[sword-devel] Websites

[Andrew Thule]

(Relatively new to the list, so perhaps I shouldn't comment) I see both
perspectives being presented here and agree with both whole heartedly.  I
don't think they are mutually incompatible.

It is true Crosswire should be so much more than sword, that the goal of
getting the bible into the hands of many should not be limited to sword,
but the argument being made (as I understand it) isn't that efforts should
concentrate on one technology at the expense of another, or that the site
should cater to one over others, rather the argument is one about usage,
navigability, and perhaps branding.

Before joining this list, I came to Crosswire frequently - specifically for
the purpose of obtaining modules; seeing what other 'Sword' projects were
on the go, etc.  I was personally aware that Crosswire's focus was beyond
'Sword' but that's not what drew me in (I represent the typical European/N.
American middle class consumer however).  What drew me in was 'Sword'.
However, even if Sword is not the sole purpose of Crosswire, I expect it
accounts for much of the traffic.  So this is, in part, also about ease of
navigability, and branding, more than about selective effort.  (I'd bet an
analysis of the sites AWSTATs would show that Sword accounts for much of
the sites profiles, and that certainly is my experience).

Assuming there is general agreement that Crosswire != Sword what is the
'return on investment' for preserving the differentiation between
Crosswire/Sword, or being dogmatic about differentiating? Perhaps that
isn't even the correct question: is there some way to give the sword
component more exposure without subsuming the non-Sword bits of Crosswire?

The request to give sword modules greater exposure is valid if the
underlying concern is simply to make that part which (may) receive the
lions share of effort, and which (may) accounts for the lion's share of
traffic, more accessible with a stronger brand.  This should be achievable
without seeming to jeopardize the complete mission of Crosswire.

~Andrew

On Tue, Apr 10, 2012 at 10:33 AM, jhphx <jhphx at cox.net> wrote:

>  On 4/10/2012 6:01 AM, Mike Hart wrote:
>
>
>  I completely agree that for anyone on this list, getting any text onto
> an e-reader is trivial. However,  99.9% of the world does not have that
> knowledge, and getting homework, or Bible texts, onto a Kobo e-ink slate is
> beyond their competence. Which is why, again, Crosswire should be so much
> more than sword.  Things that are too easy to worry about here are unknown
> or impossible for someone who knows 5 people using a kindle e-ink device
> that speak Chinese, leaving for the homeland in 2 weeks, and the discussion
> about Christ got to a point they would consider transporting a ZH text back
> with them.
>
>
> A lot of people can't use anything until it shows up in their start menu.
> Even if they could download a file they would not know where to find the
> directory with the file that was downloaded. I used to support texts for
> downloading that were in TXT and DOC formats. It was amazing how many
> people couldn't figure out what to do with them once they downloaded them.
> That was in the DOS days but I still deal with people that don't have a
> clue. There is only so much that can be done in this regard.
>
> I like the idea of getting a program on the start menu which will lead
> them to the modules on their computers and on the net without them having
> to worry about what the web sites look like. Of course they still have to
> be able to get that program on the start menu. The job of presenting
> modules for downloading then goes to the front end developers. The
> alternative is to be something like CCEL.org. CCEL is a text library. To my
> knowledge Crosswire is not a text library. It is a software and software
> module library. A distinction that the end user should not have to be much
> concerned about, but that does not mean it works for people not using
> supported software or devices.
>
> Jerry
>
>
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