PocketBible for Android 1.0 Ready for Action

Posted by Kevin Purcell on Feb 21, 2013 in Digital Bible Study | 0 comments

Laridian started work on PocketBible for Android a long time ago releasing pre-release versions for use along the way. They finally hit the 1.0 stage and now sit at version 1.01 with the tools PocketBible users expect only now on Android.

Here’s one reviewer’s take on the latest version:

Laridian broke ground in mobile Bible apps a long time ago with versions for the Pocket PC and Palm OS. They also pioneered Bible apps on iOS. Unfortunately, it took them a little longer than the other Bible app makers to jump on the Android train.

PocketBible for Android works much like other versions giving users a simple interface without a lot of glitz. That’s a good thing in this case.

PocketBible uses the screen scrolling mode of navigation in addition to tapping the go to button that lets the user jump to a specific place in the Bible. In fact, if a user wants, they can scroll from Genesis 1 all the way to the end of Revelation. We’re not sure why anyone would want to do this, but you can.

Better than scrolling all the way through the Bible, the app scrolling moves along swiftly and smoothly. Compared to some other apps I’ve used, PocketBible on Android scrolls much faster.

The user doesn’t need an Internet connection to just read the Bible or search for content. PocketBible’s not the only app to do this, but it is a welcome feature for those who can’t connect 24/7.

The app comes free from the Google Play store. Get add-on books from within the app or better yet go to Laridian and sign up for an account and buy add ons directly. Then, log into the account on the app and download all of your books.

At first download the user will get plenty of free content to test the app before investing in the more up to date books available. Laridian’s library of books doesn’t match bigger companies like Logos, WORDsearch or Olive Tree, but they give just the right kinds to make the app useful to 90% of the Bible reading world. If you need more scholarly works, check it out. We think you might find it a little wanting.

Like the other PocketBible apps, the Android version lets users read and search the Bible. Uses can study in more than one book open at a time. It also includes highlights and notes. These all sync to their servers so a user can use their own personal markups on a phone, tablet and on a Window PC via the desktop software.

Laridian head Craig Rairdin joined the inaugural Christian Computing Hall of Fame deservedly so. PocketBible for Laridian shows why he deserves his membership. He proved himself long before he even started Laridian with QuickVerse, but we’re glad he’s still creating new stuff for mobile digital Bible students.

Nexus 7 Tablet Makes a Great Bible Study Companion

Posted by Kevin Purcell on Jul 31, 2012 in Digital Bible Study, Featured, Technology | 2 comments

I got ahold of a Google Nexus 7 Tablet and really enjoy using the Android 4.1 Ice Cream Sandwich tablet. The device comes with a 7-inch display that looks beautiful. Text shows up crisp and easy to read, except in bright light. The user interface runs smoothly, thanks to something Google called “butter” as in buttery smooth. The technology caches the OS display elements and they run quickly thanks to the fast Tegra 3 processor powering the Nexus 7 Tablet.

The tablet comes with either 8 or 16 GB of storage. For those who want to install a large Logos or Olive Tree library, get the 16GB for $50 more. I don’t install all of my books, just those I use a lot. You’ll need to connect to Wi-Fi to stream your content using a tool like Logos or the YouVersion Bible app that also streams some of the Bibles available. The Nexus 7 Tablet doesn’t offer a 3G version, a real weakness.

The main thing to consider is the size. The iPad gives us plenty of room, but also makes the tablet less mobile and heavier to hold as I read. I love the smaller 7-inch form factor. It feels more like holding a book. It’s more comfortable.

One weakness makes it a little less than perfect for preaching. I use my tablet to hold my notes. The iPad works better with the larger display. I write my sermons on a Mac, so, with Mountain Lion’s new iCloud tool, I can write using the Pages word processing app and save them in iCloud. The notes show up as soon as I open the Pages app on my iPad, simplifying my sync workflow.

If you’re scoring at home, the iPad wins for syncing and the workflow used to get preaching notes on the tablet. The Nexus 7 Tablet wins for size and form factor. Both look great, perform quickly and smoothly and function well. The Bible apps on the iPad have a slight edge over those available on the Nexus 7 Tablet and Android in general. But not enough to make that an obvious win for the iPad thanks to recent improvements to the best Bible apps. The size of the Nexus 7 Tablet trumps most of the iPad’s strength’s making me a Nexus 7 Tablet guy primarily and an iPad user for only a few occasional tasks, like preaching.

How To Pick a Bible App for Your Smart Phone or Tablet

Posted by Kevin Purcell on Dec 16, 2011 in Apps, Bible Software, Digital Bible Study, Software, Technology | 1 comment

How do you pick a good Bible app for your smartphone or tablet? The sarcastic side of me wants to say, “search for ‘Bible’ in the app store” but the helpful side of me realizes that there’s a lot more to picking a good Bible app for your iPhone, iPad or Android smartphone or tablet. Just doing a search for Bible and then downloading the first thing you see will result, most likely in getting a really good app. That’s because the most popular and, therefore, most downloaded Bible app is called Bible or Bible HD from YouVersion, a ministry of LifeChurch.tv. It’s great if all you want to do is read the Bible, add notes and highlight passages. If you want to do serious Bible study, you will want something else.

Preliminary Questions

Before you rush off to your favorite app store and search for Bible, ask yourself a few questions.

1. Do you just want to read the Bible on your mobile device?
2. Do you want to do some serious Bible study of original languages?
3. Do you want access to books that you use on your desktop or laptop?

These questions will determine which kind of app you should get. If you answered yes to the first questions, just get the top app. It is mostly like Bible or Bible HD, depending on whether you’re on a phone or tablet respectively. Go over to YouVersion and click on the Mobile tab and you will see an app for your phone or tablet. On the iOS side, 1 out of every 17 devices has Bible or Bible HD loaded on it.

