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In this issue:
September 13, 2004
Knight Foundation Supports Project Connect's Long-Term Goals
Free Federal Workshop for Faith- & Community Based Organizations
Windows XP SP2 ... Wait for it!!
Free 10-User License to Time-Tracking Software
Verizon Tuition Assistance Program
Our Secrets for Better Computing
Cleveland Foundation Awards Info Line $28,630
The Cleveland Foundation awarded Info Line, Inc., $28,630 to fund a business plan for Project Connect, its nonprofit technology assistance program. These monies—along with $10,000 awarded from the GAR Foundation—will be used to hire nationally recognized experts to develop a business plan which will ensure that Project Connect can continue to meet the future capacity-building needs of nonprofits in Northeast Ohio.
"We are really excited about the impact this can have on our project," said Richard Stahl, President &CEO of Info Line, "especially on our ability to provide needed services to nonprofits in Cleveland and the rest of northeastern Ohio."
The planning process will begin by objectively measuring the impact Project Connect has had on the nonprofit community since its inception in 1998. It will also conduct a thorough market analysis to identify what northeast Ohio nonprofits need, what services are offered by other programs, and what needs are not being met in northeast Ohio.
Nonprofit executives who would like to be involved in this evaluation should contact Jacquie Skrzypiec, manager of Project Connect, at 330-315-1335 or .
The Cleveland Foundation is a public charity dedicated to enhancing the quality of life in Greater Cleveland. It is the oldest and second-largest community foundation in the nation. Its establishment in 1914 is cited as one of 10 events that most heavily influenced the development of the nonprofit sector in the 20th century, and it continues to be a leader in its field. The Foundation has assets of approximately $1.5 billion and awards more than $70 million in grants and low-cost loans to Cleveland-area nonprofit organizations each year. For more information, visit www.clevelandfoundation.org.
Ken Hoyt of the Akron Area YMCA is donating a Chatsworth Single Pedestal 80" Equipment Rack with 2 Shelves to the first taker. For more information, contact Ken at or 330-376-1335.
On another note, a great big thanks go to Ken and Tim Anderson of the Medina County YMCA. They donated several boxes of computer components and over a dozen computers that we will refurbish and distribute to nonprofits who can use them.
Free Workshop for Faith- & Community-Based Organizations by US Dept of Education
- Thursday, September 23, 2004 1:00PM - 4:00PM (Registration begins at 12:30PM)
- Mt. Sinai Baptist Church 7510 Woodland Avenue Cleveland, Ohio 44104 216-432-3491
As students begin the 2004-2005 school year, it is important that they have the support of local faith-based and community organizations. Parents, teachers and schools cannot do it alone - they need your help in order to ensure that no child is left behind.
Many faith-based and community organizations are already playing vital roles in lives of the youths in their communities. Many others have a desire to, but don't know what things they can do or don't have sufficient funding for their outreach activities.
In an effort to provide faith-based and community organizations with partnership ideas and technical assistance, the U.S. Department of Education Center for Faith-Based and Community Initiatives will host a free workshop in Cleveland on September 23rd.
This workshop is free, but pre-registration is required. To register, visit http://www.magnetmail.net/images/clients/Aspen/attach/cleveland.doc. Complete the form and fax it to 202-208-1689. If you are not able to download the form, please call 202-219-1746 or 1-800-USA-LEARN to have a form faxed to you.
Experts Agree: Postpone Updating to Windows XP Service Pack 2!!
Microsoft has released the Service Pack 2 upgrade to Windows XP, but IT professionals throughout the country are warning users NOT to download it yet!
The most disturbing news comes from www.eweek.com, which reports: "In addition, Microsoft last week published a list of approximately 50 applications—including some of its own—that may not work properly with SP2 without users performing manual modifications. The list includes Web servers, remote desktops, file-sharing applications, FTP clients, multimedia streaming software, e-mail notifications, systems management applications and games." In addition, there are lots of security holes that open the new system up to malicious users.
We recommend caution. Automatic updates are currently disabled, but it is still possible to download the SP2 update ... but it's a good idea to wait! Microsoft will begin pushing SP2 to all Windows XP and Windows XP Service Pack 1 customers automatically via Windows Update and Automatic Update as of April 12, 2005. Hopefully, all those bugs and errors will be fixed by then.
OANO To Host Open House and Networking Reception on September 23 in Columbus
100 East Broad Street (Bank One Building)
24th Floor Columbus
Time: 4:30 p.m. until 7:00 p.m.
On behalf of OANO's board of directors and staff, you are cordially invited to attend OANO's open house and networking reception to celebrate the opening of OANO's new offices in downtown Columbus. Join nonprofit executives, funders, vendors, and consultants as we recognize the growth and development of Ohio's largest nonprofit organization dedicated exclusively to serving the needs of the nonprofit community. Hors d'oeurvres and other refreshments will be served.
