What's New?
Read company news as well information about new products and new Bible Study App releases.
Windows 8 The Bible Study App Update
12April 9, 2013
Olive Tree recently released an update to The Bible Study App on Windows 8. I sat down with Adam, our lead Windows 8 developer, to talk about the update.
Monty: How is the Windows 8 app different from the Windows 7 desktop version?
Adam: The Windows Store app targets a fast and fluid experience across a wide range of devices, where the Desktop app has an eye for much more advanced Bible Study that can require more processing.
Thus far the Windows Store app has worked well as a basic Bible reader, but that is only the beginning. We recently updated the app to add popups for footnotes and Bible references, and will be continuing to build it into an incredible experience for even more advanced users.
Monty: Why use the Windows 8 app?
Adam: My favorite reason is the speed, even on my tablet. I’m not an advanced user, so having a Bible app that I can easily snap to the side of the screen during church while I take notes in OneNote makes for a great experience for me.
Monty: What are the top features of the Windows 8 app?
Adam: Right now, I get really excited when using the Search screens, both for the view of results in all my books, but also to easily navigate the results within a specific book. We have also leveraged common Windows 8 features like Semantic Zoom and the app bar to filter and navigate through the results quickly.would say the top features are the search and reading experience.
With reading, I’ve already mentioned the performance. The responsiveness when scrolling is, I believe, unparalleled by any of our other apps. It makes it a real joy to use, especially because the text just plain looks great!
Monty: What’s new in the Windows 8 app?
Adam: We recently updated the app to include popups on footnotes and verse references. This is particularly important to me because it’s the first step beyond a “simple” Bible reader. This past Sunday in church I was able to jump ahead of the pastor as he called out a cross reference because I saw the footnote and could open the location in the popup.
Monty: Anything else you would like to add?
Adam: We are working hard to enable the rest of our available titles in the Windows Store app. I’m excited to see the continued interest in what we’re doing on Windows, and for the opportunity to keep working at making it better!
Thanks Adam! Go here to find our newest Windows 8 release for the Bible Study App, or search “Bible+” in the Windows Store.
What’s New in the NA28?
25April 2, 2013
By Olive Tree Staff: Matthew Jonas
I have to admit that when I heard that a new edition of the Novum Testamentum Graece was being published, it wasn’t a big deal for me. I liked the NA27 just fine and while realized that the NA28 would reflect the latest advances in New Testament textual criticism, I wasn’t sure how important it was to me to be on the cutting edge of textual criticism. Before working for Olive Tree, I was an educator and taught classes mainly on Greek and Latin. I used the NA27 in my classes, and we did consult the textual apparatus from time to time. Since the main text was the focus in my classes, I might not need the most recent edition if the changes were limited to the apparatus. When I finally had a chance to look through the NA28 though, my attitude changed.
First of all, there are changes to the main text in the NA28 (unlike the NA27, which reprints the same main text used in the NA26). Most of these changes are orthographic, but there are a dozen or so changes in the Catholic Epistles that affect the meaning of the passage. These changes are limited to the Catholic Epistles currently, but my understanding is that the editors of the NA28 plan on releasing further revisions to other sections of the New Testament in the future.
While the changes to the main text are significant, the most substantial differences between the NA28 and the NA27 are in the apparatus. The entire apparatus has been revised, but the sections covering the Catholic Epistles also have some additional changes that have not yet been applied to the other sections. The overall purpose of the apparatus has changed in the NA28. In some ways it reminds me a little more of the apparatus included with the UBS4. It serves as an introduction to the sources rather than just a collection of variants. This distinction may seem a little vague, but the resulting apparatus is clearer and easier to use than the previous one.
Beyond the general shift in philosophy, here are some more specific changes that were made to the apparatus:
- The distinction between consistently cited witnesses of the first order and of the second order has been eliminated. Now there are just consistently cited witnesses.
- The use of sed and et to combine variants has been eliminated.
- “Archaic Mark” (i.e. ms 2427) is no longer cited since it has been proven to be a forgery.
- Conjectural readings have been completely eliminated.
