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God has gifted Phil with superb analytical and technical skills. He’s a gifted exegete and theologian as well as a technological wizard. And I’m grateful that he’s patient, too, because I regularly ask him for advice about exegesis, theology, and technology! If you don’t already subscribe to his blog, I’d highly recommend you do so via RSS feed, email, or Twitter. It’s called “Thoughts on Theology and Technology” and organized as follows:

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Have you had a chance to use the Olive Tree Bible app at all? Any thoughts on comparisons with the Logos app?

I replied,

I haven’t used the various Olive Tree apps because my understanding is that Logos can do everything they can and more (esp. if you use Logos 4) for free. I may be wrong on that.

Well, I was wrong on that—at least for now.

1. What is Olive Tree Bible software?

Here’s how it describes itself:

Olive Tree Bible Software provides mobile Bible versions and study tools for iPhone, Blackberry, Android, Palm OS, Pocket PC, Smartphone and Symbian cell phones. We currently offer over 500 mobile resources including over 100 translations of the Bible as well as commentaries, dictionaries, devotionals, eBooks, and Strong’s numbering system. The Bible is offered in various languages, including German, French, Spanish, Chinese and many others. Original Hebrew and Greek texts are also available. Additionally, we provide online web and cell phone (WAP) Bible search engines.

2. What does Olive Tree Bible software offer for the iPhone and iPod Touch?

1. Bibles. Hebrew, Greek, LXX, ESV, NIV, NASB, NET, NLT, The Message, and more.
2. Study Bibles. ESVSB, NET notes, NIVSB, NLTSB, and more.
3. Bible study tools and academic resources. Bible Knowledge Commentary, MacArthur NT Commentary series, ISBE, Grudem’s Systematic Theology, and much more.
4. Devotional resources. Spurgeon’s Morning and Evening and more (including many by Andrew Murray, a prominent proponent of Keswick theology).
5. eBooks. Charles Spurgeon, John Piper, John MacArthur, and more.
6. Free items

3. How does Olive Tree Bible software for the iPhone and iPod Touch compare to the Logos Bible Software app?

Pros

1. Its basic layout is easier to use than Logos. It’s very intuitive. Split-screen reading is very nice, for example, if you want to have a Bible  on the top half and a lexicon, study Bible, or commentary on the bottom half.
2. It’s customizable. You can easily choose your preferred settings for fonts, colors, split windows, pop-up windows, and scrolling methods.
3. It has offline access, so it doesn’t require an Internet connection. (Logos recently added basic offline support in their latest version.)
4. Like Logos, it offers good Bible versions and other resources.
5. Like Logos, the basic platform is free.
6. Like Logos, it offers many free resources. Many are by John Piper.
7. The Hebrew and Greek Bibles are morphologically tagged and searchable. Logos has parsing with glosses for Hebrew using their Andersen-Forbes Hebrew text and for Greek with their UBS4 text with Swanson’s morphology. Logos also has morphologically tagged Greek and Hebrew tied to English Bibles with reverse interlinears (e.g., if you click on a word in the ESV, it looks up the underlying Greek word). But Logos does not yet have the ability to do morphological searches like Olive Tree does now.
8. Personal notes are accessible by verse in any Bible version across your library and synced to your desktop with Evernote. Logos does not have notes yet.

Cons

1. Its products are expensive. For example, the NASB is $24; the ESVSB is $34.95; Grudem’s Systematic Theology is $39.96; NA27 with morphology and UBS dictionary is $60; BHS with morphology and BDB lexicon is $70; and LXX with parsing and LEH lexicon is $75.  Logos gives you free access to the content you already own, so there is no need to repurchase anything. Logos also offers several products for free, including Bibles (ESV, NIV, NLT, NKJV).
2. Its resources are relatively limited: over 500 resources. Logos offers over 10,000 resources, and currently about 3,000 of these are available on the iPhone (and the number is growing quickly as Logos secures rights and converts titles).
3. Its product is more focused than Logos. Olive Tree’s sole product is Bible software for mobile phones; Logos has focused primarily on Bible software for computers and has just recently branched out to the iPhone and other mobile devices. Logos has the advantage here because it’s an electronic package that includes both computers and cell phones. The huge advantage for Logos users is that they don’t repurchase any content. A smaller advantage is that Logos 4 and the iPhone sync with each other, remembering things such as your last location in book, reading plans, favorites, and preferred resources.

Conclusions

1. The Olive Tree app is currently better than the Logos app for most things you would use biblical resources on your iPhone for: reading the Bible and very basic Bible study.
2. The Olive Tree app is probably a better choice for people who don’t use Logos 4.
3. The Logos app is a better choice for people who use Logos 4.

