[jsword-devel] Av11n and coverage

[Peter von Kaehne]

Some of our modules need a certain versification, but do not use all the
books available in the versification. Sometimes this is the result of
the translation being incomplete, but sometimes this is the result of a
theological stance:

Many translations in the former USSR area will use the synodal
versification, but will at the same time not integrate DC material.

Currently on libsword frontends which support av11n a text with Synodal
v11n, but no DC material will have empty DC books and the names will
appear in the menus. This can be a serious detractor in areas where
people might consider the Bible being corrupted and the same people
unwilling to listen to lengthy explanations why DC is not meant to be
part of the Bible.

Alternatively, many translations, while incomplete are meant to be
incomplete - e.g. are in a small language where people will want to have
parts of the Bible in their own mother tongue, but will happily use the
dominant language for more complete Bible study. A number of our Iran
region translations are of this kind. To have all books appear in the
menus when in reality there are and will ever only be e.g. Genesis,
Psalms, Luke, Acts and Romans is detracting.

The best solution for all this would be a coverage entry in the conf file.

Chris suggested that this should be an OSISRef. I concur. It is the most
flexible way of implementing this and allows finegrained control (if one
wishes to have this)

Can I propose therefore that we will add to "incomplete" modules (in
terms of the underlying versification) an entry

Coverage=Gen,Psalm,Luke,Acts,Rom (sorry if the OSIS abbreviations are
off, but OSIS was meant)

For some nonDC translations this might then be simply

Coverage=Gen-Mal,Mat-Rev

Others nonDC translations (with v111n where DC material is interspersed)
might require more finegrained references, including chapter and verse
references.

Frontends then could implement this as part of their work to make av11n
work.

Underlying is of course the versification of a particular module - which
will dictate which books are there in the first place, in which order
and which chapters/verses too.

What does everyone think?

Peter

I am posting this to jsword too as I see that DM has started
implementing av11n!! Great - thanks DM.