Masonic Tech: Skype

Yesterday, I was presented with a pleasant surprise. As I was wrapping up my day's work, I was instant messaged by Brother Simon R. LaPlace, Right Worshipful Grand Junior Deacon of the Most Worshipful Grand Lodge of Connecticut. R:.W:. Brother Simon and I have chatted from time to time via the tangled web of electronic tubes that connect these mechanical thinking machines. I consider him to be the premier techno-enlightened grand lodge officer and most of our conversations have focused on new technology and how the Grand Lodge intends to use it. Readers of the Movable Jewel may remember Brother Simon from this interview, where Brother Movable Jewel and Brother Simon had a great conversation about what it's like being a Grand Lodge officer and the future of the craft.

After our typical pleasantries, R:.W:. Brother Simon asked me if I had a webcam. Luckily they come standard on all MacBook Pros, however my camera has rarely seen use except for the occasional funny faced photo or software avatar (see the right side-panel for an example). The purpose of Simon's IM session was to test drive his video-chatting capabilities. So, he had me quickly download Skype and we ventured off into the world of video conferencing.

In the past, I have used screen sharing software at work to troubleshoot and train clients with my company software. However, I have only used video-conferencing on a few occasions, but never with a Brother mason. We spent about half an hour testing the capabilities and working through some of the minor technical problems that we encountered. We then spent some time discussing Masonic Tech and how video-conferencing would help Masons.

Simon plans on inviting the Grand Master to a meeting of the legal affairs committee being held this morning in Wallingford, CT. However, he is fully aware that the Grand Master will be in Massachusetts on other fraternal business and will be unable to travel the several hours back to Grand Lodge for this committee meeting. Brother Simon then plans to surprise the Grand Master with a technical solution, using Skype to telecommute to the meeting! This could be the Grand Lodge of Connecticut's first foray into telecommuting.

As a clarification, I in no way condone using this technology as a replacement for the social or ritual aspect of Freemasonry. Webcams have no place at our Stated Communications or at our social events. Freemasonry is a personal organization and will stay this way. However, there is a lot of administrative overhead in Masonry. Brothers, especially Grand Lodge officers, have to continually go to committee meetings and planning meetings. This can be a huge burden.

Quite simply, there are two main benefits of telecommuting to certain types of Masonic meetings; time and money. First, if it takes you an hour to drive to and from a half-an-hour meeting, it's extremely inefficient. Many lodge and Grand Lodge officers encounter this problem quite frequently. Huge amounts of time are spent traveling for planning and committee meetings, which rarely require a physical presence. This is time away from family and friends. Furthermore, it's time that could be spent on more Masonry. If a brother could save two hours of traveling several times a month, that time could be spent on a plethora of other worthwhile activities, like Masonic education, communicating with other brothers, charity, blogging, etc.

This brings us to the second point; money. Transportation costs money and these prices are sky-rocketing. Freemasonry is a volunteer organization. Lodge officers and Grand Lodge officers do not get gas stipends. R:.W:. Brother Simon uses 70 gallons of gas every month on Grand Lodge activities. With gas prices at $4.50 per gallon in Connecticut, Brother Simon spends approximately $315 a month. That's almost $4000 a year, which he spends out of pocket. Now, if each of the 18 primary Grand Lodge officers in Connecticut use a comparable amount of gas, that is $72,000 a year in gas used by the primary Grand Lodge Officers. This amount does not include the District Deputies, District Grand Lecturers or Associate Grand Marshals. If we include these approximately 50 brothers at half the gas usage of the primary Grand Lodge officers, it is another $100,000 a year. Therefore, the Grand total of approximate volunteered gas costs for the entire Grand Lodge is $172,000. Wouldn't this money be better spent on our lodge buildings or our charities? Telecommuting can help limit some of this unnecessary expenditure. If these officers telecommuted to %25 of their required duties, there would be $43,000 extra for other expenses.

Video-conferencing is far from perfect. Simon and I experienced some lagging and syncing issues that we're trying to rectify with different protocols. However, for many meetings, only audio is needed, which works perfectly. Some brothers will feel uncomfortable about talking with a brother via the internet, but this discomfort quickly subsides as the user gets used to the software and experience.

Although I name Skype as the Masonic Tech in this post, this is just one of hundreds of audio and video conferencing applications available. One of the benefits of many of these pieces of software, including Skype, is that they are free. Brother Simon and I plan on trying some of the other ones for ease of use and compatibility issues. If there is one that you can recommend, please drop a comment onto this post.

I'd like to thank R:.W:. Brother Simon for his hard work with modernizing the Grand Lodge. He has been a major force for technology in Masonry, as the editor of our state-wide publication, e-forum moderator, website designer and promoter of us crazy bloggers. It's great to see a Grand Lodge officer embracing technology. Yesterday, Brother Simon told me via AIM that "we have to get everyone 'connected'." When it comes down to it, that's what Masonry is all about: connections. We connect to our family, our friends, our brothers and God. The aim of the internet is also about making connections, so Masonry should strive to continue using this valuable tool to help with bringing people together in new, interesting and efficient ways.

