e-Sword Poll Results

2008 Poll results
Between 23 February 2008 and 1 April 2008, nineteen polls about operating system usage were run on the eSword support list. Due to the low numbers1, the results of these polls are inconclusive.
001/Operating Systems
001: What Operating System do you use e-Sword on? Please answer this poll and the operating specific poll as well. This poll allows for more than one vote.

Eighty eight votes were cast. The results were2:
OS/2 Warp 0%
Unix 0%
Solaris / Open Solaris 0%
BeOS 0%
ReACT 0%
Windows 84%
Macintosh 4%
Linux 10%
BSD 0%
Other 1%
002/Windows
002: Which of the following versions of Windows do you run e-Sword on? Please answer this poll and, if applicable, the Version Specific poll as well.

There were 43 votes. The results were3:
Windows NT 3.1 0%
Windows NT 3.5 0%
Windows NT 3.51 0%
Windows NT 3.51 0%
Windows NT 4.0 0%
Windows 95 0%
Windows 98 0%
Windows 98 2nd Ed 4%
Windows ME 2%
Windows 2000 6%
Windows XP 74%
Windows 2003 0%
Windows Vista 11%
Windows 2008 0%
003/Windows 95
003: Which of the following versions of Windows 95 do you use e-Sword on?

There was 1 vote. The results were4:
Windows 95-B OEM Service Release 2 100%
Windows 95-B (USB) OEM Service Release 2.1 0%
Windows 95-C OEM Service Release 2.5 0%
Windows 95 0%
Windows 95 Retail 0%
Windows 95 Retail SP 1 0%
Windows 95-A OEM Service Release 1 0%
004/Windows NT 4.0
004: Which of the following versions of Windows NT 4.0 do you use e-Sword on?

There was no votes. The results were5:
Windows NT 4.0 Server 0%
Windows NT 4.0 Enterprise Edition 0%
Windows NT 4.0 Terminal Server 0%
Windows NT 4.0 Work Station 0%
005/Windows NT 3.x
005: Which of the following versions of Windows NT 3.x do you use e-Sword on?

There was no votes. The results were6:
Windows NT 3.1 0%
Windows NT 3.1 Advanced Server 0%
Windows NT 3.5 Server 0%
Windows NT 3.5 Workstation 0%
Windows NT 3.51 Server 0%
Windows NT 3.51 WorkStation 0%
006.Windows XP
OO6: Which of the following versions of Windows XP do you use e-Sword on? This poll allows for one vote only.

There were 58 votes. The results were7:
Windows XP Home Edition (32 bit) 37%
Windows XP Professional Edition (32 bit) 51%
Windows XP 64 bit Home Edition 0%
Windows XP 64 bit Professional Edition 1%
Windows XP Media Center Edition 3%
Windows XP Tablet Edition 5%
Windows XP Embedded Edition 0%
Windows XP Starter Edition 0%
Windows XP Edition N 0%
Windows Fundamentals for Legacy Systems 0%
007/Windows 2003
007: Which of the following versions of Windows 2003 do you use e-Sword on?

There were 2 votes. The results were8:
Windows Server 2003 Standard Edition 50%
WS 2003 Web Edition 0%
WS 2003 Small Business Server 0%
WS 2003 Datacenter Edition 0%
WS 2003 Enterprise Edition 50%
WS 2003 Computer Cluster Edition Edition 0%
WS 2003 Storage Edition 0%
WS 2003 Home Edition 0%
WS 2003 Standard Edition 64 Bit Version 0%
WS 2003 Web Edition 64 Bit Version 0%
WS 2003 Small Business Server 64 BitVersion 0%
WS 2003 Datacenter Edition 64 BitVersion 0%
WS 2003 Enterprise Edition 64 Bit Version 0%
WS 2003 Computer Cluster Edition Edition 64 Bit Version 0%
WS 2003 Storage Edition 64 Bit Version 0%
WS 2003 Home Edition 64 Bit Version 0%
008/Windows 2000
008: Which of the following versions of Windows 2000 do you use e-Sword on?

There were 13 votes. The results were9:
Windows 2000 Server 7%
Windows 2000 Advanced Server 0%
Windows 2000 Datacenter Server 0%
Windows 2000 Professional 92%
009/64 Bit Windows
009: Which of the following versions of 64 Bit Windows do you run e-Sword on? Vote for one choice only.

