committees/Teams/Groups who would like to be able to post their committee information and events to the website. Each group can designate a maximum of two persons from within their group to attend the workshops.  Computer knowledge level is basic but you must know how to log in to the UCV website. Before attending you will be given sign in access.

What must I bring?

Your own electronic device (laptop, tablet or smart phone). 
The text for something you’d like to post to the website. (You’ll likely post as a draft and can add to it later)
Your sign-in user name and password (This will be sent to you prior to the class).

What can I do to prepare?

Try signing in at home to make sure you have access. (Login button is at the very bottom on the right)
There are videos and instruction sheets on posting to the website.
If you have ever posted to wordpress before, these would be helpful to look at for a review.
If you are absolutely brand new, look over these materials and decide whether it’s worth your time or you’d rather wait for the in-person training.

Must I attend all three workshops in this series or can I sign up for workshops separately?

Preferable to sign up for all three sessions.

How and when can I register?  

Contact Aurora Eyolfson, Congregation Administrator, at 604-261-7204 or ca@vancouverunitarians.ca .
Registration is open now.
Priority for intermediate level will be given to those who are currently posting to the web and want additional training and practice.   
There is a maximum of 12 attendees per workshop.
Luke Zukowski, Computers Made Easy

Who will provide the instruction?

Instruction provided by Luke Zukowski of RevealMax.
John Henderson and Galen Elfert are volunteer assistants

Future sessions will include

  • Social Media Basics & Intermediate – dates tba
  • Web Posting Advanced (for those who have completed the basic sessions) – dates tba – likely late spring
  • Posters and Brochures – Basic and Intermediate – Marcus Hynes – dates tba. Likely basics in May and Intermediate in early fall. 
These workshops are funded by the Robert Koerner Fund.  

Links to upcoming computer skills events

No Events

Our Website and Social Media: A Team Approach Through Training

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“Excellent Sessions”

(Step One of a Planned Three-Year Initiative in Becoming More Computer Literate as a Congregation)

Luke Zukowski, Computers Made Easy

Yes, our first computer training series was well received.  Thanks to funding from the Robert Koerner fund, the Connect & Engage Team was able to provide training to 12 Unitarian volunteers. Luke Zukowski, technology consultant from RevealMax, facilitated four sessions in October/November at the Hewett Centre.

If you’d like to take a similar series,
please complete the survey here.

Our goal was to train more committee members to become proficient in the use of social media and, in particular, in navigating our website. Learning how to post articles and events would provide more up-to-date information of our numerous UCV activities. Having more folks acquire these skills will decrease the current demand on our very limited resources (namely, our staff and limited volunteers with advanced computer skills).
So, how did we do?  On the whole, the training went very well, as illustrated by feedback from some participants:
…thanks for the first social media workshop, Sheila. I thought Luke (the instructor) was very skilled and responsive to our circumstances.
Luke is amazing!
I thought it went very well apart from the technological hitch which usually occurs anyway!
Excellent session – pleasant and valuable.  Luke was knowledgeable and clear.
The instructor was on the whole very good and I definitely learned some valuable things.  The last two sessions though were too fast for a ‘real’ beginner… mixing levels was problematic. 
If you would like to access the information provided in these sessions, Luke has provided us with the following videos: https://1drv.ms/f/s!AuNdXk4Bx8U0gjIOQdZ3feihrBI2
Our success was due to the efforts of dedicated volunteers. Thank you to John Henderson who worked tirelessly in providing valuable background information to Luke and gave up three Saturday afternoons to help out during the sessions (and who is volunteering to do it again for Phase Two). To Galen Elfert who got us back on track after a technological glitch. To Cathy Sevcik who assisted participants.
We learned a lot from this first step toward enhancing the computer literacy of our hard-working volunteers. We are hoping to build on this success and offer a second year of training.  It  would include a more advanced wordpress series as well as a social media/instagram series.
Stay tuned for further news as we move toward Step Two.
If you’d like to take a similar series, please complete the survey here.