There are lots of options out there for actually putting your message online. I’m only going to cover one method for now: Posting to a blog. It’s the easiest solution “out of the box” as they say.
To get started, you’ll need a blog if you don’t already have one. Or maybe you want a new one just for sermons. I recommend WordPress for blogging, but there are other alternatives available to you. Here are some of the major free ones:
This tutorial will focus only on WordPress. You can sign up here for a blog.
Once you’re signed up, we can get started. There are two options for adding the audio to your post. The first should be used if you don’t have your own file hosting ability (like your own website at www.YourUniqueSiteHere.com). The 2nd option assumes you know how to upload files to your website.
Option 1: A Hosting Service The Status Joe has a good tutorial to cover how to add audio to your blog if you don’t have your own hosting. I followed the steps he posted and was able to get it working. Some of the directions for the external hosting site (MusicWebTown.com) include pictures of the old interface, but it’s close enough that you’ll be able to figure it out. Also note that when Joe tells you to click the “Code” tab, he means the HTML one. It’s been changed in the current version. It produces this:
Option 2: Self-Hosted
Upload your MP3 to your website. You may need to use an FTP (File Transfer Protocol) Client to do it. I recommend FileZilla. Your website hosting company can provide the necessary settings to connect if you don’t already have them.
In the “write new post” screen, click the HTML tab and insert the following line, enclosed in brackets [], adapted for your audio file:
You can add text before or after the [audio] line, but don’t change that line at all. If you’ve done it corrcetly, you’ll see the same small audio player as above. Make sure there are no spaces in the [audio] line except for the space between audio and the web address. Preview the post to make sure you’ve got it right and then click Publish.
Now that you’ve got the hardware, it’s time to start recording. Meet Audacity. It’s a free alternative for sound recording that will work for most people. First, you’ll need to download and install the program. Here’s how:
Click Download Audacity 1.3.6 (Beta) (It’s ok, this beta is pretty stable).
On the left sidebar, click the version you want to download. Most people will need the Windows version, which should be the default.
The first bullet in the Recommended Download section contains the link you’ll want. Click “Audacity 1.3.6 installer” next to your version of windows. Most people will be in the first bullet.
Save the file to disk.
Double-click the downloaded file.
Follow the install instructions, using the default options.
Next, download the LAME MP3 Encoder. There are directions on this page at Audacity’s site. The first LAME page you land on will warn you about needing a license. If you aren’t selling your sermons or other media, you do not need a license.
Once this is done, you’re ready to start recording. Turn on the mics, plug them in and start Audacity. Here’s a quick video walk-through of Audacity for you:
Up next, we’ll look at how to publish your audio file to the web.
The first step in broadcasting your message is getting a good recording. There are several expensive options out there, but we don’t like those around here. Before we get into the recording, you’ll need some hardware. Without a good microphone, it doesn’t matter how good your software is. We use the the Audio-Technica Pro 88W/T. It doesn’t seem to be available from major retailers anymore, but this one is similar. We made our original purchase through US1Camera and had no problems.
Now, depending on how technically skilled you are, you have two options for placing the microphone:
Make the speaker wear the included lav mic in addition to the normal sound system one. (we do this for non-sermon audio like my Confirmation audio.)
Take the output from your sound board into the input on the microphone transmitter pack. (we do this for sermons) This method allows for recording more than just the main speaker if that’s an interest to you. As an aside, if you only plan on recording from the feed from the sound board and have a computer right by it, you can skip the extra microphone system all together and just get a cable to go out of the board into the microphone in port on the computer. This is harder to get a good signal from as it requires more knowledge of the sound board.
Make sure both the transmitter and the receiver are set to the same frequency (A or B). You’ll want to use the short cord that comes with the microphone to go from the Microphone Out port on the receiver into the Microphone In port on your computer. Last, make sure the microphone port is turned on in Windows. Here’s how:
Click Start
Click Control Panel
If you’re in category view, click “Sounds, Speech and Audio Devices” then “Sounds and Audio Devices”. If you’re using the classic view, click “Sounds and Audio Devices”
Click the Volume tab (it’s probably the default selected tab).
Click “Advanced” in the Device Volume section.
This opens a box with some slider bars. Click Options.
One of the advantages of the web is that you can reach people you may never even meet in this life. About 10 months ago, we had an opportunity to see this in action when there was a bad storm in our area. I was experimenting with recording our sermons to put online for people who miss church one week. I wrote about it on my other blog, but the comments tell the story of some of those unseen faces.
Eventually, we decided to post our sermons online each Sunday. With the exception of the microphone and web space, we’re doing it with all free tools. In the next couple of days, I’ll be highlighting some of those tools for putting your message online.
Ever subscribed to magazines in the past? It’s a great concept. Instead of tracking down each magazine at the store, they just show up at your house. Cool concept! Did you know you can do the same thing with Blogs? There are lots of benefits to subscribing to blogs, especially if you’re using an RSS reader. Here are some of them:
You don’t have to go to all those blogs to see if they’ve been updated! Just like your magazines, the updates come to you in your Reader.
Ever been to a website that only updates once a month? They have interesting stuff, but every time you go there it’s the same. Stop wasting your time and subscribe!
It’s free to do. Unlike most magazines, blogs come to you free of charge.
You can subscribe to all kinds of websites, not just blogs. Just look for the little orange icon. In Firefox, it’s located in the address bar, all the way to the right. In Internet Explorer, it’s below the address bar to the right. If there’s nothing to subscribe to, the icon won’t be there or it will be greyed out.
You may not have known that you can even subscribe to this blog. One of my readers asked about it, so I made the buttons more prominent than the orange ones mentioned above. They’re over on the right, but you can only see them if you’re looking at the actual site. Mine aren’t orange, but they look really cool. For more information about blogs, subscribing and what in the world RSS means, check out my about:blogs page on my other blog.
There are lots of great things you can do for free if you have a Google account. It’s easy and free to set up an account, and you’ll need one to access most of their services. There are 2 ways to get a Google account. The first is to create an account for Gmail, Google’s web-based email solution. I love it, and highly recommend it. If you want an email account, here’s what to do:
When you’ve read the page, click “I’m ready, show me my account” at the top right of the page.
You can now use this email account as your Google account, in addition to an email address. I’d strongly suggest you just get the Gmail account as it will then act as your username for all Google services and insures that no one else can take your “nickname.”
If you’d rather not get a new email-based account, you can create a Google account from your existing email account. Here’s how:
Posted by Jason Christ 
Posted by Jason Christ 
Posted by Jason Christ 