There were 1 vote. The results were10:
WS 2003 Datacenter Edition 64 Bit Version 0%
WS 2003 Enterprise Edition 64 Bit Version 0%
WS 2003 Computer Cluster Edition Edition 64 Bit Version 0%
WS 2003 Storage Edition 64Bit Version 0%
WS 2003 Home Edition 64 Bit Version 0%
WS 2003 Standard Edition 64 Bit Version 0%
Windows Server 2008 Standard Edition x64 0%
Windows Server 2008 Enterprise Edition x64 0%
Windows Server 2008 Datacenter Edition x64 0%
Windows Web Server 2008 Edition x64 0%
Windows Storage Server 2008 Edition x64 0%
Windows Small Business Server 2008 Edition x64 0%
Windows Essential Business Server 2008 Edition x64 0%
Windows Server 2008 Itanium Edition 0%
Windows Vista Home Basic Edition x64 0%
Windows Vista Home Premium Edition x64 0%
Windows Vista Business Edition x64 0%
Windows Vista Enterprise Edition x64 0%
Windows Vista Ultimate Edition x64 0%
Windows XP 64 Bit Home Edition 0%
Windows XP 64 Bit Professional Edition 1 100%
Windows XP 64 Bit Itanium: Version 2002 0%
Windows XP 64 Bit Itanium2: Version 2003 0%
WS 2003 Web Edition 64 Bit Version 0%
WS 2003 Small Business Server 64 Bit Version 0%
010/WS 2008
010: Which of the following versions of Windows Server 2008 do you use e-Sword on?

There were 0 votes. The results were11:
Windows Server 2008 Standard Edition x86 0%
Windows Server 2008 Enterprise Edition x86 0%
Windows Server 2008 Datacenter Edition x86 0%
Windows HPC Server 2008 0%
Windows Web Server 2008 Edition x86 0%
Windows Storage Server 2008 Edition x86 0%
Windows Small Business Server 2008 Edition x64 0%
Windows Essential Business Server 2008 Edition x64 0%
Windows Server 2008 Itanium Edition 0%
Windows Server 2008 Standard Edition x64 0%
Windows Server 2008 Enterprise Edition x64 0%
Windows Server 2008 Enterprise Edition x64 0%
Windows Web Server 2008 Edition x64 0%
Windows Storage Server 2008 Edition x64 0%
011/32 Bit Windows Vista
011: Which of the following versions of 32 Bit Windows Vista do you use e-Sword on? The "N" editions are only distributed in Europe. The "K" and "KN"editions are only distributed in South Korea. You may vote once in this poll.

There were 11 votes. The results were12:
Windows Vista Starter Edition x86 0%
Windows Vista Home Basic Edition x86 18%
Windows Vista Home Premium Edition x86 54%
Windows Vista Business Edition x86 0%
Windows Vista Enterprise Edition x86 0%
Windows Vista Ultimate Edition x86 18%
Windows Vista Home Basic Edition N x86 0%
Windows Vista Home Premium Edition N x86 9%
Windows Vista Business Edition N x86 0%
Windows Vista Home Basic Edition K x86 0%
Windows Vista Home Premium Edition K x86 0%
Windows Vista Business Edition K x86 0%
Windows Vista Home Basic Edition KN x86 0%
Windows Vista Home Premium Edition KN x86 0%
Windows Vista Home Premium Edition KN x86 0%
Windows Vista Ultimate Limited Edition x86 0%
Windows 0%
012/64 Bit Windows Vista
012: Which of the following versions of 64 Bit Windows Vista do you use e-Sword on?

There were 2 votes. The results were13:
Windows Vista Home Basic Edition KN x64 0%
Windows Vista Home Premium Edition KN x64 0%
Windows Vista Business Edition KN x64 0%
Windows Vista Ultimate Limited Edition x64 0%
Windows Vista Home Basic Edition x64 0%
Windows Vista Home Premium Edition x64 50%
Windows Vista Business Edition x64 0%
Windows Vista Enterprise Edition x64 0%
Windows Vista Ultimate Edition x64 50%
Windows Vista Home Basic Edition N x64 0%
Windows Vista Home Premium Edition N x64 0%
Windows Vista Business Edition N x64 0%
Windows Vista Home Basic Edition K x64 0%
Windows Vista Home Premium Edition K x64 0%
Windows Vista Business Edition K x64 0%
013/ OS/2 Warp
013: Which of the following versions of OS/2 Warp do you use?