Disclosure of Material Connection (in compliance with Federal Trade Commission guidelines):  I received these mobile Bible study resources as free review copies from Olive Tree Bible Software.  I was not required to write a positive review, and the opinions I have expressed are my own.  The Olive Tree BibleReader program is available for free on OliveTree.com and iTunes.

My 3GS model is 16 GB and weighs 4.8 ounces. That means that the little phone I keep in my pocket holds eight times as much space as the laptop I used from college through my first PhD (1998–2006).

If you have an iPhone (or iPod Touch), these resources may help you use the tool more efficiently.

1. iPhone Apps

The iPhone comes with several apps already installed, and over 100,000 apps are available through the iTunes Store.

Here’s a screen-shot of my apps as they appear iTunes (click on the image to enlarge):

• Cf. Phil Gons’s list of the main iPhone apps that he uses on his iPod Touch.
• My favorite apps include Logos Bible Software (more info), Google Mobile App, Dragon Dictation, Red Laser ($1.99), Dropbox, and Mint.com Personal Finance.
• There are many other useful apps that I’ve chosen not to use for various reasons (e.g., PIM, news, sports).

Here are some practices I’ve found to be helpful:

1. Organize your apps. (It’s easier to do this in iTunes than on your iPhone.) Arrange your apps in a logical order on your iPhone screens. I put my most frequently used apps on the first screen and then group the rest by categories (e.g., weather).
2. Delete apps you won’t use. Don’t simply delete them from the screen on your iPhone but delete them from iTunes: select Applications > right-click an app > delete. (Navigate to “Applications” listed on the left pane under “Library”—not the “Applications” tab for your iPhone, which appears under “Devices.”)

2. iPhone Filtering and Accountability

The iPhone is completely unfiltered. I’m too weak to use a phone like that, so I considered several filtering options.

1. X3watch (free app). This is what I’ve been using without a glitch. It’s not an Internet-filter, but it weekly emails my wife and two accountability partners a list of sites I visited that may contain questionable material.
2. Safe Eyes Mobile ($19.99 app). I tried this first because my family already uses Safe Eyes on our computers, but I was really disappointed. Even after several email exchanges with the Safe Eyes customer support team, I couldn’t successfully or easily access two of the primary sites I use the browser for: Gmail and Google Reader. I hope this app improves.
3. iNet SafetyBubble ($19.99 app). I didn’t try this.
4. Mobicip Safe Browser ($4.99 app). I didn’t try this.
5. Covenant Eyes (free app). Although it’s “free,” it requires an account with Covenant Eyes, which costs $8 per month merely to email out a list of sites you visited. This would be ideal if you already use Covenant Eyes on your computer(s).
6. OpenDNS (free but not an app). This is merely a partial solution because it applies only when your iPhone or iPod Touch is connected to the Internet via your home Wi-Fi Network. OpenDNS can block sites at the router level, so it automatically blocks sites regardless of whether you’re connected via desktop, laptop, or iPod Touch. It is not tied to a particular browser.

There is not a way to use Safari, Apple’s Internet-browser for the iPhone, in a filtered way. The only option is to disable Safari (and ask another person to type in the restrictions password) and then use a different browser that can be filtered or monitored. (Options 1–5 above include their own browser as an alternative to Safari.) Unfortunately, not using Safari means that you may lose a small degree of functionality (e.g., I haven’t been able to get the Amazon Kindle App to work).

Related: See my co-authored post on accountability and other posts on purity.

3. Other iPhone Suggestions

Here are some other options I’ve found to be helpful:

1. Use Google Sync (instructions) if you use Gmail and Google Calendar and if you organize your contacts in Gmail.
2. If you use Gmail, set the home page of your non-Safari Internet browser to Gmail. That way you can use its features more easily (e.g., labels, archive, stars), which is important if you maintain an organized inbox. While logged in to Gmail, you can quickly tab over to other Google programs like Google Calendar, Google Reader, and Google Tasks. Unfortunately, I’m not able to use some of the Google Apps because I’ve disabled Safari. This is probably my biggest drawback of disabling Safari because otherwise my top three apps would be Gmail, Google Calendar, and Google Reader. I’ve synced the iPhone’s built-in email and calendar with Gmail and Google Calendar, so sometimes it’s quicker to use those even though they lack some functionality.
3. Use a case. If your phone breaks, it may cost you $600 to replace it. I use an Otterbox Impact Case for good protection and grip. Some of my friends use Slider Case, CaseCrown, and InvisibleSHIELD.
4. Increase your battery life by turning off push notifications (among other things). Or if you value battery-depleting features, consider purchasing a Kensington Battery Pack and Charger.
5. Create your own ringtones. You can assign them as custom ringtones for selected contacts, and you can also use them as the alarm for timers and alarm clocks.
6. If you have a Google Voice number, don’t use the iPhone’s voice mail but instead forward all messages to your Google Voice inbox. Then when people leave you a message, you’ll get a transcript of it in your email inbox, where you can also opt to listen to the audio. You can also check your Google Voice mail from any phone or directly check your Google Voice inbox online.
7. Use Voice Control. Press and hold the home button for a few seconds to activate it. This feature works accurately for me when I speak directly into the speakers at the bottom of the phone (located next to where you plug in the charger).
8. Use screen-capture by holding down the home button and quickly pressing the top sleep-button (or vice versa). It will snap a pic and automatically add it in your photos.

