Building a new website at ParraPals

Our blogger, John Lee has kindly allowed me to be a contributor to the blog he has been publishing for the club over the past few months.  I do hope I live up to his high standards.

I thought I'd fill you in about our new website, which looks quite different from the "old" one, which I designed in 2007.  It was looking a bit dated and no longer competitive in the annual ASCCA competition.

So at the left, you will see the new look.  It is based on the open source technology www.wordpress.org, which is the most popular blogging application (apart from Google's Blogger the other popular alternative).  In fact WordPress is now one of the most popular website building frameworks, given the power of its added value.  Expert designers are building a wide range of themes and "plug-ins" for WordPress.  These save "not so savvy" website builders a lot of work, learning sophisticated code to create website facilities that leave us saying "how did they do that?"

This blog - A volunteer at Parramatta Computer Pals - is based on a single page and many posts.  It is built with the Google tool Blogger, which we sometimes teach at ParraPals.  A Wordpress blog is generally set up much the same.

But Wordpress is more than a blogging format, it also has the capability to create a web-based Content Management System (or CMS).  When used as a powerful website, Wordpress generally has many pages as well as posts or articles.  

It also offers widgets which display common features such as a Search window, Calendar, Events management, Categories and Tags which display every post classified in a particular category or topic. You can see how I have arranged these widgets on each main page.  I have not used Widgets on sub-pages, because I preferred to have a one column layout for much of the content.  You can see some "widgets" on the right.

As well as widgets, Wordpress has many free or commercial "themes" to choose from, and it is reasonably easy to choose colours and styles (within limits unless one is very technically competent).  WordPress makes it relatively easy for a computer savvy but not so savvy website builder to create a decent website.  It certainly helps to know various web design languages like "HTML" or "CSS" but not so necessary to know PHP or other web languages in detail.

On our website, you can type in any word you like and the CMS will search all pages and posts to find relevant material and list them.  You can then click on any one of these pages and posts you choose. Sometimes a search word or phrase eg "president" or "course timetable" will bring up a number of pages, so you might have to be more specific eg "Term 4 timetable".

This particular illustration of the Home page brings up a photo of last year's Christmas party.  But don't expect that to happen all the time.  The website will display a variety of header photos randomly. 

The website uses the same URL (web address) as the former website - www.parramattacps.org.au but it automatically transfers to the /wp folder behind the scenes.

Some of the most valuable information is hidden behind the Password Protected link.  All financial members are eligible for registration with a user name and password to see this section.  So please email me at webmaster@parramattacps.org.au and ask to be registered.  Hopefully all new members will be shown how to do this as soon as they are introduced to website and email functions.

So give it a go. Explore, see what's missing and let me know.

PHOTOBOOK INDEXING & CLOUD COMPUTING WITH GOOGLE TOOLS)

A busy day doing computerpals stuff, first I visited our Secretary (who knows the name of every member!) to get names of members who appear in my recent photobook.

  Because the book is a small history of our Club, I decided to name those members shown in the book. Orders have been received for 14 re-prints of the photobook.

 Thanks Margaret for your help, you are a wonderful Club secretary who is so knowledgeable and involved with our Club and its members.


After leaving Margaret, I had a quick lunch and then drove into Parramatta for Trainer Bing's one-day Cloud Computing using Google Tools course. Although the club uses Google Drive for our course timetables, waiting list, meeting agenda, etc, I signed up for Bing's course to learn the its finer points.

There were four of us students, Peter, George, Ray (pictured with Bing) and myself.

Our two hour course went fast, and by the end we were able to use Google Drive to store and share documents, pictures, etc...and to use Google Web apps to create and edit Word processing files.

One of the benefits of using Drive is that you are able to access your stored items anywhere in the world, on your own computer,laptop, tablet or smart phone... and also on any other computer,etc simply by being online and signing into your Google account. Google provides 15gb free storage for all Google devices, including Drive.

Next week I'll be doing another cloud computing course, Dropbox with Deborah......................

FIELD TRIP TO MUSEUM OF SYDNEY & CUSTOMS HOUSE - 30 August 2013

Caught the train into Parramatta early today, boarded Parramatta's Free Bus to Parramatta River Jetty.......

.... and with other members of our Club boarded the Rivercat.

Cruised down narrow Parramatta River to Rydalmere where more club members boarded. Then a relaxing cruise non-stop to Circular Quay. The sun was out, it was a warm 26c, and the River was sparkling.



                                                     We met up with other Club members at the Quay,

and walked up Phillip Street to the Museum of Sydney for our booked tour.

The modern Museum is on the site of one of Australia's most important places, the first Government House, the home and office of Governor Arthur Phillip, built in 1788.

We entered the Museum and were greeted by our two guides, who talked about the origins of the site and the museum, before we split into two groups.

This is our guide, Niomi who showed us the outlines of the original Government House.

Niomi then took us into the Museum to view models of the First Fleet ships and peer at the archaeological remains of first Government House and the objects uncovered by a number of digs on the site.

At the end of the tour, I spoke to Niomi about a nearby building, Transport House, where I started work in 1949 for the Department of Road Transport and Tramways. The building is now privately owned has been restored, and the original Registration Hall is now open office space, with the Mezzanine above.

