LaRosa Johnson has been a longtime friend to MMM, and has even contributed a few posts here. He and I recently connected for some fellowship and that turned into a small clip of him sharing some of what he does with Wordsearch Corp (now a subsidiary of Lifeway Publishing) and his mobile activities.
Some weeks ago, we talked about a specific case of using several applications across one’s mobile and tablet to do bible studies. The response from that article has been quiet, but there has been something quite consistently stated: the amount of inking, drawing, and pictures was a bit overwhelming. So, how about we scale things down a bit to just using your tablet (iPad, Nook, Kindle Fire, etc) for studies.
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The Setup
We are keeping things simple here with the use of the built-web browser, Penultimate to collect and organize our content, and then Evernote and Dropbox for the purposes of archiving and sharing (you only need one of these, but am including both as Penultimate works seamlessly with both).
The Study: John 8:1-11
Many of us might be familiar with this section of the Bible. Here, a woman is brought before Jesus by scribes and Pharasees and she is charged with adultery. This was one of those studies where we were given the text before the meeting, and then had to come to the study with items to contribute. I decided to collect my thoughts within Penultimate, and then again use the app during the study to capture additional thoughts.
Before the study, I read the text and started in Penultimate with some questions that came to mind about aspects of the section of text: location, timing, what the Temple looked like, etc. After getting a few of these, I began just by using a simple search to look them up, and then started collecting facts and images from image searches, Wikipedia, and other places.
Then in Penultimate, I just went at it. What I liked here is that my notes very quickly started looking like something in a composition book, but with better links to images and data. What’s missing from Penultimate is some kind of screen that keeps track of the items that you grab from websites (like of like an automated biblography).
During the study, I went back to the document that I started, and just added additional pages to correspond to the questions being asked. No styli, no keyboard. Just grabbing snippets of images and writing as I see fit.
The end product looked like this PDF. I exported the Penultimate file into Dropbox, and it created this PDF. I also did an export into Evernote which gives me the opportunity to view this notebook on my mobile or anywhere else that Penultimate doesn’t exist (aka, anything not named iPad).
All in all, this has become a pretty neat workflow and exercise. Its only one of a few ways that you can use your tablet for Bible studies. Of note, the ability to mashup content within your notes is something you should take advantage of, or encourage those you teach to take advantage of. If you can do somethingl ike provide them with an outline to start with, and then let them cut/create as they go, you’ve got the starts of building understanding (Proverbs 4:7) with the text – note just memorization and rote learning.
Could this work for you? Or, do you have your own workflow for how you use a tablet with Bible studies? Chime in the comments and share.
Am contributing to a discussion happening over at Forum Oxford asking if tablets (and therefore laptops or desktops) can serve as remote phone controllers. Neat idea, and one which could have some implications for many of the mobile projects we’ve touched on (hint, hint). Here’s a snippet of the discussion:
Where is your phone when you use a tablet?
Not too far away? In your pocket?
Then…Why couldn’t a ‘tablet’ just be an ‘external display’ for a phone?
1.Everything that is displayed on the phone screen is seen on the tablet.
2.Touch, swipe, tap, type: on the tablet screen to control the phone.
I’m wondering if anyone knows of or has seen something in the pipeline that might fit this scenario.
Do you think there could be a market for a ‘dumb’ terminal type device that connects to a phone for that purpose and that purpose only?
How?
A/V senders and/or Bluetooth 3.0+ and/or WiFi and/or other?
Serious power issues?
In-vehicle use?
Read the rest of the discussion at Forum Oxford. To contribute, you will need an account.
Productivity apps on the iPad continue to be one of the top selling points for the device. It’s no surprise, then, that there are several office suites available in the App Store. This post is going to explore the three main “all in one” suites which are available on the iPad – Documents to Go, Quick Office, and Office2 HD. Apple’s iWork is also available in the App store, but the “separate app” nature of the suite sets it outside the scope of this comparison.
Each suite will be explored for file management, editor layout, editing features, and importing/exporting. We’ll primarily look at the word-processing features of each suite, but will also compare the spreadsheet and presentations modules for each app. Today we’ll be looking at the second comparison – editor layout.
