[sword-devel] console cf LCD bible

[l_d_allan at adelphia.net]

Hi DM,

> We chose Webstart for the mechanism of 
> installation to simplify the 
> installation.

<alert comment="less than fully informed Java opinions follow ... not Java bashing">

I am a fan of Java (especially compared to hold-your-nose MFC/C++), but it hasn't worked out to be appropriate for the kinds of software I work on ... but that may be a case of "a poor craftsman blames his tools." :-)

My experience with Java for standalone apps was when Webstart was just becoming available. 

> > IMHO, Java is great for intranets, but has problems with performance and installation for standalone apps.
> 
> I accept your opinion, but I have a different one.

LcdBible has a 'target audience' of obsolete computers (early Pentiums and 486's with 640*480 VGA resolution) such as those donated to missionaries. IMHO, to be usable, software needs to 'launch' relatively quickly (1 sec preferred, 5 sec max) and also perform flexible searching quickly (as above).

I think there is a tendency for developers to not be particularly aware of download issues. "Size matters." My impression is that the norm for 3rd world countries is that the Internet can be expensive, slow, and unreliable (i.e. dropped connections).  

The net result can be that downloads of over 5 meg are unusable. A 14meg+ JRE could be painful. One of the reasons that the .NET framework seems slow to catch on is that it requres a 22meg+ download. 

Do we assume that end-users of Bible software can install and properly use download managers to restart a dropped connection when a 15meg download times out after an hour?

The above is not meant as a criticism of JSword ... they are intended to serve different needs. With LcdBible, I have always included the disclaimer that if you have a reasonably modern computer, are reasonably computer literate, have decent screen resolution, have a reasonably reliable and inexpensive Internet connection, and want to do more with Bible software than the basics, then there are certainly more appropriate choices available.

</alert>

For His glory and honor,
Lynn Allan