More4me2do

The anniversary of a tragic death is a welcome opportunity for a shepherding visit. So I would look at this event more like an opportunity to comfort one another rather than an anniversary memorial. One of the videos we have showes an older brother comforting a younger one who had lost his wife. After it concluded, the older brother made a note to call the younger brother next year before that date and comfort him again.

@carlos Thanks for your take on the different Territory management programs. I looked at the NWS implementation and have to agree that it more or less is integrated because there has to be done something regarding territories. We used the Territory Assistant program because it was the most friendly and efficient one in combination with the Android program Ministry Assistant. You received a QR code, then imported it into Ministry assistant and if the territory servant has done his job, you had the map, plus all the streets with house numbers imported. When doing in person ministry and you wanted to assign a portion to a different group, you selected a street or two and exported it as importable data and send it via WhatsApp to a person that runs Android and Ministry Assistant. They now import the assigned portion of the territory and work it. You mark each house by what resulted when worked. When finished you export the worked portion of the territory as importable data and return it to the person holding the territory. That person then imports it and Ministry Assistant will update the territory with the changes. The person that had worked the assigned portion then deletes it from his device and is prompted if he wants to save the marked Return Visits. Job done. Most efficient and thorough coverage of an assigned territory. Ministry Assistant will also work with Territory Helper but that one requires a fee while Territory Assistant is relying on donations. The ONLY drawback is, Ministry Assistant is only available for Android, nothing as easy, straight forward and a pioneer's dream is available in the Apple world. So, the NWS feature is basically just keeping track of checking out and in territories, but the actual interface with working a territory needs to have the ability to enter data from ones device so that RVs and other data can be saved and worked with on the individual and territory servant level.

The changes in reporting will be difficult for the coders. The hours field should ONLY allow for whole number entries as per instructions in the letter to BofE, then there needs to be a checkbox "shared in any form of the ministry during the month", plus in addition you have a numbers field for different Bible Studies, those two fields could remain the same while removing placements, videos and RVs. As far as the comments field it is a plain text entry field and let the secretary transfer it for those who need it. Next when submitting the report from the NWP app there has to be an error check on the hours field and the checkbox "shared in any form of the ministry during the month". How that transfers into the congregation database and now determines irregularity or being inactive is a lot of work for the programmers. Looks like for a while it will be old school for reporting before any transfer and electronic automation is working.

Found the first bug for me when entering the Field Service report. I use Ministry Assistant on Android. It used to work flawless when using the share feature in Ministry Assistant and then selecting NW Publisher. It populated the different fields and all I had to do now was submit. Voila done with the report. Now, Huston we have a problem. When using the same method it populates the first two fields Placements and Videos shown, but on the Hours field it produces a Format Error and aborts. Have to manually now add the Hours, RVs and Studies and then submit the report. Any chance for someone to look at why in a transfer of the monthly report from Ministry Assistant to NW Publisher it produces an error.

To make your presentation to the BofE it really helps to have someone on the body that is tech savvy. Also if you know something about their tasks that helps. Ask the CLM overseer, the Secretary and the Service Overseer plus Talk coordinator, what are their biggest problems and what do they wish they would like to see a program do for them. The easiest to convince are the CLM overseer, Secretary and Talk coordinator. Report collecting and reminders are done by the NWP app and it simplified their jobs. Do a marketing pitch it works for multi billion dollar companies it worked for hundreds of BofEs in the country.

How do you go back in KHS unless you don't update and then go to their site download and save the new version. Now you have saved older version and new version. That is a hassle since I expected that on the site they would list older versions and they don't. I asked their tech support to send me the previous version and their answer was "We do not keep older versions". So I learned I will NEVER update when the program asks for it. Save the version and if it doesn't work install the previous version that was saved on my HDD. Most software vendors I deal with have a separate download section listing versions for different OSs and older versions. Looks like both NWS and KHS do not use such method. It would help their tech support if those with good IT knowledge would be able to narrow down their problem so that they can correct it.

As already mentioned you probably have chosen the worst time for migration. The brothers running NWS will give 1st priority to any problems with the new major release and then to problems with individual users installations. But you have this forum while KHS does not have anything like this. KHS released a minor update and final over the last week and 4 releases later TODAY it got fixed. So do what our convention theme says plus it is always a good idea to run a staged server / installation and a live server / installation. if the staged (new/trial) version doesn't work you don't change the working live version. I ran two different software packages in parallel KHS and NWS that way I am never in the situation of being stuck with nowhere to go.

