Tech we can't live without
January 15, 2009 - 2:12pm
It sounds like your church
It sounds like your church doesn't need one. Ours similarly doesn't, just because my family is the only one here that would actually use it, and the church network is actually our family's network, since the parsonage is next door to the church. So we have wireless in the church, but only my family can access it.
That said, there are routers you can get that will allow internet sharing without granting access to the main network, and a church would also probably want to put some kind of filter box on it as well. For churches whose members would actually be interested in using it, this is a great service to offer that can be done responsibly, but I agree that not every church has need of such technology.
Hi gang,
In the show you talk about wireless internet at the church and why more don't have open networks. In our case we have three reasons:
1. Security - someone can't drive by and infest us with malware. (low probability but still possible)
2. Security - we store a lot of confidential information between giving records and the daycare records. Someone may leave a file in the open and risk it being downloaded through an open network. This also gives the ability to share information between office computers comfortably because without the right mac address you won't get in at all.
3. Stewardship - we want to neither waste the time we have to a slow network, nor provide free internet to the neighbors just so they can surf porn with God's money. Our church is literally feet from some residences that could easily mooch off our signal if it were open.
The first two could be fixed with secure networking or a separate network but a "network fellowship" doesn't fit our personality at our church. I and the Pastor are the only ones with iPod Touches and we have 1 iPhone so we're not a "hooked in" kind of people for the most part.
The third case could be a concern for any church that's not physically separated by distance from neighbors, I suppose.
Great show - I'm going to go listen to the rest of it now. :)