Seventh-Day Adventist Church

Comparing Web Software

Which Website Program Should We Use?

(Click on tiny printer icon in upper right corner for printer friendly version)
Though many churches have created websites using Adventist Church Connect (Simple Updates) software, and many more will in the future, the Pacific Union recommends netAdventist for three reasons:

  1. NetAdventist is much easier to use.
  2. NetAdventist includes many more features.
  3. NetAdventist places more control in the hands of the local church.

Why does it matter? Because an attractive and up-to-date site serves the members and is inviting to visitors. And the easier a program is to use, the more likely it is that the site will be developed and kept up to date.

This feature is built-in, obvious and easy to use. Where news feeds are involved, this assumes that the sending organization has a compatible website and is posting news.
This feature is not included in the basic program but is available for an extra monthly fee.
This feature is possible but requires considerable study or assistance from tech support.
This feature is not available in this program, though it may be possible for a trained webmaster to go beyond the program and make it happen.

 

Question netAdv.
ACC
1. Can I upload audio sermons to the site, so visitors can click and listen? (Note: ACC is on the honor system here. It is possible to upload audio sermons without paying, but churches are supposed to pay $10 per month.)
2. Can I upload video sermons to the site, so visitors can click and watch a video stream? (Note: ACC is on the honor system here. It is possible to upload video sermons without paying, but churches are supposed to pay a $50 setup fee and $10 per month.)
3. Can I automatically embed an MP3 player with the sermon file, so the sermon will play even on a computer without an MP3 player?
4. Podcasting: Can visitors to the site subscribe to the sermons so they will download to their iPods?
5. Our church has year-round cooking schools. Can I add cooking schools to the main menu in the left sidebar?
6. Our church has an active adult education program for the community. Can I add an Adult Education menu (a group of links) to the sidebar, with links under it to several classes we teach?
7. Can I create a form where visitors to the site can register for classes (or other church events), click Submit, and have the information come to my email inbox? (see "All Regional Ministries Forms" in top left corner at www.news.puconline.org)
8. Can I change the theme (the design) of our church website whenever I want to?
9. Can I link to our local academy's news feed so our academy news displays on our church site?
10. Can I link to our local Adventist college's news feed, so college news displays on our church site?
11. Can I link to the Oakwood College news feed, so Oakwood news displays on our church site?
12. Can I display news from other kindred churches in my area, conference, union or division ? For example, "Hispanic Church News" or "Regional Church News."
13. Our Pathfinders would like to have our local conference Pathfinder news displayed automatically on our site. Can I do that for them and for other ministries?
14. Can I have local conference general news display on our church site?
15. Can I easily and quickly add our own local church news and announcements to the site?
16. Can I include photos in the body of the news story?
17. Can I include an automatically sized custom thumbnail photo (or any thumbnail) with the news story?
18. Can I have union conference news display on our church site?
19. Can I have North American Division news display on our church site?
20. Can I have World Church news display on our church site?
21. Can I turn off the local conference news feed if I don't want it?
22. Can I turn off the union conference news feed if I don't want it?
23. Can I turn off the North American Division news feed if I don't want it?
24. Can I turn off the World Church news feed if I don't want it?
25. Can I change the order in which the news feeds appear on our site?
26. Can I enable ministry directors to edit and add to their own ministry areas?
27. Can I enable each of my ministry leaders to edit and add to their ministry area on the website without enabling them to edit other areas of the site?
28. Can I make BibleInfo.com run within our site as if it were our local church program?
29. Can I include the entire Bible on our site, in various versions, with a good search tool,and have it look as though it is part of our website?
30. Can I display up-to-date news from It Is Written, when and if I want it?
31. Can I display up-to-date news from Voice of Prophecy, when and if I want it?
32. Can I display up-to-date news from Amazing Facts, when and if I want it?
33. Can I display up-to-date news from Quiet Hour, when and if I want it?
