(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.<br><br>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.<br>
<br>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).<br>
<br>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?<br>
<br>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.<br>
<br>~Andrew<br><br><div class="gmail_quote">On Tue, Apr 10, 2012 at 10:33 AM, jhphx <span dir="ltr"><<a href="mailto:jhphx@cox.net">jhphx@cox.net</a>></span> wrote:<br><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0 0 0 .8ex;border-left:1px #ccc solid;padding-left:1ex">
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On 4/10/2012 6:01 AM, Mike Hart wrote:
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<div style="font-family:times new roman,new york,times,serif;font-size:12pt">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. <br>
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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. <br>
<br>
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. <br>
<br>
Jerry<br>
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