- Citations of the various versions and the Church Fathers have all been “double-checked”
- The apparatus for the Catholic Epistles uses “Byz” instead of a Fraktur letter M to represent the Byzantine tradition.
- Readings from the newly discovered Papyri 117-121 are included.
The net result of all of these changes is a fresh and exciting new edition of the Greek New Testament. This is the first edition of the Nestle-Aland text that was not edited by Kurt Aland, and the new editor, Holger Strutwolf, made some compelling changes in this edition.
To get the NA28 for The Bible Study App click HERE. Please note you can also get the NA28 bundled with the critical apparatus, Mounce parsings, or both.
For more information on the NA28, check out the following links:
- The German Bible Society Page on the NA28
- Nestle-Aland 28: The New Standard in Critical Texts of the Greek New Testament
- NA28: What the Front Matter Says about the Edition
New Windows Update
3February 27, 2013
The Bible Study App for Windows has a new update (5.3.1) available for download now! If you’re not sure how to update The Bible Study App follow the two step process in this graphic. You’ll then be prompted to restart the App. Also, check out some video tutorials on the Windows platform HERE.
What’s new in the 5.3.1 release?
Cross Reference copying
When viewing cross references you can right click on the heading to copy all of the cross references in the group or you can right click on an individual reference to copy it.
Cross references can be accessed by clicking on item, such as “What does the Bible say about: Paul“.
Annotations can be moved into a category with drag and drop
Annotations can now be dragged into categories. This is possible from any of the annotation list within My Stuff. Simply drag an annotation in the list over a category.
Un-linking the split window
It is now possible to unlink the split window from the main window.
Updates in Bible+ 5.3 for Windows Desktop
9January 16, 2013
For those of you using The Bible Study App for Windows, our newest update (5.3) just went live. As with many app updates that come out, sometimes it’s hard to tell what’s new. Here are a few of the new features in this latest release for Windows:
Daily Reading
We’ve added daily reading to the 5.3 release. Daily reading plans can be accessed from ‘My Stuff’ in the split window.
Custom highlighters can now be created
Custom highlighter can now be created in the 5.3 version. This feature can be accessed by clicking on Highlights from My Stuff.
New Category Interface
This gives you greater control to setup your own categories. Simply edit or create a category to get this new interface which is very similar to Windows Explorer.
Search list when doing a search within a book
When performing a search within a book, there is now a button the user can click to display a list of all of the search results.
Sneak Peek
12January 10, 2013
Here are two features to look forward to in an upcoming iOS App release!
In App Dictionary Lookup:
Multi-verse Highlighting:
Introducing Paideia
2Olive Tree just released Paideia: Commentaries on the New Testament for The Bible Study app. According to the series foreward, the commentary series was named “Paideia”, which is Greek for “education”, to reflect:
(2) the fact that the New Testament texts as literary unities are shaped by the educational categories and ideas of their ancient writers and readers; and
(3) the pedagogical aims of the texts themselves—their central aim being not simply to impart information but to form the theological convictions and moral habits of their readers.
Although this series is intentionally aimed at “MA students in religious and theological studies programs, seminarians, and upper-divisional undergraduates” the authors do not go into so much theological detail as to leave the rest of us lost in a sea of research.
Paideia is also different in that the series is not a “verse-by-verse” commentary, but rather looks at the final form of the Biblical text in large units of thought.
As such, each commentary is broken out into three sections:
(1) introductory matters
(2) tracing the train of thought
(3) theological issues
Paideia also has several maps, photos, and charts that help make the biblical text more accessible to those without original language, biblical and extra-biblical historical backgrounds and preparation.
Here are a few Examples:
The Paideia commentaries are even more powerful with The Bible Study App. Use the split window to read your chosen Bible translation on one side of the screen while the corresponding Paideia commentary will sync with your reading in your split window. Or, use the pop-out windows to view the content separately. If you are using the Windows 7 app, this is especially helpful if you have two monitors.
Like what you see? Right now, you can get the 10 volume Paideia commentary set for 50% off the regular price through May 6th.
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