Thank you for contacting Verizon Wireless. As a reflection of my commitment to provide the best customer service possible, Unfortunately there isn’t a way to turn off automatic update on your blackberry. The phone is designed to receive automatic updates the only way not to receive automatic updates is to turn data off completely. By doing that you will not be able to utilize the full experience of the phone.If this continues to be an issue for you we do have other devices that doesnt not allow automatic updates.

If you have any further questions or concerns please call us at your earliest convenience from a landline phone at 1-800-922-0204 option 3 for technical support. You can also visit a Verizon Wireless store. To find the nearest location, please click on the following link: www.verizonwireless.com/storelocator

We appreciate your business and thank you for using Verizon Wireless products and services.

MW Analyst Team

Well what are your thoughts on that?  I say fine if they are not going to turn off automatic updates to my phone then stop putting apps on my phone.  Again, I state that I understand that these are not the full app but app install links.  I would really be interested to hear what some technical folks have to say, is this not possible from the servers that VZW is running for their customers?

• Computing hardware
  • MacBook Pro
  • Blackbery 8330
• Software
  • Chrome
  • Firefox
  • OpenOffice.org
  • Tweetdeck
  • Quicken
  • Graphic Converter
  • Ubertwitter
  • Seesmic Mobile
  • Google Sync
  • Google Voice
  • X-Chat
  • Coda
  • VIM
  • Skype
  • Final Cut Studio
  • Tether
  • XRG
  • … every thing else is minor, the ones listed about are use almost every day and throughout the day
• Online tools
  • Ping.fm
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Tumblr
  • LinkedIn
  • WordPress.org
  • 1&1
  • Google Domains
  • Disqus
  • OpenDNS
• Extra
  • Letherman Kick
  • LED flashlight
  • noise isolating ear buds

That about wraps it up… the next will be a breakdown of my coffee geek ware, the esential tools to keep the other geek running.

Let me start with the tools and sites that I am using.

• UberTwitter
• TweetDeck
• Twitter
• Facebook
• DanLacher.COM
• LinkedIn
• Ping.fm
• Tumblr
• twitterfeed
• Seesmic
• WordPress 2 Ping.fm

So with that many sites and tools someone, like myself, might just get a little confused.  It could be super simple to come up with a post/tweet/idea and drop it in all the social networking outlets independently but that seems like extra work and thus why others have written tools to help us all out.

So where I was before I read Crush It and added in a couple of new tools?  I was simply using UberTwitter and Tweetdeck to update my Twitter status and DanLacher.COM for full blog entries.  Then using the Twitter -> Facebook connect application to update my status from Twitter to Facebook.  For full blog entires I would post the link on Twitter and simply mention the entry.  After adding Twitterfeed into the picture then I could have that tool monitor the RSS feed on DanLacher.COM and simply post new entries directly from there to Twitter.  So that is really where I was before I decided to complicate my life and the process by adding in Ping.fm and Tumblr.

So enter the new players into the mix and let’s see if we can make the workflow simple and without duplication of data because I tell you, if you just turn them all on and don’t watch for routing issues there are double posts all over the place.  The new routing that I believe I have figure out, for now, is to update via Seesmic or direct to Ping.fm where then Ping.fm will post it to Twitter, Facebook and Tumblr.  That takes care up the status updates now to take care of the blog entires on DanLacher.COM.  Step in a new plug-in for WordPress, WordPress 2 Ping.fm.  Since we have the Ping.fm issues worked out we all ready have the workflow solved.  I can’t say that I am fond of switching from Tweetdeck to Seesmic but until there is a Ping.fm integration with Ubertwitter and Tweetdeck I will have to go this route, I have become very fond of Tweetdeck and Ubertwitter.

The major issues that came into play before getting all of the routing worked out was the fact that each tool/site thinks they can solve a portion of this workflow and if you turn on and allow them access to the various sites paths cross and data is duplicated.  This might not bother some people but I find it slightly annoying to see multiple updates on a twitter feed and Facebook page for the same status update.  The final, for now, solution needed to be that one has to pick one “master” point and let all the data flow from there.

I hope this helps someone else out and that I don’t have to change up the workflow before this post makes it out through the pipeline.