KHS seems for me to be toast as their support at best is dismal. Been using it for 3 years for scheduling Public Talks about a week ago there was an update to version 18.20 and after the update it no longer opens a brief pop up with the message "Do cancel" appears. Installed it on a different PC with the same software setup, same problem. Fortunately I had synched the KHS data with NWS and it looks like I will from now on do all the scheduling in NWS as the support for over week now from the KHS tech support has been two emails with duplicate copy past instructions that don't work. What version of KHS are you running? I installed an old 2022 version and it works including the restoring the backups. Their practice of handling their releases is juvenile as I asked for a copy of the previous version and they said they don't keep those versions. That questions their release and build structure. How they can entrust congregational scheduling to such procedures is terrible.

Still using the KHS software for Public Talk scheduling as a backup for the NW Scheduler app. Today I received a request for an update when starting KHS and followed through with that as I have usually done. However after the update completed the software would not start and a brief pop up window appeared in the top right corner saying "Do Canceled". Very weird as this is the first problem I experienced in a fre years with the software. Sent a message to their support email address, but IIRC they are not very swift on replies as I read somewhere in the forum here. Weird thing is I installed a 2022 version on a similar PC with the same software versions and it installed correctly as well as imported the backup file but then produced an error when clicking on the public talk icon and it installed the 18.20.1 version after which I am back in the same situation of KHS not starting and displaying the pop up message.

We found out that even though publishers have the app they don't consult it for their duties like cleaning and some even for their assignments. There is a reminder popping up to submit your report but probably some ignore it. It is usually the same usual suspects being late with their reports. Consider holding a local needs on how to get the max benefit from the NWP app.

Aja, your assumption would work in the New World put not in the one we live in. You have no idea how often Talk Coordinators change or how often I get calls for last minute speaking assignments for any number of reasons some legitimate and sad, and others because of negligence by the previous talk coordinator. Real life events, like COVID, have a way of making it difficult for presenting a problem free weekend meeting. Sometimes I am wondering if the brothers handling public talk assignments are not realizing how serious their responsibility is. Basically they are responsible for the entire congregation's theocratic education of 30 minutes of the weekly 3 hour allocated program. On the other hand, by now I know the talk coordinators in a few congregations that are very diligently discharging their responsibilities and I don't have to worry about a speaker from their congregation not showing up. The software is ONLY as good as the ones using it. Old IT phrase GIGO (Garbage In Garbage Out) and this does not yet include being free of "Error is between Keyboard and Chair"

Talk Coordination for me is still easier to handle in KHS and I do all my pre-planning and scheduling in KHS and than update in NWS the Local and Away speaker/talk assignments. This way I get the benefits of the more familiar way of handling the talk coordination in KHS and the congregation gets the benefit of the NWP scheduling. In addition I don't have to contact our outgoing speakers reminding them and passing on contact information a plus for NWS. The other day I wanted to find out who had given a particular talk in 2020 plus what the CO public talks were for the past 3 years and in KHS it was intuitive plus took only seconds. Best of both worlds.

Appreciate all the input and I agree that it is easy in NWS, to analyze them, to keep track of the territories and the signing in and out of them. However it still basically an image or a PDF document, we have to migrate to a format that allows to interact with what is on the territory rather then shuffling cards and that at the moment only Territory Helper does and in a few months hopefully Territory Assistant. Really not willing to spend time and effort on a solution that just moves images and documents as that is build into NWS / NWP.

Thank you very much that answers my question, in other words NWS is not very useful especially when one uses an app like Ministry Assistant. Checking in and out is easy to implement, presenting the publishers with DNCs and streets and house numbers in an electronic format is what is needed today. Just to give anyone an idea of how easy the working of a territory is using the ministry assistant. When I want to assign streets from my territory to others in the group I select the streets/houses and export it as importable data. Then send the file using WhatsApp to a person in the group that also has the Ministry Assistant and they import it now. As they work it they can mark the houses according to the results encountered and there are many to choose from. When finished they export the assigned streets as importable data and send it back to the territory holder, who then imports it and it syncs and updates his territory to reflect the latest status of what has been worked and what the results were. Every NH will be updated by a number if it is a 2nd time the NH that was worked than a little 2 will appear next to it if it is the first time a little 1 appears. The person that received the territory portion will than delete it with the check box ticked "Keep Interested Persons". Once completed before the territory holder checks the territory back in, he now takes all the NHs and uses them for Telephone witnessing. The coverage of territories in this way is much more thorough and enhanced now then the way we did it before the pandemic and since we live in the paperless office age lets use that also for the ministry. So for me the options are either wait for Territory Assistant to fix their QR codes and the importing of Streets with house numbers into Ministry Assistant or switch to Territory Helper and shell out funds to cover the subscription fee.

