Tag Archives: education

WebSmart TV

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Websmart TV

WebSmart TV - the basics of the web in about a minute.

Are you a regular person who is trying to make sense of all the new terms you hear being tossed around in conversations and in written messages such as: tweets, RSS, web 2.0, friend (used as a noun), blog, and many others? Does it make your brain hurt to think of figuring it all out? Well, Headstand Media has a new tool made to serve you! It’s called WebSmart TV and you can visit it online at http://websmart.tv

What is WebSmart TV?

Headstand Media (the Chicago web design company I founded in 2007) noticed a need in the marketplace for a resource that normal people (like you) could access to educate themselves about the web 2.0 world we now live in. Rather than provide a lot of long-winded, high fog-level technical articles (which you can certainly get elsewhere), we decided to create a video blog (vlog) of short one-minute videos that each explain one aspect of the web 2.0 world, in plain everyday language. Simply put, WebSmart TV offers the basics of the web in about a minute.

Who is WebSmart TV?

The Headstand Media team writes, acts and produces these videos ourselves using our own time, talents and “prosumer” level equipment. Taylor Birkey writes our scripts. Benjamin Nelson is our on-camera talent. Matt Ritsman does all the audio and video recording and production. Kyle Williams helps us get the site optimized for search engines and social media. We all contributed to the design of the site, but it was mostly Benjamin’s idea. We believe that if we can do this, then anyone can do it… including our clients!

So, I encourage you to check out the new site. We have launched it with 5 videos covering:

There is also a video explaining “What is WebSmart TV?” We plan to add a new video every week!

We’ve provided many ways for you to stay connected with WebSmart TV through: Twitter, Facebook, RSS feeds and our YouTube channel. If you like what you see, you can easily share the links with your friends and associates, and spread the word about this educational resource.

A Time for Everything

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Today is a time to celebrate and a time to mourn.

There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven:

a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,

a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,

a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,

a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain,

a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,

a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,

a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace.

Ecclesiastes 3: 1-8

These words have taken on new meaning this past week. No sooner had I witnessed my father pass away in a hospital room, and spent a day with my Mom and brother making all the funeral arrangements, than I drove with friends and family to Pennsylvania for the weekend for my son’s graduation at Grove City College. I was drawn to this passage as I prepared for a short time of family worship Sunday morning before we headed back to Chicago. It has been quite a juxtaposition to say the least.

I’m very proud of Marshall and his accomplishments, as I am of each of my children. Marshall has excelled academically, graduating with two degrees from Grove City College: a Bachelor of Arts in Spanish, and a Bachelor of Science in Business Economics… both with highest honors, summa cum laude. He was nominated to be “senior man of the year” (and made it to the top 10) by his classmates, and received several scholarships and special recognitions. He served in the worship and music ministry of a small church near campus, and was a leader in his fraternity… Beta Sigma. He has made some deep friendships with some really great guys and gals we have come to know and love as well.

Marshall is home now for a few weeks, then heads off to Washington D.C., to work for a year at the Charles G. Koch Charitable Foundation. Then he heads somewhere (yet to be determined) overseas to get his Masters in Economic Development, the result of a scholarship from Rotary International.

We celebrate all of this and at the same time mourn the loss of Dad, who would have loved to watch Marshall’s graduation, and would be very proud of his grandson. While we celebrate life, we also face the visitation, funeral and burial services for Dad today and tomorrow.

There really is a time for everything.