It really does feel different these days when talking to others about MMM. Part of that has to do with this being more real personally; but there’s also this aspect of what actually happens at this intersection of faith and mobile tech.

One of the happenings that is distinctly mobile is this idea of engagement. If you will; a point that is after something is communicated but not divorced from the reaction-response. When we step back and ask questions such as “what are the implications of tomes of information at your fingertips within a faith community that is behaviorly used to a single point of learning and application,” we are really asking about the place where we engage learning now that the posts have shifted.

This isn’t easy to understand as every communication event is filled with experiences and histories that cannot be distilled into simple formulas. Understanding here comes as we live with others and are silent long enough to learn from them – before offering whatever it is we have.

The tech in this only addresses how to manage that engagement. It gives us a better filter in some respects, or allows us to see that communication event in a way that’s most relevant to us, without debasing the perspectives of the others involved. This then allows us to make better decisions not just about what tech is best, but how we respond to future moments.

Ths is part of how MMM addresses approaches with mobile within ministry contexts. And one of the core approaches behind content and information that has to be addressed before moving past this intersection to the next roads.

If there’s anything that we know about here at MMM, its this idea of using mobile tech to increase one’s ability to understand and share Scripture. This has led to many thoughts here and other places on the topic, some better than others. Over at Bible Software Newsletter, this topic is revisited with the iPad taking the focus and some approaches taken with software. Here’s a snippet:

…I downloaded the free app and then downloaded several free resources and purchased the concise 3 library and the NIV with study notes. Pros: For now this is my go to app while in church. It is easy to use and easy to get around in. I wish I could test the original language resources and strong’s numbering, but I already have access to those in other programs and could not justify the cost. I think this is where Olive Tree separates themselves from the others. They actually went head to head against Mac and PC programs at SBL! Olive tree also has the most options for background and text colors and lots of free resources. Cons: only 1 additional window and I would like to click on a word and look it up a dictionary…

Read the rest of this review.

One thing seems really obvious; its not the content, but the user interface that determines the appeal on a tablet platform. Should provide some interesting lessons to be applied over time.

It’s going to be an adventure.

At least that’s how I feel in gearing up for this coming Monday being the day of full-time MMM work. I’ve not found the workstation/tablet, but I’ve got tasks and will be noting items to be done.

There will be some using of the region as the “office.” And probably some adjustments with the idea of using the Nokia N800 as a second, interactive monitor. It will be different, and fun.

Who knew that God could setup some neat moments like these?

Depending on where you might be reading this post, the idea of the mobile web might be new or old, often traveled or furiously avoided, anxiously anticipated or an exercise in new types of fear. No matter where you stand on the idea of the mobile web, that is – the internet through a mobile device that has a screen smaller than 5in, you do have an understanding that the mobile web is a polarizing subject.

It only gets to be a bigger challenge for those persons in markets where the idea of a mobile web is a dream that is ever so slightly out of reach. From the price of cellular data connections, to the reliability of those connections, to the price of the mobile devices, and the internet that they connect to; for many persons in these developing/emerging markets, the mobile web is just as much a chore for them as it is for some to find a pen and paper to write a snail message.

That’s why its good to see reports such as this one by Shikoh Gitau, Gary Marsden, and Jonathan Donner who looked at some of the challenges that persons in emerging/developing markets face when trying to live to the mobile web, but do so from a paradigm of use that’s mobile-only. Here’s a quote pulled from the report:

We found that the majority of the web-based e-mail operators do not support mobile-only origination of email addresses. For example, when trying to sign up for a Gmail account, we were instructed “Want a Gmail account? Go to www.gmail.com on your computer” To circumvent this obstacle, we prompted the participants to use Opera Mini to access to the full version of the website. However, even this presented some challenges; one of the participants’ applications for an email addresses was blocked when they could not use the image-based authentication employed by the registration system. The following message was displayed: “If your mobile does not correctly display the image below please login successfully on the desktop to enable your mobile login again. Enter the correct password above and then type the characters you see in the picture below.” Of course, the handset did not display the image correctly, but she could not access a desktop device.

Read the rest of this report here (PDF).

And while I can admit that some of the issues do stem from this idea of trying to extend the internet to something beyond a content-carrying medium, the fact of the matter is that there’s something a good bit wrong with our approaches to accessibility and usability – even for those persons who have multiple types of economies and devices –  when simple things such as signing up for an email account or inputting device settings is problematic.

When we are looking at challenging our brothers and sisters towards creating solutions that work, and we are using the web as that source, we need to make sure that we are not taking for granted in the checks and balances of our development or services that there is access to “the same kind of environment that we have.”

There are more people using the mobile web than ever before (over 1.2 billion people globally, and growing really fast in the Far East). If we are going to use the mobile web to set a bar towards enablement and access, then it also makes some sense to make sure that we also have made it as easy as possible for mobile to remain a handshaking moment for those who’d like to engage.

Beyond that, it would help that we also start living more on the side of mobile-only (mainly) so that when developing these services and ideals, we can have a better frame of reference towards how to address problems that prop up.

Via Technology for Community Empowerment and Twitter

This past weekend was Mother’s Day in the US (and a few other countries) and spending it with mom was definitely a treat. One of the things we did together was to attend her chruch (of which I was one-time a member) and just engage that time of fellowship and the Word together.

What I didn’t expect is to have another one of those inadvertant research sessions where I’d see and catalog a number of people and their mobile tech usage.

