Biblia.com - Direction and Vision

I do not understand Logos had to have so many restarts with their web-based offering. We've had:

- bible.logos.com
- library.logos.com
- library.logos.com beta=true
- and now biblia.com

It seems to be an unnecessary drain on precious development resources. With that said, and with Bob stating that biblia.com is the go-forward web-based platform for Logos, I would like to know the following:

1. Will sermon.logos.com and wbsa.logos.com (great sites!) eventually be merged into biblia.com also?

2. Will biblia.com eventually support reading plans (like bible.logos.com)?

3. Will biblia.com eventually support Favorites, Text Comparison, Passage Guide, and Bible Word Study (like library.logos.com)?

4. Will biblia.com eventually support Notes,Highlighting, Devotions, etc (like esvonline.org)?

5. With so many features not finished or not included, why is biblia.com called "Beta"? Last time I checked, "Beta" software means feature complete and going through internal testing.

Thanks,

Peter

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Comments

Bob Pritchett

We want the best solution; we hope to find that on the first shot every time, but sometimes we don't. (And, as we say around the office, if we don't have some failures, we probably aren't trying enough new stuff.)

Bible.Logos.com was a "Bible only" site that let us test the technology of getting our Logos engine exposed via the Internet. Library.Logos.com opened up the rest of the library, but really was just a way to offer the iPhone app to mobile web browsers -- it talks to the same server code. The ?beta=true version was test to see if we could (or should) re-create the whole Logos 4 UI in a browser. (The answer: no, and no.)

The good news is, our choice of one programming platform, and insistence on sharing code wherever possible, means that all of these projects -- and the desktop and iPhone/iPad apps -- use the same back end code, and much of the "experimental" code and education was leveraged into Biblia. And will be leveraged in future sites.

I'm not going to answer with specifics on all your questions yet, but, generally, "yes." (And, to us, "beta" just means you can play with it, but it isn't perfect. Or done. <smile>)

-- Bob

Floyd Johnson

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/166679#Comment_166679

(And, to us, "beta" just means you can play with it, but it isn't perfect. Or done. <smile>)

Sounds like L4 when it was released. So, it was a Beta after all?[:D]

mab

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/166686#Comment_166686

I think Biblia is getting closer to a seamless web interface for Logos users. I think that's the concept. How that plays out takes a lot of work. I used to be in the IT dept for a small company and their platform on the Internet changed over the years I was there. No one there ever imagined how it would change.

Gary Maxwell

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/166679#Comment_166679

Hi Bob...

As a Linux user, my choices are limited as to what Bible study software I use. I have heard good things about the Logos product for several years but am unable to use it due to my platform of choice.

I can use Crossover Linux--a commercial compatibility layer and run *some* Bible study tools such as e-Sword and the like but not your product. This is a less-than-ideal solution as there are no guarantees that your software will work after the next upgrade/update.

In another forum you asked if your users were ready for their Bible software to reside "in the clouds." While I still have reservations about putting "everything" into the cloud, this is one instance where a cloud offering has some traction.

As you develop this site and include more tools--maybe even for a fee--you will have the potential for a wider user base since all that is necessary to get access to your fine product is a standards-compliant web browser. I realize that not everyone has access to always-on Internet or high bandwidth, but for those that do, this is a nice addition.

I hope you continue to keep upgrading and exploring this option because there are a lot of folks like me who would probably sign up for your content as soon as the site becomes a viable offering.

In Christ,

Gary Maxwell

Nicholas van Oudtshoorn

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/167637#Comment_167637

Hi Garry, Bob

I too am a Linux user, although I do have a copy of windows available in VirtualBox to run Logos4 (and that's pretty much the only thing I use it for! )

Gary, Biblia.Com is already (in my opinion) becoming a viable option. I have several books that I've purchased, and being able to read them in Biblia - without having to fire up my virtual windows machine - makes life so easy.

Of course, there are limitations still (Not all books are available yet, the non-book features aren't available at all, and navigating through books is a pain; can't wait till there's in-book navigation, like the breadcrumbs in Logos4) and an occassional hiccup (like now - none of my resources are currently showing up), but I'm confident that these will be ironed out soon. I must say that the Biblia developers are a great bunch - always quick to respond to requests and/or comments here on the forums.

Am I hanging out for a Linux version of the full programme? Yes, absolutely. And given mono's availability, I don't see that it'd be that difficult a task (about the same as producing the Mac version). Having said that, if somebody would just write the WPF ( :-) no small task!) for mono, we'd be able to run the windows version perfectly in wine (and hence CrossOver)....

A progressively happier Linux user,

Nicholas

Gary Maxwell

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/167642#Comment_167642

Nicholas,

I have several web sites bookmarked for the purpose of Bible study as it is. And they work very nicely for my needs. You could say that I am "in the cloud" already where Bible study is concerned. As biblia.com progresses I may eventually consider buying some books so I can access them through Biblia.com regardless of whether I can install them in Linux or not.

Just a thought for future exploration.

Gary Maxwell

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/167977#Comment_167977

After nearly a month of thought and reflection, I have decided to keep local apps for Bible study and I will tell you why.

Recently, the government and the current administration has lobbied for control of the internet in ways we've not seen before. While some of the requested control is to deter or foil terrorist plots--which is admirable--the control they seem to be seeking could have chilling effects on free speech as well. It's a slippery slope once control is ceded and granted by congress.

It would be all to easy for a politically motivated official to decide that they do not like the Bible or Biblically-based decisions and try to remove the "offending" material off of the internet using "back-door" legislation. In other words, what they cannot do up front because of the Constitution they can try to maneuver around existing legal loopholes in the name of protecting individuals, classes of individuals and public/societal well-being.

If your Bible app is in the cloud, your cloud provider or web site owner/admin is responsible for complying with federal and local laws. If you have your app in your own home, you stand a much better chance of keeping your material than if it resides on someone else's servers.

Food for thought. And if you think it can't happen, you haven't been paying attention...