[sword-devel] CrossWire module repositories feature request.

[Jonathan Marsden]

Nic Carter wrote:

> Or do we just suggest that the various front-ends implement the new 
> SWORD API features for determining updated modules? The issue with 
> this, for me (for PocketSword) is that the user has to manually
> "refresh" the repos ...

Then logically, you should now write an enhancement request against
PocketSWORD to allow the user to automate this "refreshment" -- perhaps
a way to request that refresh happen automatically once a week, or even
at a user-configurable interval?  I realize you can't easily add cron
jobs to iPhones, but writing a file when you successfully refresh (so
you know when that was by checking its creation time), and then firing
off a thread to do the refresh in the background when the app is
launched if "too long" has gone by with no refresh, or some similar
scheme, might be workable?  You could conceivably go further, and pop up
a dialog saying "18 newly published SWORD modules found" or whatever,
from which users can open their bookshelf manager (or the PocketSWORD
equivalent!) to see what they are, and decide which ones to install.

> ... users could subscribe to an RSS feed (if they're interested in 
> "bleeding-edge" releases) and then hit refresh when they know there 
> are module updates/additions? :)

To me this seems a "round about" approach; if the user wants to stay
updated, he should ask PocketSWORD to keep itself updated, and be done
with it!  Compare this with: subscribe to a feed, read it regularly, and
manually refresh the app when he sees something potentially interesting
in the feed... which one is easier for the user? :)

> Perhaps this is one of those "it-would-be-nice" things?  But I know
> that I would find this useful, so perhaps others would find it useful
> too? :)

I think the idea of allowing people to stay updated about new modules is
great.  I think your proposed implementation feels awkward somehow -- my
suggestion is to just let the computer do the checking and refreshing :)

One final thought: how does PocketSWORD's "competition" handle this?
Can you learn anything from their approach(es)?

Jonathan