34. Can I display up-to-date news from ADRA, when and if I want it?
35. Can I display up-to-date news from Maranatha, when and if I want it?
36. Can I display up-to-date news from Adventist World Radio, when and if I want it?
37. Can my members watch 3ABN TV on our church website, if I choose to activate it?
38. Can my members watch HopeTV live on our church website, if I choose to active it?
39. Can my members watch Loma Linda Broadcasting Network (LLBN - TV) on our website if and when I choose to activate it?
40. Can my members watch 3ABN Spanish TV on our website, if and when I choose to activate it?
41. Can my members listen to LifeTalk Radio on our website, if and when I choose to activate it?
42. Can my members listen to KSGN Riverside on our website, if and when I choose to activate it?  
43. Can my members listen to Pacific Union College radio on our website, if and when I choose to activate it?  
44.Can my members listen to 3ABN radio on our website, if and when I choose to activate it?  
45. Can my members listen to other Adventist radio stations on our website if and when I choose to activate them?  
46. Can I enable an automatic feature that displays the sunset times?
47. Our church is planning a mission trip to Peru next summer. Can we display news from the Peru Conference, and perhaps a local Peruvian church, on our site between now and then?
48. Can I create clickable links in news stories or articles (static content) to external sites, plus internal photos, and sermons, and articles?
49. Can I create clickable links in articles to local news stories on the site?
50. Can I create photo galleries to display recent church activities?
51. Can I create a clickable link in a news story or in static content to a photo album?
52. Can I include a photo directory of all church members, and make it visible only to members?
53. Can I include a photo directory of all church members that is searchable and can be self-edited by each member?
54. Can I display headline news feeds from external news sources such as ABC, NBC, CBS, Fox, NPR, Reuters, BBC, Apple, Wired, Yahoo, World Vision?
55. Can I display health news from such sources as ABC Health, BBC Health, CNN Health, Fox News Health, New York Times Health, Reuters Health, WebMD?
56. Can I display a monthly calendar, and enter important church events?
57. Can visitors to the calendar choose to view events of other organizations such as ADRA, It Is Written, AWR, LLU, Portland Adventist Med Ctr., Quiet Hour, Adventist Health Employement events, Amazing Facts, Maranatha, Red de Noticias, VOP, etc? The ones I select to display?
58. Can I display on our church site a podcast feed from the  Pacific Union College radio station?
59. Can I display on our church site a podcast feed from Sabbath School University, so members can download features to their iPods?
60. Can I display on our church site a podcast feed from Group 7 News, so members can download features to their iPods?
61. Can I display on our church site a podcast feed from The Place (contemporary church service in Newbury Park, CA), so members can download sermons to their iPods?
62. Can I display on our church site a podcast feed from the  Sabbath School University Video, so members can download features to their video iPods?
63. Can I display on our church site a podcast feed from Adventist Missions, so members can download features to their iPods?
64. Can I display on our church site a podcast feed from LifeTalk Radio, so members can download features to their iPods?
65. Can I easily set-up iPod feeds from other sources?
66. Can I create a menu of documents to be read by church board members only, and have both the menu and the documents invisible to others?
67. Can I create weekly polls where I can ask members their opinions or preferences, perhaps in preparation for a sermon?
68. Can members and visitors submit prayer requests to the church staff?
69. Can visitors to the site submit a message to the staff or webmaster without using email?
70. Can I make our local announcements show on the home page, rather than on a secondary page?
71. Can I include a chat feature, where members can talk to each other online, say, on a Friday night?
72. Can I insert a forum or bulletin board so members and visitors can discuss various topics?
73. Can I create a newsletter in the web program and email it to all website members?
74. Can I set up a custom RSS feed that will display on the church website a blog I created at Blogger, Wordpress or other blog site, ?
75. Can I set up a shopping cart to sell Christian books and products on our site?
76. Can I import the various GraceNotes devotionals and features?
77. Can members make online donations through a module included in this website? 
78. Can visitors click on a set of Bible studies by Mark Finley?