There were 0 votes. The results were14:
OS/2 Warp 2.0 0%
OS/2 Warp 2.1 0%
OS/2 Warp 3.0 0%
OS/2 Warp 4.0 0%
OS/2 Warp 4.5 0%
OS/2 Warp 5.0 0%
eComStation 1.0 0%
eComStation 1.1 0%
eComStation 1.2 0%
eComStation 1.2R 0$
014/Macintosh
014: Which version of the Macintosh Operating System do you use e-Sword on? Vote for one option only.

There were 4 votes. The results were15:
Macintosh OS X 10.4 Tiger 25%
Macintosh OS X 10.3 Panther 0%
Macintosh OS X 10.2 Jaguar 0%
Macintosh OS X 10.5 Leopard 75%
Macintosh OS X 10.1 Puma 0%
Macintosh OS X 10.0 Cheetah 0%
Macintosh OS X 10.4.1 Developer Edition (AKA Macintosh for Intel) 0%
Macintosh OS X Server Standard 10.5 Leopard 0%
Macintosh OS X Server Workgroup 10.5 Leopard 0%
Macintosh OS X Server Advanced 10.5 Leopard 0%
Macintosh OS X Server 10.4 Tiger 0%
Macintosh OS X 1 Server 0.3 Panther 0%
Macintosh OS X Server 10.2 Jaguar 0%
Macintosh OS X Server 10.1 Puma 0%
Macintosh OS X Server 10.0 Cheetah 0%
Rhapsody DR-1 (Mac 5.0) 0%
Rhapsody DR 2 (Mac 5.1) 0%
Macintosh OS X Server 1.0 (Mac 5.3) 0%
Macintosh OS X Server 1.2 (Mac 5.6) 0 %
Macintosh OS 9 0%
Macintosh OS 8 0%
Macintosh OS 7.6 0%
System 7.5 0%
System 7 0%
Other Macintosh Version 0%
015/Linux Distros
015: Which distro based version of Linux do you run e-Sword on. One vote only.

There were 10 votes. The results were16:
Red Hat Enterprise Edition Based 10%
Fedora Based 0%
Slackware Based 0%
Slax Based 0%
Mandrivia Based 10%
Knoppix Based 0%
Gentoo Based 0%
Puppy Linux Based 0%
Other RPM based 0%
SuSe Based 0%
Debian Based 10%
Ubuntu Based 70%

016/Christian Orientated Linux Distros
016: Which Christian Orientated Linux distribution do you run e-Sword on? If you select "Other",please post a message to the list stating what it is. AFAIK, I have listed all of the Linux distributions that claim a Christian orientation.

There were 0 votes. The results were17:
Ichthux 0%
Ubuntu Christian Edition 0%
Christux 0%
Church Puppy 0%
Other 0%
017/Ubuntu Based Distros
017: Which Ubuntu derived Linux distribution do you use e-Sword with.

There were 7 votes. The results were18:
Ubuntu 85%
Kubuntu 0%
Edubuntu 0%
XuBuntu 0%
Linux Mint 14%
FreeSpire 0%
gNewSense 0%
Ubuntu Studio 0%
GoBuntu 0%
Fluxbuntu 0%
gOS 0%
LinuxMCE 0%
MythBuntu 0%
nUbuntu 0%
UbuntuLite 0%
NexentaOS 0%
GooBuntu 0%
GuadaLinux 0%
Imp iLinux 0%
MoLinux 0%
Baltix 0%
Linspire 0%
UbuntuME 0%
FrogLinux 0%
Other Ubuntu Derivative 0%
018/Top 10 Linux Distros
018: This is the top 10 list of Linux distros according to DistroWatch. Which, if any, do you run e-Sword one?

There were 8 votes. The results were19:
Ubuntu 7.10 62%
OpenSuse 0%
Fedora 8.0 0%
Debian 4.0 12%
Mandrivia 2008.0 12%
PCLinuxOS 2007 12%
SimplyMEPIS 7.0 0%
Knoppix 5.1.1 0%
Slackware Linux 12.0 0%
Gentoo Linux 2007. 0%
019/BSD
019: Which BSD distribution and version do you use e-sword with? Vote for one choice only. Macintosh does not count as a BSD operating system for the purposes of this poll.