The first time that I clearly recall hearing God, freaked me out. This to date is the only time that I believe I audibly heard Him. I was showering and praying about what the heck the day would bring when, as clear as can be, I heard a voice tell me that I was going to pray at the firehouse and over the fire fighters. I seriously looked around to see who was in the bathroom. I was a bit freaked at first, and spent most of the day then wrestling with God on if He really wanted me to do this. Really, I spent most of a day bantering back and forth over something so small. I finally said You got it, picked up the phone book, found the number for one of the stations in town and called. I headed over around dinner time and had a chance to sit around and find out a few of their stories. Before leaving I had took the opportunity to pray over the firehouse and the men that were their. It was humbling to hear the voice of God asking me to do something so simple yet so powerful.

Like I said above, that is to date the only time that I have heard the voice of God audibly speak to me. The other two encounters I am going to share came differently.

Messiah believed that we were being called, and still do believe, to take journeys out of our current building and to bring it to Main Street to create a coffeehouse ministry venue. Early in the process of imagining what this could be, I had been seriously praying over where God wanted us to place the coffeehouse. We had found a location right on Main Street in Midland and really felt like it was the place. Several of us had prayed over the location, but there were other offers starting to come in all at once on a building that had been sitting empty for over a year… So one night after a long day of working numbers for the new venue and endless hours working on other portions of the technology issues around Messiah, finally I made it home. Family time is always a wonderful thing to come home to after a long day, and as on every other normal night, Erin and I did the standard family routines and then Erin and I dropped into bed. I was exhausted off my feet… but I could not fall asleep. After tossing and turning, I found myself praying and asking what was on my heart that I had not confessed or didn’t understand. God and I had a great talk that night and then I drifted off to sleep. A few hours later, I had the most vivid dream I can recall having. As simple as the dream was, I clearly heard God tell me that the He was giving us the building and to not worry.

Okay, so first I tell you that I audibly hear the voice of God while I am showering and now I tell you that while I am sleeping one night He comes to me in a dream and tells me that He will give Messiah a building for launching a Main Street coffeehouse ministry venue… if you are still with me, that is right. It was an amazing and powerful dream that woke me up and I knew that it was truly God that had given me the dream and spoken to me.

Now to the present where I have been wrestling in pray for months with God over something and not knowing which way to go, what side is up or down, and really at a loss for the direction on how to proceed. While Erin and I were recently on a small vacation I had lots of time to do nothing. Nothing except spend some amazing time in prayer as I continued to wrestle with God over this. After several days of this and being deep in His Word, I was awoken by another amazing dream that laid out the answer. I know above I said the dream about the coffeehouse building was vivid, but this tops it. The details of this dream are captured and will be shared in time, but I am humbled to have been awoken by this dream and to know it was God clearly speaking to my heart on the matter. Simple and humble amazement washed over me for my Creator.

So there is it. I don’t know how or why God has chosen to speak to me in these ways but I am blessed to have listened and acted as He has called.

Now fast forward to December of 2009 when Verizon decided that they would push the Bing application out to all of their Blackberry users. Really, for a device that owned by the user and not the company and for a device that is password protected from application install I don’t understand how a company would make that move. Now I understand that it was not a full application push but a shortcut to install the application and until recently no apparent way to remove it… I don’t consider hiding the application icon a solution.

Move ahead again to February of 2010 when Verizon pulls the same stunt and pushed a shortcut install application for Slacker Radio out to my device.

WHAT! At this point I was out right pissed off. I called Verizon to find out what they heck was going on. After a discussion with the front line customer service member who clearly had no idea what I was talking about he informed me all he could do is file a complaint for me, which I did. The following day I received a follow up phone call on the complaint to gather further information and clarification and was told they were going to escalated the issue further along. I am still waiting to hear back from them.