Read the rest of the Mobile Suite Showdown – Editor Layout at Painfully Hopeful.
My first taste with handheld devices came with the $99 Palm Z22 back in 2005. It filled a very specific need: 1) having a device to keep track of my life, and 2) keeping a Bible in my pocket. The need quickly came to stop carrying three devices (feature phone, Palm, Zune) and to knock it down to two. So, in 2007 I upgraded to my first smartphone (T-Mobile Dash, a Windows Mobile device), which allowed me to carry just a phone & my Zune. My needs hadn’t changed, other than wanting to carry fewer devices; since, I intentionally did not have a data plan very long after buying the phone. In 2009, I upgraded to the Android G1. Again, needs hadn’t changed all that much, although I wanted to take advantage of the Google ecosystem that I had already made myself a part of with Google Apps. Last Thanksgiving (2010), I had the opportunity to upgrade to the Android G2, as my wife wanted a better smartphone (after having inherited my Dash) & we were able to take advantage of a buy 1 get 1 free deal. A subsequent upgrade to a 32GB microSD card allowed me to ditch my Zune altogether & get down to a single device, which is where I’ve been for the past year.
As you can probably see, part of my upgrades typically come when there’s a need to fill, and I sometimes get the opportunity to alleviate some gadget envy in the process. Recently, I’ve wanted to take a part of the whole tablet craze. I held off for a long while, not being able to fully justify the price or function for my needs. I wanted a tablet so much so that I bought an iPad 2 earlier this year, but returned it after I couldn’t live with the amount I had spent on it. So, when the opportunity presented itself last week for me to purchase a tablet on the cheap, I jumped on the opportunity (and the Lord aligned the circumstances for me to happen to have the funds available). What did I get? I ended up with an Asus Eee Pad Transformer (a Honeycomb Android tablet), along with its keyboard dock accessory.
What finally convinced me to purchase a tablet? Well, simply put: it filled a need. As a student of the Bible and someone who just likes to read in general, I have amassed quite the digital library of theological resources. Many of these resources are great for study, but others are great for just sitting down and reading from cover to cover. Well, when you have a 17″ notebook computer, sitting with it on your lap or at a desk isn’t always the best way to read an electronic resource. Mobile apps have allowed me to read on my phone, but that screen real estate is just too small for extended reading. So, a tablet that can run those same apps fit that niche quite nicely. Also throw in the desire for wanting to be more mobile while staying connected and you can see where a tablet comes in handy. While it’s only a Wi-Fi only device, that doesn’t concern me because my G2 has 4G connectivity & it doesn’t cost me extra (with T-Mobile) to turn my phone into a hotspot.
It’s nice having a device that fits my needs, and with both my phone & tablet being Android, it makes life easy because there was no need to buy new apps, except those that were tablet specific. I was actually quite surprised to find that as soon as I logged in & hit the Wi-Fi that the Android Market was smart enough to automatically download all the same apps that I had put on my phone. While it’s primarily a reading device, I’m also excited about the opportunity to try pushing the envelope of mobile. This weekend I’m taking a business trip to Austin, TX and I’ll be leaving my laptop at home; I’ll only be taking my tablet with me (and phone, obviously). But wait, I’m supposed to be giving a demo of some desktop software. Doesn’t matter, I’m still leaving my computer at home. Why? Because I can simply VNC into my machine from my tablet, and with a mini HDMI port & VGA connector, I can connect to a projector & give the demo from the tablet. How cool is that?!
As I strive to be more mobile in the coming days & weeks, I’m interested in seeing where my phone & tablet take me. I’m looking forward to the conversations that it sparks, both in the office and in public when I’m using my device for reading, drawing, taking notes in church, and more. It’s nice when upgrading a device can also upgrade your life.
I’m writing this on the day the Apple iPad was announced. Meaning that I’ve probably come back to this post a few times to clarify and to rethink sections – and at the same time, it might just stay very raw.