The building was constructed in 1937 and still has the original wooden escalator, that is the oldest in Sydney.

It is a wonderful building. It is art deco influences inside and the exterior is an impression of authority.
                                             

 Niomi was intrigued as she had often walked past this front door of the building and had wondered about its origins. She was also interested in what we staff saw when looking into the nearby windows of the adjacent police station.

                                                                                          
At the end of the tour, we walked to the nearby AMP Building......

....... for lunch in the food court.

After lunch we visited nearby Customs House for a quick visit................

It has relaxing lounges,  with newspaper and magazines on hand, a number of bars and restaurants, as well as the Customs House Library, with reading rooms overlooking Circular Quay.

Then it was time to board the Rivercat again for our trip back up the river and home.

Many thanks to our Club President Deborah for organising the day out.....the weather was perfect and Circular Quay and Sydney Harbour is always a wonderful place to be, especially with fellow club members....................

WE ATTEND PARRAMATTA ClubGRANTS PRESENTATION

Our club President Deborah and Treasurer John L  attended the ClubGRANTS Presentation Ceremony at Parramatta Leagues Club today,,,,,

....to receive our Certificate and $5,820 Grant for eight of our Trainers to attend an ICE Video Making Workshop, and to purchase Apple Mac software.

This project received funding from Parramatta Leagues Club through the Parramatta ClubGRANTS scheme, and will be put to good use by our Club. Thanks Parra Leagues!

SKYDRIVE COURSE - 26 August 2013

This afternoon I attended the "Cloud computing using SkyDrive" 2 hour Short Course with three other member students.

Our Trainer was Bing, pictured here showing a student an interesting aspect of SkyDrive.

Bing explained that Cloud Computing is actually "The Internet". Its a network of myriads of computers all over the World, and uses the internet to store data.

By storing data in the Cloud, you can reduce your need for a large hard drive on your own computer.
But, a disadvantage of using the Cloud is that you have to have access to the internet.


So, we signed up for Microsoft's   @outlook.com   account and opened the SkyDrive homepage. SkyDrive provides 7gb of free storage in the Cloud.

I had opened SkyDrive on the club computer and also my Android tablet. I uploaded a photo into SkyDrive on the computer and then opened SkyDrive on the tablet-the photo was there, both were synchronised.

Sharing photographs via SkyDrive is simple. Just upload photos/videos to a folder in SkyDrive and share by email with a link that will take the recipient directly to the folder in SkyDrive, and from there they can view or download any to their own computer. There is no need for the recipient to join SkyDrive.....and with the 7gb available, large photographs and videos can easily be shared.

Bing's SkyDrive Short Course is an excellent way to learn how to synchronise and share photos/videos.........so talk to Trainer Bing at the next members meeting.

TRAINERS MEET TO SET COURSES IN TERM 4 2013

 Nineteen trainers and assistant trainers met to decide which courses are to be offered to members in Term 4.

 Members and prospective members are asking questions on the best tablet to buy, how do I set my tablet up, and what are apps? So, there will be an emphasis on tablets and iPads in Term 4 commencing in October.

It was decided to do our usual presentations at our next Open Day.
In addition, an Information Session will be held during the term, and there will also be two formal courses for iPads and Android tablets.


Our President Deborah announced that we have been successful with our "ClubsGRANT" funding application and now ParraPals will nominate 8 of our trainers to undertake a 10 week course in Video Making.
In 2014 ParraPals will offer a video making course for members.This project received funding from Parramatta Leagues Club through the Parramatta ClubGRANTS Scheme.

New Assistant Trainer Christina Dunn was welcomed to her first Trainer's meeting.

Christina will assist Trainer Dawne Zoltz at the Windows 7 Beginners Course on Mondays from 14th October for five weeks.

MEMBERS' MEETING - AUGUST 2013

Boy, am I glad that meeting is over!

I organised the guest speaker for the meeting, Marti from photobooksus.com.au to do a Skype live presentation about making a photobook using his company's software, that can be installed on your computer.

Despite three months planning and numerous online trials - of vision, sound and Marti taking control of my computer- between myself, Jon Bayley and Marti everything did not go to plan on the day!

 Eventually Jon got vision projected onto the screen and Marti took control of my laptop using Team Viewer that he then  used  to go through the steps in making a photobook.

At the end, Marti's project, using photos from our Club, was uploaded to his Melbourne office for printing, and..........

......suddenly Postman John Hain came running into the meeting, blowing his whiste to deliver the completed photobook to me by special delivery!

A completed 46 page, soft cover A4 photobook of our club's events in 2013.

On behalf of photobooksRus, Marti announced a special for our members, a similar 46 page photobook that retails for $46, on special at $21 delivered...with 3 months to complete the book.

Special thanks to Marti for his presentation, and thanks also to Jon for his valuable help and assistance and to John Hain for his special delivery.....

Four members placed orders on the spot for a copy of my Parramatta Computer Pals 2013 photobook, so see me if you would also like to order a copy.

Next was a surprise birthday cake
for our popular President Deborah 

Happy Birthday Deborah.......................