We have been using Territory Assistant for some time but ever since their data breach they are swamped with work and a shortage of staff and are trying hard to get back to the features that were working at some time and I appreciate their efforts. What I am missing most is the use of the QR Codes and the importing of the territory into the Ministry Assistant app. That according to support is a Priority but months away. My question is has anyone dabbled into NWS and if it does something similar in their organization of territories beyond just checking it in and out and analyzing them? The creation of images or PDF representations of territories still requires after that hand entry into service apps. I am looking for importing of territories into service apps in whatever format is required. I presume Territory Helper does something like that but as already mentioned I am also not a friend of subscriptions don't mind donations though.

Connect your phone to your PC and then download it OR since it is only 17MB you can email it as the limit is 20MB

Just got the background of the singing at this school in Ghana. A Ghanaian sister who lives in Hamburg has two Kindergartens in Hamburg. While the shooting took place she was in Ghana and to comfort the friends, who she knows well in Hamburg, she arranged for this school in Ghana to record this song. The school is attended by orphans as well as a fair amount of witness children, and because it is so encouraging it quickly makes the rounds. This is the full version of 2:41 minutes 344051133_GhanaSchool.mp4

Out of the mouth of Babes in Ghana comes an encouragement for our brothers and sisters in Hamburg. Ghana-Kids.mp4

Having contacts to JWs in Hamburg Germany I found out on Thursday about 3:30pm EST about the shooting and started preparing for questions from interested persons. Once the news media started reporting this tragic event, I contacted all my Bible Studies and advanced RVs and shared that JW.ORG link with them, because I knew they would be asking me for my opinion. This way I calmed any concerns or anxieties they may have had, plus they also had our and the Bible's comforting viewpoint on the matter before the viewpoints of the news organizations became public.

This was posted earlier in this thread and shows how to handle if the conversation addresses the topic of gun violence. Shocking Gun Violence Worldwide—What Does the Bible Say? https://www.jw.org/en/library/series/more-topics/gun-violence-worldwide-bible-meaning-hope/ With a simple transition if the topic arises like "Is there any hope that such violence will end? What does the Bible say? Would you like to know the answer?" Job done.

Why would you want to do that, look how Jesus handled a similar situation when talking to the Samaritan woman at the well as recorded in John 4:12: "You are not greater than our forefather Jacob, who gave us the well and who together with his sons and his cattle drank out of it, are you?” The woman asks Jesus "You are not greater than our forefather Jacob, who gave us the well?". That was a wrong and incorrect statement. Samaritans, despite their claims, didn’t descend from Jacob but from some pagan peoples the Assyrians brought into the area. How did Jesus handle that situation? Verse 13 shows that Jesus didn't correct her with the true facts. He just went on with his topic namely, the idea of water that imparts everlasting life. We likewise should follow Jesus' example when it comes to incorrect and biased statements rather then correcting people point them to the only solution of today's ills namely the kingdom of god.

You incorrectly assumed that the amount of notifications were a nuisance to me, wrong. Here is my concern from Phil 4:8 Finally, brothers, whatever things are true, whatever things are of serious concern, whatever things are righteous, whatever things are chaste, whatever things are lovable, whatever things are well-spoken-of, whatever things are virtuous, and whatever things are praiseworthy, continue considering these things. The shooting is true and of serious concern but it is done with, it is over and nothing more we can do about it at this time. However what of this tragedy is righteous, chaste, lovable, well spoken of, virtuous and praiseworthy absolutely nothing and now the later part of the verse comes into play, should we continue considering these things. For me NO, it has now reached the point where it enters the realm of all kinds of speculations like the motive or indulging into details. In the beginning there were some excellent comments here citing articles from JW.ORG on how to explain the shooting to our students and interested persons, but now let the healing and grieving set in without reliving the events with a minute by minute event countdown.

Can we Please give this topic a Rest! It doesn't help anyone to constantly be reminded of the atrocities that were committed in a Kingdom Hall were true worship took place. In addition Please DO NOT speculate on the motive of the shooter it serves no ones interest and only will disturb our peace.

The Winterhude congregation where the shooting took place is tied in to the Gilead Graduation program.

Timeline of shooting at Jehovah's Witnesses hall in Germany https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/crime/timeline-of-shooting-at-jehovah-s-witnesses-hall-in-germany/ar-AA18sWoM