I was having a coffee with Dominic a couple of weeks ago and he suggested I should blog about the technology I use for Bible study. So I’ve split this into two posts. This one focuses on my general computing setup and the other focuses on how I use the UMPC.
First of all, the benefits of electronic Bible study tools are quite well documented and are summed up in two words: Search and Ease of access (OK, that’s four words):
- Fast search of the Bible in any translation you have
- Search on word, phrase, Greek or Hebrew word
- Search for references to verses
- Search your notes
- Search in original languages
- You can have as many books open as your screen allows you to have
- More books can be used during the course of study
- Easier to access books on the computer than a physical library
I mostly use Logos – primarily due to the library I have in it, and some of the advanced features such as the reverse interlinear Bible, although I like using Pocket Bible for Windows from Laridian for Bible in a year readings.
I have two computers which I use. One is a home built desktop computer – reasonably new – with a nice big 24" screen. This is great for sitting down and studying in preparation for our life group that we have each week. The big screen allows me to have lots of things on screen at one time, which makes it easy to work with a number of books and notes at once.
The other computer is tiny and highly portable Fujitsu U1010 (also known as a U810 in the US). This is a miniature convertible tablet PC based on the UMPC specification. It is not as fast as my quad core desktop, but it serves a different purpose (more on this in the next post).
I keep my notes synchronised between the two computers via Foldershare – which automatically syncs files (as long as both computers are on) when the files change.
So, if I make a note on one computer, or highlight a passage, or similar – in a few moments it’s on my other computer. I also use this system to synchronise hand written notes from my mobile computer to my desktop computer. This means I’ve always got all my notes with me wherever I am.
One of the great things about technology is that the price of all this keeps coming down. My desktop computer is only a few months old and while it’s pretty grunty – Quad Core Intel, 4 Gb RAM, 2x 400Gb HDD in a stripe (for speed) and a nice big 24" monitor, the entire setup cost less than NZ$3k The monitor has shed a couple of hundred dollars since then as has the CPU. Maybe I’m showing my age, but given this was the first desktop computer I’ve bought in 3 years, I was pretty happy with the difference in value for money.
Next: Portability