To RSVP call: 614-280-0233 or e-mail: . RSVP by September 17. Questions? Call: 614-280-0233
Free Fundraising Handbook Available Online
The George Washington University's Institute for Politics, Democracy and the Internet is offering a free handbook for political candidates and nonprofit organizations on how to recruit donors and raise money online. The Political Consultant's Online Fundraising Primer shows fundraisers how to take strategies from presidential online fundraising campaigns and apply them to their own organizations.
The handbook contains chapters on privacy, online events, web videos, viral marketing and hardware/software needs. Some of the recommendations from the online document include:
- The best days of the week, and times of the day, to send out online solicitations.
- How to make sure your fundraising appeal gets opened.
- How to write an e-mail solicitation, and how it differs from direct mail.
- How to integrate your online fundraising with your off-line operation.
The Political Consultant's Online Fundraising Primer is published by the institute at the George Washington University Graduate School of Political Management. The 84-page primer is available free of charge in PDF format by visiting http://www.ipdi.org/UploadedFiles/of.pdf.
Clockware Donates Free Software to Nonprofits
Project Connect does not endorse any company or software. We simply provide information as a public service.
Clockware, a leader in timesheet and time tracking systems, has announced its new program for nonprofit and educational organizations: Clockware Cares. The program donates up to 10 user licenses of its web-based time tracking software to qualified nonprofit and educational organizations.
The Clockware timesheet and time tracking software can be used for:
- Tracking the time, work and progress of nonprofit and educational organization activities supported by various grants or funding sources.
- An activity and project management system compatible with accounting and other key in-house systems.
- Reporting and tracking of project details to ensure easier and more efficient project management.
Clockware CEO Ron Kfoury stated, "I am proud to announce Clockware Cares that allows small nonprofits, or departments of nonprofits to automate time and work tracking for free." Nonprofit and educational organizations will be accepted automatically into the program if they are a member of a Clockware Cares Partner Organization, or they can apply directly to Clockware Cares. Kfoury continued, "One of the key needs of nonprofits and educational organizations is to track their work on various grants and funding sources. Clockware’s leading time and work tracking software can be configured easily to track time and work on grants as well as providing a comprehensive yet easy to use project management tool."
For more information, visit www.clockware.com or click here to go directly to the announcement.
Are you getting the best deals for your technology dollar?
Don't buy anything technology-related until you've visited these three websites first!! They offer significant discounts for nonprofits with Microsoft, Dell, CDW, Adobe, and more!
Knight Foundation Awards $60,000 Over 3 Years to Project Connect
The Knight Foundation granted Project Connect $20,000 of support for 3 years in order to meet a GAR Challenge Grant, strengthen the program’s infrastructure, conduct a formal project evaluation, develop a business/sustainability plan, and keep service fees affordable for participating nonprofits.
With this funding, Project Connect will work toward realizing its long-term vision:
- Project Connect will support the growth of a stronger, more efficient nonprofit community … which will in turn enhance the impact their services have on clients in need … by focusing on how technology and connectivity can improve and enhance business operations, service delivery, and mission fulfillment.
- Nonprofits implementing community-wide projects will be more successful because of technical assistance from Project Connect in planning, obtaining, and utilizing technology.
- Collaborations with local, regional, and national organizations will maximize the nonprofit community’s ability to fulfill its mission through the sharing of resources, ideas, practices, procedures, etc.
- Increased job skills of nonprofit staff will improve employment opportunities and economic development.
- The quality of life for people in need in our community will be improved because the nonprofits who help them will be more efficient and effective.
The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation was established in 1950 as a private foundation independent of the Knight brothers' newspaper enterprises. It is dedicated to furthering their ideals of service to community, to the highest standards of journalistic excellence and to the defense of a free press.
Amy's PC TIP:
Reduce Stress with Keyboard Shortcuts
Does it ever seem like having to stop and grab the mouse is an interruption in your work flow? Do you find your wrist is tired after working at the computer for a while? The mouse is a great tool for pointing and clicking, but repetitive use can be hard on your wrists, and if you're using a laptop that has one of those little buttons in the middle of the keyboard, or the irritating glide pad, you're probably feeling stressed in more than just your wrist!
Keyboard shortcuts can save you time and tension by reducing the number of times you have to reach for the mouse. You've probably discovered some of these already yourself, but here's a quick handful of shortcuts (courtesy PC World magazine) that will make your life easier.
