Friday, May 16, 2014

Computer Workshop

What happens when the missionaries are back in their passport country and there are church leaders and a support worker (WingWing) who need to continue developing their computer skills?

This is a translation of a report sent to us last week from our co-workers in Lapoc (who work in our office and home) after they conducted a 3 day computer workshop all by themselves. They planned the dates, the transportation, made the menu, made up the food order – which WingWing went and bought – and also developed the Workshop Course.

“Notes from our Debrief Meeting”

Kitchen and Meals
        The good points were –
1.   All the meals were good but their favourite meals were the fish soup, the native chicken soup and the adobo pork boiled down until the liquid reduced.
2.   The budget was spot on.
3.   The meals were easy to prepare.
4.   All of the guests ate well and enjoyed the meal-times.
5.   We kept to the time schedule for the meals.
6.   The guest always thanked the kitchen staff, especially the ones from Lapoc.
7.   There were no complaints.
8.   The group seems much closer now than at previous seminars and each table fellowshipped and talked while they ate, and no one was left out.
9.   The rice bought for this workshop was  very good quality, with no husks or rocks and it smelled really nice. (Valencia Rice, 1,100 pesos for half a sack.)
10.               The cooks and servers all had a really sweet spirit.

The bad points were –
1.   The cooks had to kill the chickens themselves which they aren’t used to doing for the workshops because normally WingWing kills the chickens but this time he was one of the attendees. Next time it would be better to kill the chickens ahead of time.
2.   The two red thermoses don’t work very well and need to be replaced.


The Workshop Itself

        The good points were –
1.   Everyone focused and worked hard.
2.   All of them have now mastered the following:
a.   Backing up their files and copying files from their computers onto their MP3 players.
b.   Using the style sheets in Word and using the spell checker.
c.    Saving their work to the right folders.
d.   Restoring Paratext and saving verses using an RTF and then copying them into a Word file. Also they know how to do a search for a verse using a key-word. They also know how to get the verses back if their Paratext opens up with a blank screen.
e.   They can all use the Strongs numbers in Libronix and know how to search for supporting verses in other passages. They also know how to set their start-up files in Libronix.
f.    They know how to reset their printers and clean the printer heads.
g.   Rudil and Jojo were taught how to use Excel and worked really hard to learn this.
h.   They all know how to use Media Player.

3.   We have three new students just starting off – Samson, Max and Dodong Enanod and they also worked hard.

The bad points were –
1.   Toto didn’t attend the seminar because he still doesn’t have a good place in his home to keep a computer.
2.   Sanny didn’t attend the seminar because he said that learning computer skills is too difficult for him and he doesn’t feel like he can handle it. 
  This is Nanah teaching the class how to use Paratext. 
This is a picture of our relieved home and office staff at the end of the successful Computer Workshop, taken while they were having a debrief and writing up this report to send to us. 

I wish I could have attended their computer workshop as they would have taught me a few things that I need to know, like those RTF files. J   Paul has taught the office staff most of what they know about computers, but Ann-Ann (top left) has gone on and really honed these skills so she is the head computer manager in our office in Lapoc.
Please pray for our team as they continue to develop these skills and to increase in knowledge that will be a real blessing to the churches. We are so thankful to the Lord for these beautiful and diligent co-workers He has given us.