Threads from Henry's Web

Tag: mybibleversion.com

  • Hosting Bible Translations Wiki

    Updated: I added one more topic for the wiki, and also changed the links to point to mybibleversion.com which is where I think this belongs. The old URLs are redirected.

    Before I discuss this, it is not a diversion from personalizing the MyBibleVersion.com site. In fact, it is now a part of that process.

    “This” is my creation is a Bible Translations Wiki, which will be hosted at Energion.com, the same physical site as hosts MyBibleVersion.com. I have wanted to do this for some time in order to enhance the available information. I had a small database of definitions, but it is nothing like what could be done with a Wiki specific to Bible translations.

    Associated with the Wiki is a forum. In order to be a user of the Wiki, users will register in the forum, and the same registration will be useful for both. This is why I installed the Wiki and the Forum first. The same registration will also be used when you create Bible translation profiles on MyBibleVersion.com.

    What will go into this Wiki?

    1. Definitions of terms related to Bible translation
    2. Basic information on Bible versions
    3. Reference sources, including books, blogs, and web sites
    4. General information to which you might need to link in discussing Bible translations
    5. Translation discussions for specific texts and issues

    I’ll be trying to avoid duplicating Wikipedia and writing more specialized materials. I will also be setting up style guides to divide information into general user sections and separate advanced sections.

    I have left this open so that anyone can contribute. Just create your account and start adding entries. I will be an editor, and I’m looking for a few others who would like to help edit. I do hope that many people will contribute. I don’t want the Wiki to be a form of self-expression for me. I have blogs to to that! I hope it will be a community project of value to those interested in Bible translation.

    While the software is stable, WikiMedia and phpBB, the installation should be considered in its very early stages. There aren’t many pages yet, and most of the needed help and introductory pages are still blank. I just thought it would be worthwhile letting people know and seeing if anyone was interested before I tried to spruce everything up.

    Go on over and check it out.

  • MyBibleVersion.com Progress Update

    I haven’t posted about the changes to MyBibleVersion.com for some time, so I thought I’d let you all know I’m still working on it. I don’t expect to roll it out until my site is moved to a new, upgraded physical server which should happen any day now. It’s been “any day now” for a few weeks, however, so don’t hold your breath.

    Here’s what I’ve decided to do:

    1. User registration.
      It won’t be required to use the site, but it will be necessary if you want to personalize it. See below.
    2. Some real help files.
      I think some people still leave because of complexity, so I want to include better explanations of how to use the site and also of the characteristics and how the numbers relate to reality.
    3. Customized data.
      Registered users will be able to create their own profile sets, then set the site to display their entries when they are using it. Other users can choose to use anyone’s profiles rather than mine if they so choose. Unregistered users will get my material in the same way as they do now.

      Users don’t have to use just the list of translations I include. You could include less versions, for example if you wanted to help people choose between the top ten versions, in your view. You can also add your own.

    4. Commenting.
      I will not roll this out initially, but I plan to add commenting capability, specific to each version profile and profile set. For example, if user “Fred” creates a profile of a version, you can comment on his work, or you can comment on mine or anyone else’s.
    5. Voting.
      I will add a function for registered users to vote on versions for a list of purposes. I haven’t decided on the details, except that there will be only one version list for this purpose, which I will create. Users can e-mail me to add versions. This is to avoid things like the Satanic Bible being added as happened on another service. Basically I’ll list things like “Pew Bible”, “Public Reading”, “Serious Study” and so forth, and users will be able to rank versions in terms of their usefulness for that purpose.

    Any suggestions are welcome. I’ll post here when I roll this stuff out.

  • MyBibleVersion.com – Comparison against a Base Version (Alpha)

    In response to a comment, I have added a page that will allow you to choose a base Bible version (whatever you prefer) and get a list of all other available versions based on how much they differ from that. The page is http://www.mybibleversion.com/compare.php. The default version is the NRSV if you don’t specify. There is a drop down box listing all available versions after the list of characteristics.

    I can’t emphasize enough that this is ALPHA software. Please watch for bugs, large and small, and report them via comments to this post. Requests for features are welcome, though time to implementation may vary wildly.