The saga continues when I then connect up the Blackberry to back it up before installing OS updates. The backup went fine but I can’t say the rest did. My device is currently running v4.5.0.138. In the process of updating to v4.5.0.175 one of the main application Blackberry Messenger disappeared. Details of the applications showed it installed, so I tried all the combinations of reinstalling, uninstalling, installing… with no joy. So I decided to swallow my pride and go in to see if the techs in the Verizon store could help. Well that was a waste of time, they did all the sam steps I had all ready done and then concluded that a device wipe would fix it. Well it does not. The store also has no ability to reload the OS on a Blackberry device. So I venture back home, downgrade the OS back to v4.5.0.138 and Blackberry Messenger is back and fully functional. So they failed in understanding devices they are supporting and I am just glad I was able to figure it out to get the functionality back.

So while restoring my device and poking through some deeper options, specifically: Options, Advanced, Service Book I found Bing and Slacker Radio. So I figured what they heck, can’t hurt to delete them, the worst that happens is I have to restore like I just finished doing after the Messenger fiasco. I am glad to say that did the trick, no more application shortcuts on the device.

I have been so pissed through this process that I have been researching a switch of the Verizon network. The devices and networks out there that have my interest are the iPhone, Blackberry (not on Verizon) and the Google Nexus One.

The story is not finished yet, but I am waiting to hear back from them on their next move.

I leave this post with a word from our Lord.

And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns. Philippians 1:6

Be Blessed
dl

I had the wonderful pleasure of joining with Third Place Consulting in helping to open up a cafe.  It was an amazing time of ministry, leadership and training.  As a side note… remember “ceramic works far better than paper when drinking coffee in the shower”.

From a local ministry perspective, this past Easter was the first since I have been full time at Messiah, that is a learning experience of really understanding what work / life balance is.  For those that have never been in employed full time ministry with at church, there as you would guess are two times that the work load goes up: Christmas and Easter.  This does not discount any and all of the other worship services that happen throughout the year, but those are two key opportunities to reach out and there is extra effort placed in those times.  If for some in America that are CEO Christitan (Christmas and Easter Only) than that is a key and curcial time to pour the love and salvation message into everyone that enters in either physically or virtually.

Virtually, what the heck do I mean by that?  One of the first items that we took on at Messiah was to launch a live streaming worship experience.  Messiah currently offers a live streaming worship service every Sunday at 9:30 eastern time.  We have blown the doors of the church and said that no matter where you are in the world, if you would like to worship with this faith family, then join us in worship online and give glory and honor to Jesus just like if you were sitting in the physical worship center.  Some time has passed now and we have most of the bgs worked out, a few more to go.  I am so honored to be a part of getting it off the ground and seeing it start to take a footing.  I was amazing the first time that we were able to witness someone through this streaming service give their life to Christ, that makes all the hours worth it.  All honor to Jesus for a transformed life and I am humbled to be a part in it.  If you would care to join it you can find it at Messiah On Demand.

journeys is still rockin’ away and I continue to see it as a valuable ministry tool to connect people, develop leaders and fund causes.  They just posted a brief on the latest cause the help to fund… nothing but life transformation and life saving.

Right now I am jacked to see spring is here and to enjoy being outside with my family.  Our oldest is starting soccer this year and she could not be happier.  Our youngest is still pushing in teeth, so that is a bit rough, but is all over the place and is bundle of joy and love.  My lovely wife is doing well, she is an amazing woman of God, awesome wife and unbelievable mother.  She is getting close to finishing up a large project at work and balances it all so well.  I can’t wait for the backpacking trips this season… I totally missed out last year with the bad knee.

God Bless,
dl

At first I thought the solution to this would be to first go to Ustream, get logged in and then return to the live streaming page.  This did not yield any change in the results.  Futher searching through the help and forums from Ustream did not reveal anything further to the solution.  I was finally albe to connect with someone on the Ustream live help chat and obtain the solution.  So instead of keeping this nugget of knowledge to myself I am sharing it with you all.

There are one solution that will help with any guest as well as guest that are registered users on Ustream.

• For those guest that desire to change thier assigned name from “ustream-12345″ to soemthing more understandable they simply type in the chat box:
  /nick MyName
  This will change the “ustream-12345″ to “MyName-12345″
• For guest that desire to use their full Ustream username then the also have to supply their Ustream password:
  /nick UstreamUsername:UstreamPassword
  This will change their nick to their Ustream one for the chat.

Solution accomplished for those that are using a Ustream embedded chat outside of the original Ustream show page.