If you answered yes to the second questions, then you will need much more than the Bible or Bible HD app can give you. At present I recommend a few Digital Bible Study apps. More on that in a minute…

Three Categories of Apps

There are three different categories of Bible apps.

• Bible readers like YouVersion
• Digital Bible Study apps that let you do hard core study of modern translations
• Public Domain apps which might be in the first category or the second, but they only utilize public domain books, i. e. no modern translations like NIV or HCSB

Of the second category of apps – the Digital Bible Study apps – most of them have great features that let you do some serous work. You can read commentaries and get at the original meanings of words. You usually can highlight, add your own notes, keep track of your daily Bible reading, and post or share verses with others via email or social networking.

Keeping in Sync with Your PC/Mac

Moving forward, lets assume you are looking for a good Digital Bible Study app that lets you work with modern books and translations. I know some will only need a Bible reader. Like I said above, get YouVersion and your done. It’s the best available. For those who only want the public domain style apps, then go to your app store and search for the best desktop public domain focused app – e-Sword. You will find some apps that have sword in their name and they work like that great free Windows program. They are not necessarily associated with e-Sword, but they have the same philosophy of providing free apps that can read public domain books.

If you have a desktop program, ask the developer if they have a version for your smartphone. I know of a free that do.

• Laridian PocketBible
• OliveTree Bible Reader
• Logos Bible Software
• Accordance for Mac
• WORDsearch (iPad app coming soon)
• Glo Bible

If you own one of these programs on your desktop/laptop computer, then start with that app. Unfortunately, there are a few problems with the accompanying mobile apps that might disappoint you. Still, getting the mobile version of your desktop software is a good place to start.

Minimum Features

If you don’t own one of the above computer apps, then let me recommend you look for an app with the following minimum features that work in offline mode. When I say offline I mean when not connected to the Internet. Be wary of apps that require an Internet connection. Most will let you read a Bible or book offline, but extra features are only available online. Unless the app is really great, don’t get caught by this because you won’t be able to get online all the time.

• Bible reading
• Bible searching
• Multiple translations and reference works
• Modern translations and reference works
• Ability to add your own notes, highlights and bookmarks
• Tracking of a daily devotion that isn’t tied just to today’s date but lets you mark off days as you finish since you sometimes skip a day

If an app cannot do the above things, then move on to something else.

Recommendations

Let me recommend a few apps that will do all of the above, or will do them very soon, in order of my preference:

1. OliveTree Bible Reader – also has a Mac and soon a Windows version
2. MantisBible – no Mac/Windows version and the Android version is under development
3. Laridian PocketBible – only has a Windows version on desktop but offers a great iPhone/iPad version and Android version in development
4. Logos Bible Software – the reading plans, notes and highlights will not be available till sometime after the first of the year and some of the features are only available while online
5. Accordance – limited Bible reading tracking and must be a user of their desktop app

One of those five programs will certainly work for you. The first one is one of the most popular and has a large team of developers working on the app and creating new resources. The desktop version of the program, at least on the Mac side, works great and looks wonderful.

MantisBible has some of the most unique features and also includes a large set of excellent resources. PocketBible isn’t the most beautiful, but is rock solid and has some great resources available. Logos and Accordance are really only useful if you use their desktop version and already have a  library of books.

Vyrso from Logos Launces Offering $.99 eBooks for new eBook Reader

Posted by Kevin Purcell on Sep 27, 2011 in Apps, Bible Software, Digital Bible Study, Software, Technology | 1 comment

Logos launched their new eBook reader, Vyrso today offering some great deals on eBooks offering them at just $.99 a book. The app will let you read these books as a dumbed down version of the Logos mobile app for Andoird and iOS.

You can get the apps at the following places:

• for iPhone or iPod Touch
• for iPad
• for Android

I’ll be honest and say that I am not a fan of the app only because it doesn’t really offer anything that the Logos apps doesn’t have and actually many fewer features. But if you don’t see yourself needing all that the Logos mobile app offers, this might be just the thing for you.

Android Bible Apps Far Behind iOS Counterparts

Posted by Kevin Purcell on Jun 20, 2011 in Bible Software, Digital Bible Study, Software, Technology | 5 comments

Now that I have been using an Android Phone and Tablet, I have finally been able to test and use Android Bible software and apps. At this point, I’ve mostly used Olive Tree’s Bible Reader, YouVersion’s Bible, and a few others I can’t talk about yet. Yeah, I am bragging about getting to look at such apps early.

While all of these are good apps, they have one thing in common. They lag behind their iPad/iPhone counterparts running on iOS. Let’s take Olive Tree Bible Reader as an example. The iOS verion is rock solid and has a lot of great features. It has split screen capability and markup features like book bookmarks and notes. The most recent stable Android version doesn’t have as many features. They are working on adding them and promise to do so soon, but it is behind.

Logos has a good iOS app. They haven’t even released an Android version yet. Laridian just released their Android app calling it an alpha, note even a beta. I downloaded it and they have a great start, but it is definitely missing all the great features of the iPhone version.

Why are iOS apps so far ahead of Android? First, iOS is ahead of Android. The operating system was released before Android. Second, there is a problem with Android apps not selling as well as iOS apps. Developers are not making as much money on the Android platform as they are on the iOS side. Finally, the Honeycomb platform is just not as stable as iOS is on the iPad.

I hope things get closer to being equal. Right now it seems that from both an app and operating system standpoint Android is just a little bit behind in general. That is too bad, because from a hardware perspective there are plenty of great Android devices that are as good if not better than the iPad 2, iPhone or iPod touch. Also, the Android operating system has some increble features that will one day become very stable I hope.