The Pen is Mightier than the Sword.... But not the computer!

Sorry for the delay in getting this post up and running. Things have been busy with work and life. Also, I've been living at my summer cottage, where there is no internet. I'll try in the future to be more prompt with my postings. Here we go.....

Many of my ideas for running a better lodge focuses on introducing new technologies and organizational methods to the lodge and its officers. Although all offices and positions in the lodge need updating, no officer is in greater need of a makeover than the secretary in most lodges. In many lodges, the secretary has been a fixture in the lodge for many years, if not decades. I have seen lodges whose secretary has been in this office for more years than the sitting master has been alive. This is a double-edged sword. These brothers bring a level of experience that is unparalleled within a lodge. However, for all that the typical secretary has in experience, they usually lack in dynamism.

Many lodge secretaries still use manual typewriters, abhor email and believe that the Trestleboard is the only means for mass communication. I have seen many new brothers scratch their heads in disbelief at the methods we use still for record keeping, communication and organization. I have stated in previous posts that I believe that we can adopt new methods and tactics without changing the core of masonry. This is one of those situations.

Some masons have turned to the internet to fulfill their need for brotherhood between stated communications. If you're reading this blog, then you're probably one of them. You crave knowledge and are using the tools of today to fulfill this craving. The search for knowledge and betterment is at the core of Freemasonry. Any means by which you search for these virtues are a good tool and the internet can be very useful.

So how can the internet help the lodge secretary? I'm going to name ten technologies the lodge secretary can use, however there are countless more that can be beneficial. This post will have the first five and the next five will be on the next post. Let's begin!

1. Email - This is by far the most important innovation that the internet has brought, which can help the Masonic lodge. In the past, Lodges had phone trees to help propagate important information in a manner that didn't necessitate one person calling three dozen brothers. The phone tree would work like this, the WM would call the SW, JW, Tres and Sec. These four brothers would then call four more designated brothers. Then those brothers would call four more. However, if a brother down the line couldn't be reached or had some additional piece of information important to the purpose of the call, more time would be wasted going back up the tree so the WM would know. Now, if all the officers and regulars had email, then mass communication is easy. Write one email with multiple recipients and click send. Quick and easy. Email has changed the world, now it should change our lodges. Email has many uses and I could write several posts on email with ease.
   
2. Wikis - Wikis are quick websites. In fact, wiki is the Hawaiian word for quick. These quick pages are great for collaboration. Many people can log in and make changes to it. Records of these changes are made so that a user can follow the "state" of the wiki and see what specific people changed. The added strength of wikis are that they are extremely ease to create. If you can type, you can make a wiki. The formating is either extremely easy to learn or has a WYSIWYG (What you see is what you get) interface. Wikis can be used by a lodge to collaborate on a project. The plans for the annual BBQ can be thrown onto a wiki. The list of parts for the next MM degree can be put on a wiki. The uses are endless. Here's a site that I use for my wikis, it's free and easy http://www.pbwiki.com/. There are many other wiki sites and software packages.
3. Web Calendars - This one is a no-brainer. Putting your calendar on the internet so many people can see it. Each officer in the lodge can have a calendar. The lodge can have a calendar. The fellowcraft club can have a calendar. The lodge website that my lodge has through our Grand Lodge has a calendar that syncs to the GL calendar, so that brothers from around the state can find degrees and events in one place. There are many software packages for online calendar, again most of them are free. Here are a few Google Calendar, Yahoo! Calendar or iCal.
4. Video Editing Software - Recording an important event and sharing it with brothers who were not present can be extremely important. My lodge has several presentations on Masonic topics throughout the year, but some brothers can't make it to all stated communications. Why not record the presentations and give it to the brothers on DVD? Installations, Awards Nights and Ladies Nights can be recorded and shared with brothers, friends and family. Software like iMovie and Windows Movie Maker comes bundled with home computers
5. Instant Messaging - Ever have a quick question for one of your officers? Then instant message them. Instant messaging and texting has become extremely important in todays world. It's not just for teenagers and internet romancers anymore. Many fortune 500 companies swear by it. IMing is a way to communicate with someone and not completely monopolize their time and energy. You can send a brother a question while at work and not have to worry that you are interrupting their workflow. A text message at dinnertime is far less obtrusive then a phone call. Not to mention that IMing and texting can be one-directional communication. You can send a message that does not require a response, just a note or a notification. Try doing that with the phone. Once again their are many free programs out there that are great from IMing on the net. Aim, ICQ, mIRC or Google Talk. Text messaging is primarily through your phone and has a cost associated with it, but plans are usually inexpensive.

Tune in for my next post where I will go over my next 5 technologies that can benefit the lodge and its secretary. Also be sure to leave some comments about any ideas that you have or experiences that you have felt helped or hurt your lodge.