There was 1 votes. The results were20:
Debian GNU/kFree BSD 0%
PC-BSD 0%
DebianGNU/NET BSD 0%
Ging 0%
Desktop BSD 0%
Closed BSD 0%
Other BSD Distribution 0%
Gentoo/FreeBSD 100%
DragonFly BSD 0%
NetBSD 0%
NetBSD 0%
OpenBSD 0%
FireFly BSD 0%
OliveBSD 0%
MirOS BSD 0%
Gentoo/OpenBSD 0%
Anonym.OS 0%
Fuguita 0%
BSD 4.4 0%
Quetzal 0%
Midnight BSD 0%
BlackBSD 0%
Force120 Networks 0%
Gentoo/NET BSD 0%
Jibbed 0%

e-Sword Polls

Back on 24 February, 19 polls regarding operating systems that people run e-Sword on were created at the eSword list on yahoogroups. These were the results on 25 Fevbraury, prior to me resetting all totals to zero.

001: What Operating System do you use e-Sword on? Please answer this
poll and the operating specific poll as well

* Windows: 29;
* Macintosh: 2;
* Linux:2;
* Rest: 0 votes;

002: Which of the following versions of Windows do you use e-Sword on?
Please answer this poll and, if applicable, the Version Specific poll
as well.

* Windows 2000: 3 votes;
* Windows XP: 19 votes;
* Windows VIsta: 11 votes;
* Rest: 0 votes;

003: Which of the following versions of Windows 95 do you use e-Sword on?

* No votes;

004: Which of the following versions of Windows NT 4.0 do you use e-Sword on?

* No votes;

005: Which of the following versions of Windows NT 3.x do you use e-Sword on?

* No votes;

OO6: Which of the following versions of Windows XP do you use e-Sword on?

* Windows XP Home Edition: 16 votes
* Windows XP Professional Edition: 22 votes
* Windows XP Media Center Edition: 8 votes
* Windows XP Tablet Edition: 1 votes
* Rest: 0 votes;

007: Which of the following versions of Windows 2003 do you use e-Sword on?

* No votes;

008: Which of the following versions of Windows 2000 do you use e-Sword on?

* Windows 2000 Professional 3 votes;
* Rest: 0 votes;

009: Which of the following versions of 64 Bit Windows do you use e-Sword on?

* Windows Vista Home Premium Edition x64 2 votes;
* Rest: 0 votes;

010: Which of the following versions of Windows Server 2008 do you use
e-Sword on?

* No votes;

011: Which of the following versions of 32 Bit Windows Vista do you
use e-Sword on?

* Windows Vista Home Basic Edition x86: 2 votes;
* Windows Vista Home Premium Edition x86: 7 votes;
* Windows Vista Business Edition x86: 2 votes;
* Windows Vista Ultimate Edition x86: 3 votes;
* Rest: 0 votes;

012: Which of the following versions of 64 Bit Windows Vista do you
use e-Sword on?

* No votes;

013: Which of the following versions of OS/2 Warp do you use?

* No votes;

014: Which version of the Macintosh Operating System do you use e-Sword on?

* Macintosh OS X 10.4 Tiger 1 vote
* Macintosh OS X 10.2 Jaguar 1 vote
* Other Macintosh Version 1 vote
* Rest: 0 votes;

015: What Version of Linux do you use

* Mandrivia Based: 1 vote;
* Gentoo Based: 1 vote;
* Debian Based: 1 vote;
* Ubuntu Based: 1 vote;
* Rest: 0 votes;

016: Which Christian Orientated Linux distribution do you use?

* Other distro: 1 vote;
* Rest: 0 votes;

017: Which Ubuntu derived Linux distribution do you use e-Sword with.

* No votes;

018: This is the top 10 list of Linux distros according to
DistroWatch. Which, if any, do you run e-Sword one?

* Ubuntu 7.10 1 vote;
* SimplyMEPIS 7.0 1 vote;
* Rest: 0 votes;

019: Which BSD distribution and version do you use e-sword with?

DebianGNU/NET BSD: 1 vote;
Other BSD Distribution: 1 vote;
* Rest: 0 votes;

BibleTech 2008

I've pondered upon what to write about BibleTech 2008.

Most of the sessions are now available for downloading in mp3 format.

The first talk I attended was Tauber's talk "MorphGNT and the building of Linguistic Databases for New Testament Greek". It was gratifying to learn that he used basic Unix command line tools for his analysis, when he started the project. One other point is that he maintains a Greek morphological analysis dictionary based upon Strong's, which is in the public domain. So now I can point people to a text taht can be freely translated, if they want Strong's in a specific language.