Mom’s church is a fairly large one (over 5000 people on just the main campus), and there’s a lot of technology that has been used there over the years. Before I left that church to center fellowships more around my college campus, I was seen there quite often with a Palm PDA in hand, reading the Word and engaging with others. It was a strange sight then, and I got dinged for “playing during service” many times before people understood that mobile was the way forward for many of us.

So this past Sunday, as we all stood to read chapter 2 of Exodus (the message was on the faith of a believing mother), I scanned the audience looking for familiar faces. Besides seeing a few, I noticed that there were a number of people reading the Bible on their mobile devices. Blackberries, iPhones, and a few others in cases where I couldn’t tell exactly the model. But this was neat. Mobile tech being used to read the Word. Totally not my experience of about a decade ago.

And then I saw a mother in front of me. She and her daughter were reading, but it wasn’t from a smartphone. They were using the Amazon Kindle and sharing the reading experience together. From my vantage point in the pew behind them, this was something they were both comfortable with. Even to the point of the mother highlighting and noting as the passage was being read.

I glanced over to my mom who had taken to looking at the Bible from my mobile device. I’ve had nothing short of trouble finding an easy to use Bible reader for her mobile device. And yet, there we were over the smaller screen (and larger text size than was in her printed version) engaging the Word in a public reading moment.

There are a lot of things that we can be thankful for mothers for. And on this past Mother’s Day, I noticed mothers playing a role of nuturing spiritual development while engaging within another stage of technology. Nothing really different, and at the same time, this marked a rose of a different kind showing its petals.

MMM is not the only organization understanding the benefits of the story behind and through mobile technology. A new connection point and partnership called The Mobile Movement has recently been formed to also extend this idea of understanding mobile beyond marketing and technology. Here’s a statement from their website towards the vision and mission:

The Mobile Movement was created as an organizing force around a force of nature called collective compassion. Now that we have done the hard work of building global connectivity, and are placing communications devices into the hands of billions, we commence the work of finding usefulness and meaning through applications that can help improve, extend and even save lives. Mobility has many meanings, but in our case mobility is all ABOUT movement – upward, outward and beyond traditional limitations. Mobility is about innovation, and constant creation – and while our vision is vast, we make real things work for real people through simple, socially driven applications provided at no cost to non-profits, helping them reach more people with information – services – and stories of hope that can inspire “perfect strangers” to acts of kindness and courage.

Lot’s of good work can happen with The Mobile Movement. Check out their website for more information and to connect with this movement of mobile proportions.

Via MSearchGroove

In some respects, I think I feel a bit like Ezra and Nehemiah when it came to rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem, there are parts of rebuilding MMM that are taking longer than others. And there’s another aspect of things where assistance is being provided in areas that previously were solo-endeared. Its amazing really, but this is the slow build to getting things back to and better than they were before.

Some good notes:

• Using the new Ovi Store App Wizard, I was able to build and submit the first MMM application, the collection of posts from Years 1-5 of MMM. What’s really neat is that it pulls from the old RSS feed, which should make it pretty easy to read older articles, and even search for items that aren’t front and center. Stay tuned for a formal announcement if/when its approved and available.
• If you are interested in contributing to the effort here in a writing, marketing/business development, or training role, drop a line and let’s begin that conversation. Upcoming posts will detail some of the needs in terms of roles (and Lord willing, compensation).
• Will be looking for assistance from WP Designers in terms of making an MMM-specific design for the site. There’s a bit of learning that I need to do, but this effort will most likely end up being contracted out – more to come on that as well.

That’s about it for now. There’s enough going on to keep a bro busy I’ll say that much. And even after the walls are up and done, there will be other tasks to get rolling on.

It is a great time to be serving the Body with this. At this intersection, life gets incredibly fun.

Just a headsup that old posts are now located at http://archived.mobileministrymagazine.com/

A hearty welcome to those of you who have been wondering where MMM has gone. Its really still here, but a bit behind the covers. Am in the process of moving to WordPress, and I’m learning my way as I go along.

One of the major things to get up and done is the older posts. Honestly, I know this will be hard as all get out, but will totally be needed sooner rather than later. There’s also that issue of a freshened design that needs to be ported to the WP side of things.

Beyond those admin items, there’s going to be a lot more time spent towards certain types of content, and getting face-to-face with many of you.

Its a new road, and MMM is my (Antoine’s) main gig now. Let’s go mobile together and give folks that Jesus they only read about 😉

Just wanted to add a few more notes about what’s happening with the site in the coming weeks:

• Updates to MMM will happen via Twitter (@mobileminmag) as the site will be moving to WordPress. This will be the case for a few weeks until that move is completed.
• The Archives section will appear on the bottom of the page, until that happens, the search buttons at the top and bottom of the page will work towards finding content. Also the Category link is a good resource to search for items here.
• MMM will publish via Twitter some updates about its involvement with Digital Disciples in the coming days weeks.
• Will be looking for a suitable netbook or notebook to replace a desktop that I have so that MMM can get back into creating some unique content and following through on some research.
• Oh, MMM is a full-time gig; look forward to more speaking and appearing at conferences (as budget and travel allows).

So that’s the deal with things as it stands right now. There’s much that needs to be done, and at the same time a call to me, and to MMM, that needs to be followed through with. You are invited to come alongside and help us till this digital ground together, and at the same time, if you have a need towards understanding how to engage this story of our Christian faith through this mobile lens, well, this is what we do and would like to help you see similar possibilities. A new adventure begins, and a new chapter to MMM starts now.