Feedback

I’d warmly welcome feedback on these iPhone (and iPod Touch) resources, especially since I’m an inexperienced user.

1. What are your favorite apps? What apps (other than games) would you recommend?
2. Do you have any other suggestions or helpful comments re filtering?
3. Do you have any other suggestions?

If you’re a member, how would you suggest using this tool in a God-glorifying way?

Related:

1. Justin Buzzard, “Thinking Biblically About Facebook“
2. Josh Harris, “My One and Only Week on Facebook“
3. Josh Harris, “Facebook Again“

Electronic Hermeneutics refers to an emerging discussion concerning the rise of the digital age and its impact on religious communities and on the nature, place, and meaning of sacred texts such as the Bible within these communities and within the culture at large. Cognizant of how epochal shifts in the technology of communication have transformed human culture (as exemplified by the successive inventions of writing, printing, and the predigital electronic media), scholars are now investigating how the transition from printed text to the digital, mutlisensate worlds of hypertexts, hypermedia, interactivity, and “virtual reality” will shape human experience and communication. Biblical scholars have been among the first to make use of computer technology and to reflect on how changes in communication technology affect beliefs and practices. See W. J. Ong, Interfaces of the Word: Studies in the Evolution of Consciousness and Culture (Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell University Press, 1977); R. Hodgson and P. A. Soukup, eds., From One Medium to Another: Basic Issues for Communicating the Bible in New Media (Kansas City, Mo.: Sheed & Ward, 1997).

1. Adblock Plus automatically blocks most ads on most sites. You can also allow them on some sites.
2. Nuke Anything Enhanced allows you to right-click on any image to remove it instantly.
3. Flashblock works similarly for Flash.
4. Web Developer instantly removes all images on a page when you type Alt-t-w-i-n.

Related: John Piper’s “Resources on Sexuality“

I became aware of this product in May at The Gospel Coalition’s pastor’s colloquium. The man hired to transcribe the proceedings used his laptop and an IMAK SmartGlove on each hand. He highly recommended them to me when I asked about them. I now regularly and gratefully use them myself and am happy to commend them.

Four of my friends and former seminary classmates in Greenville just persuaded me. (They also happen to be bloggers: Brian Collins, Phil Gons, Matt Hoskinson, and Mark Ward.) After a day using Google Reader, I’m sold (though it took a little work to figure out how to set it up for maximum efficiency). The shortcuts are great, especially hitting the j-key to advance immediately from blog post to blog post.

Kudos to Google for another free first-class product.

Google : Internet :: kudzu : southeastern United States

“2. Readability: Electronic commentaries are more readable than print commentaries, especially those printed with tiny fonts (e.g., some footnotes). I frequently adjust the text’s font size depending on how far away I am from the screen and how tired my eyes are. I nearly always display the table of contents on the left side of the screen, which allows me to (1) see the logical flow of a commentary, (2) expand or collapse certain sections of the table of contents by clicking on the plus and minus symbols, and (3) jump directly to other sections. I also strongly prefer reading an electronic commentary on a large, good-quality LCD screen rather than a print commentary. At my home office, I currently connect a 22-inch LCD screen to my 17-inch laptop, which allows me to have multiple programs open on different screens. For example, when I am working through electronic commentaries, I prefer to have Libronix open on my 22-inch screen and other programs (Word, Outlook, Firefox, etc.) open on my 17-inch screen.”

Adding a second screen to a personal computer (laptop or desktop) is very easy to set up. For those using Microsoft Windows XP, plug the second screen’s cable into your computer, right-click on the desktop, and select Properties | Settings | monitor 2 | Extend my Windows desktop onto this monitor. (For those using Vista, right-click on the desktop, and select Personalize | Display Settings | Monitor | Extend the desktop onto this monitor.) Then adjust the screen resolution to the right setting, which may involve a bit of trial and error. When the screen resolution for monitor 2 is right, click Apply | OK. (Cf. Microsoft’s directions.) I highly recommend this!