Andy Wu's talk "Treebacks of Biblical Texts" was about something I'd wondered about creating for e-Sword. Specifically, if a tool that autogenerated Tree Diagrams would be useful after it created one for every verse. The answer here is "yes". The reason: Use the sentence diagrams to determine how closely a translation matches the source text. One thing I'm curious about, is how they created their rules for Chinese grammar.

Rick Brannan's "Locating New Testament Cross-References: Some Strategies" has a more practical effect. One resource that I think e-Sword lacks, is a comprehensive gratis set of cross-references. This talk gave me a set of starting points to create such a resource. I don't know if I'll be able to generate the 500 000 cross-references that one hard copy Bible claims to have.

There were several other very good talks. Those three are the ones that set me wondering about how to create their specific information into resources for e-Sword.

Documentation Time line

I backed up my windows box to a portable drive. This was very easy, and appeared to result in no verification errors.

Then I reinstalled Windows. Or rather tried to. For some reason, Windows refuses to install on the system, dying because it can not find a file in my floppy drive.

So until I get windows up and running, both resource creation, and documentation writing is on hold. :(

My priority will be getting The e-Sword Module Database current, and available as an SQLite database by 24 January.

I also will work on The Pocket e-Sword FAQ. The last version was released in 2005. I'll browse both the Pocket e-Sword and eSword lists, to see what changes need to be made. The last version was released in 2005, so I suspect that a total rewrite is required.

As far as The e-Sword Utility Program FAQ goes, Where to obtain support from, will continue to be updated monthly. The priority for the rest of the sections is as follows:

* Creating Modules using e-Sword;
* What is e-Sword;
* What are the required components;
* What are the e-Sword Utility programs;
* Best Practices;
* A11Y issues;
* You want what as a module;
* The Bible Component;
* The Bible Reading Plan Component;
* The Bookmark Component;
* The Commentary Component;
* The Devotional Component;
* The Dictionary Component;
* The Harmony Component;
* The MAP/Graphic Component;
* The Markup Overlay Component;
* The Memory Verse Component;
* The Prayer Request Component;
* The Sermon Illustration Component;
* The Study Note Component;
* The Topical File Component;
* The Verse List Component;
* Making Complex modules;
* e-Sword tips;
* How to use the Utility programs;
* How to use the Utility programs: STEP;
* How to use the Utility Programs: JB;
* Known Errors in e-Sword resources;
* Bible Translations: Names and Abbreviations;
* Abbreviations;
* Abbreviations: master List;
* Canonical and Deuterocanonical Material;
* Internal Verse Numbering;
* Versification Schemes;
* Direct mapping;
* Encoding Schemes;
* Other File Formats;
* e-Sword in Other Languages;
* BibleStudy2006;
* Bible Language Study Tools;
* Questions about the FAQ;
* Intellectual Property Rights;

This does not list every section in the master document. The priority of a section may change due to a change in circumstances.

Translation of the FAQ has been put on indefinite hold.

e-Sword 7.9.3

e-Sword 7.9.3 was released on 17 January 2008.

The Sermon Illustration component is the major new feature.

The most significant change is that user created resources are now stored in a user-folder. (c:\Users and Settings\user-name\My Documents\e-Sword).

When installing, or upgrading e-Sword, all existing topical files will be placed in the user directory, unless they are either password protected, or write protected. Only keep topical files that are being actively edited in the user folder.

Strong's numbering recognition has been changed, so that one does not have to use a modified LXX+ with modified Strong's to see Greek Strong Numbers. In theory, a Hebrew NT with Hebrew Strong's numbers will also display the correct Strong's number information. (I can't find my Hebrew NT+ resource, so I could not verify that that feature works as expected.)

One caveat: Upgrading e-Sword may result in your existing Strong's module being overwritten. This may not be something you want to see happen.

I ran an extended commentary search, with no commentaries checked. In theory, no results should have been returned. In practice, I have intermittently received a result. I can not duplicate the conditions under which that happens. :( This marks the third or fourth time I have found something that should not happen, happening on an unpredictable, intermittent basis. It probably is a quirk in how I configure Windows. (For starters, Internet Explorer is not installed.)

I don't have multiple monitors, so I wasn't able to test that feature out. (More to the point, my preference is running windows without a monitor.)