If you would like an easy-print file with this table so you can share with others, send us an email at and we'll forward it to you.
| Shortcut | Task/Usage |
| Alt+Tab | Toggles between open applications. Hold down the Alt key and press the Tab key – a little box will pop up in the center of your screen displaying an icon for each open application. Press Tab repeatedly until you have the application you want selected, then release both keys. |
| ÿ (Windows key) + D | Minimizes all open windows and displays the Desktop. |
|
ÿ (Windows key) + E |
Opens My Computer. |
|
Shift + F10
|
Brings up the Context Menu, instead of right-clicking on an object. |
|
ÿ (Windows key) + U [Windows XP only]
|
Brings up the shutdown menu (Windows XP only) – press U again to select “Turn off computer”, S to enter Standby mode, or R to restart the computer. |
| Ctrl+O |
Open a document from within an application, such as Microsoft Word. |
| Ctrl+N |
Opens a new document (from within an application), or a new Microsoft Internet Explorer window. |
| Ctrl+S |
Saves your work in a document or spreadsheet. |
| Ctrl+P |
Opens the Print dialog box. |
| Ctrl+W or Ctrl+F4 |
Closes an open document. Alt+F4 closes the entire application. |
|
Ctrl+Home
|
Jumps to the beginning of the open document or spreadsheet. Ctrl+End takes you to the bottom. Use Ctrl and the arrow keys (up, down, left, right) to hop around. |
|
Ctrl+X, Ctrl+C, Ctrl+V |
Cut, copy and paste, respectively. |
| Alt |
Toggles the Menu bar. Press Alt then the underlined letter of a menu item (i.e. Alt, F) to expand that menu. (You do not need to hold the Alt key down the whole time.) If you are using personalized menus, where some commands are hidden until you select the double arrow, press Ctrl and the down arrow to expand the menu. |
|
Ctrl+D [Internet Explorer only] |
Add the current webpage to your Favorites list. |
|
Alt+Left Arrow, Alt+Right Arrow [Internet Explorer only] |
Move back or forward through previously viewed webpages. |
|
Alt+Home [Internet Explorer only] |
Return to your home page. |
|
F5 or Ctrl+F5 [Internet Explorer only] |
Refresh the page you are viewing. |
There are dozens of other shortcuts available in your applications. In Microsoft applications, many of these are listed on the menu next to the command. Try a few and see how easy they are - your wrists will thank you!
Verizon Revises Tuition Assistance Program ... Get it While You Can!
Verizon is continuing to offer one eTraining grant per year to nonprofit organizations interested in technology training.
To apply for this tuition assistance, visit infolineinc.org/connect/verizon.htm. If you have any questions, please call us at 330-315-1335 or e-mail .
Register for Upcoming Classes
Attend by applying to the Verizon Foundation:
infolineinc.org/connect/verizon.htm
Join us this summer for a refresher course, or learn something entirely new! Call 330-315-1335 or e-mail to register or receive a copy of our summer schedule. Cost is $40 per person for staff and volunteers of member organizations;$60 per person for staff and volunteers of non-member organizations.
Don't know whether your organization is a member? Visit our members page to find out: Project Connect Members
Not a member? Join Project Connect today and save! Visit infolineinc.org/connect.htm for more info.
Microsoft Word
 |
Document Basics 9/16/04 - 9:00 AM - 12:00 Noon |
|
Tables, Merges & Macros 9/23/04 - 9:00 AM - 12:00 Noon |
|
Forms & Advanced Tools 9/30/04 - 9:00 AM - 12:00 Noon |
|
Graphics & Brochures 10/7/04 - 9:00 AM - 12:00 Noon |
|
Newsletters 10/14/04 - 9:00 AM - 12:00 Noon |
Microsoft Excel
|
Spreadsheet Basics 11/9/04 - 9:00 AM - 12:00 Noon |
|
Formulas 11/16/04 - 9:00 AM - 12:00 Noon |
|
Advanced Tools 11/23/04 - 9:00 AM - 12:00 Noon |
|
Data Analysis Tools 11/30/04 - 9:00 AM - 12:00 Noon |
Website Development
-
FrontPage 1:Themes & Shared Borders
9/8/04 - 9:00 AM - 12:00 Noon -
Photoshop: Graphics for the Web
9/15/04 - 9:00 AM - 12:00 Noon -
FrontPage 2: Formatting Your Web Pages
9/21/2004 - 9:00 AM - 12:00 Noon -
FrontPage 3: Cool Tools
9/29/2004 - 9:00 AM - 12:00 Noon
Microsoft Access
- The Database Developers Series
10/13/04 - 9:00 AM - 12:00 Noon
10/27/04 - 9:00 AM - 12:00 Noon
11/3/04 - 9:00 AM - 12:00 Noon
11/10/04 - 9:00 AM - 12:00 Noon
11/17/04 - 9:00 AM - 12:00 Noon
Visit infolineinc.org/connect/training.htm to see our latest training schedule. Or call us at 330-315-1335 and we'll fax you a copy.
As always, we are interested in hearing from you to learn how we can best meet your technology and connectivity needs. Give us a call at 330-315-1335 or e-mail us at .
Enjoy!
Be sure to include your fax number!
Want to see previous newsletters? Go to infolineinc.org/connect/updates.htm
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