First off, a blanket opinion – this is a device purely for affluent audiences. Its not addressing a need to anyone except those who’ve already got mobile solutions, and the wallets to enable them. That’s not to say its a bad thing. In light of my first thoughts to any device or service – does it meet a need or a want – its clearly something in the want category for many, and therefore illusions about what it would enable have to be filtered accordingly.*
That being said, its a good idea, and one that has been talked about here before. The tablet does present itself as an interesting, albeit more content-laden solution for those who would like a reader-style device, but would like some measure of productivity with it. The included iWork and iTunes suites make sense here, especially since its meant to consume and lightly annotate, content. The need for adapters hearkens back to the age of PDAs and accessories as the driver for specialized needs – this could have been handled better, but Apple is making a play for a broad range of profit generation here.
I mentioned to one person that this would be a great device for preachers (being semantically specific with the term here). Paired with a wireless network, the preacher would essentially have the slides, notes, text, and ability to control what is on-screen right in front of them. Yes, this can be done with any PDA/smartphone/netbook/laptop (and as been) – the form factor of a slate/tablet device works well here. And the size is nearly that of an A4 envelope which keeps it mobile for preachers who move much.
The other neat audience is of course education. And while Apple specifically spoke towards this area in its announcement, the price is a big bite. A student in the market would have to choose the tablet, and the dock-keyboard accessory in order to make this work. That says nothing for the lack of an expansion card to backup papers/content (hello online services). The prepaid aspect works very well here as an incentive towards working in order to be connected – though WiFi use would most likely reign in this setting.
Thinking from my own point of view: well, I use a smartphone. My N97 plugs into my TV (w/Apple Wireless keyboard) for major tasks at home. On the road, I plug it into projectors for presentations (hint, hint), write a few articles, listen to music, etc. In other words, aside from the larger screen – which would be helpful for the amount of books I read – its not worth the cost to me as I’d need to purchase several accessories in order to meet the basic functionality (and I lose the voice calling aspect). Its a nice device, and similar to many. I would have preferred to see an interface like the Mag+ Concept or 10/GUI Concept, or further ahead like the hardware+interface of the Microsoft Courier Concept. The iPad isn’t far enough in the user interface design to significantly enhance/change how I do computing. It may be different for others, and I’d love to hear how as that perspective is needed.
I am looking forward to seeing what Bible publishers will do with iPhone apps that use the larger user interface. Ideally, they would not just copy what a 3.5in screen is doing on this 9.7in one. It would be good to see some richer interactions with content, as well as finger-based interactions that are physically not as efficient on the iPhone/iPod Touch.
But, that’s just my thoughts on things. What about you? What are your thoughts? Is it going to be a purchase for you or a friend/family member. What areas do you see as great, and what needs work? And lastly, how did you manage covetousness before/during/after the announcement?
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Have Tablets and Mobiles Changed How You View/Use the Bible
Sunday, April 22nd, 2012Those reasons caused me to reflect a good bit towards how I’ve changed and evolved because of Bibles on my tablets and mobile devices. Some of the points from BigBible Project’s article fit – but then I realized how I’ve gone in a bit more on aa few of them.
For example, the idea of instant access to commentaries and translations is less important than what it used to be. I’m more interested in the sociological, geological, and other historical documents that affirm or challenge the text. Instead of highlights and bookmaks, I draw. I don’t care to be so public with me reading; but I do like the ease some services offer in sharing the text (such as Bib.ly and Ref.ly). Software is definitely interpretation – and that’s where I feel that biblical literacy shouldn’t just be reading the text, but building it as well. Its interesting, and through that list I can see how far I’ve come since getting that digital Bible on a PDA more than a decade ago.
So what about you? How has tablets and mobiles, or just the access to various Biblical services or classes, changed how you use or view the Bible? Do you see anything to be alarmed about it what has changed for you? Or, do you like the way in which you are evolving?
Tags: accessibility, All Books Project, Bib.ly, Bible apps, commentaries, Communication, mobile in moment, mobile in moment/personal, mobility, Ref.ly, tablet PC
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