Bible Software for Macs
From Claire Hart
Charles,
I've had your article at /1996/umax-supermac-j700//misc/01/1219.html
bookmarked for quite a while.
My MacBible floppies are no longer recognizable in my new PowerBook
and Blueberry iMac, and I am tired of always having to be online to
access Bible text. So I looked up your articles written 12/19/01 and
1/9/02, and realized that they are nearly three years old (!!!), which
is very old in computer years. (isn't a computer year equivalent to
about 20 human years?) Anyway, as I was reading through your info
again, I realized that since I rarely go into Classic mode, I
need to stick to something OS X native, and that led me to wonder
if perhaps you might have written a more recent article.
Do you have a more recent review of Bible software? I am ready to
compare and buy, so any links or info you have would be greatly
appreciated. In our area, Mardel's Bookstore has the largest supply of
Bible software, and they don't have a thing for Macs. I have checked
out Accordance's website, and they really have a lot to offer. However,
it's always nice to have more than one choice.
Since becoming a student (1994) and then a leader (1996) of Precept
Ministries Bible studies, I have learning to appreciate the various
study helps.
Sincerely,
Claire Hart
- Hi Claire,
Yes, I really should do another review.
However, in the meantime, the Christian Mac User Group's (CMUG) David
Lang has posted the results of his second annual
survey of Mac Bible software users, which I think you will find
interesting.
Bible Software Applications Profiled
- Accordance Bible Software
- Online Bible
- MacSword
- iLumina
- iBible
- Bible Reader Free
- AGES Digital Libraries: Bookends
- Internet Bibles
- Crosswalk.com
- the Bible Gateway
- the Blue Letter Bible
- ESV website
- the Net Bible
- New Advent
- Project Runeberg.
- Palm Software:
- Bible Reader
- MyBible
- PocketBible
- Personally, I've switched entirely to using the freeware Bible Reader Free and MacSword applications, which are
new, OS X native projects that do everything BibleViewer does and
much more. MacSword has the advantage in versatility and a wide range
of available supported translations and study texts, but the one I
start up most often is Bible Reader free, which now supports the
American Standard Version and several other translations as well as my
mainstay, the Authorized (King James) version. I encourage anyone who
uses Bible software to check it out.
Charles
From John Black
Charles,
I always enjoy reading your contributions to Low End Mac. Today I
was reading your account of your attempt to get
POP3 working on a PowerBook
1400. Sounds like your conclusion was right: The more advanced
technology becomes, the less capable old equipment becomes. I've found
the same to be true as I've had, from time to time, the necessity of
abandoning a favorite Mac in favor of something newer and more
powerful. For both economic and value reasons, I buy only used Macs, so
I'm always a generation or two behind, but happy with what I have.
I figure a thinking man like you can answer a trivial question I
have. Why are email applications called "clients"? I'm an architect,
and the clients we use are dependent on us for a service, and they pay
us for that service. If anything, in computer terms, we are the
"clients," as we are dependent to one degree or another on technology,
and we certainly pay for the privilege of using it. I find the term
"client," therefore, inappropriate for describing software and hope
that an influential man like you will take the lead in ceasing to use
this term improperly.
Thanks again for your contribution to the Mac community.
John Black
- Hi John,
Thanks for reading. I'm reasonably happy with my fleet of out-of-date
Macs too.
According to Wikipedia: "e-mail
client - An application that runs on a personal computer or workstation
and enables you to send, receive and organize e-mail. It's called a
client because e-mail systems are based on a client-server
architecture. Mail is sent from many clients to a central server, which
reroutes the mail to its intended destination."
So, based on that definition and context, "email client" is appropriate
terminology.
It is also ubiquitous. A Google search for "email client"
turned up over 20 million returns.
Charles
Gmail
From Mads Gorm Larsen
Hi Charles
Just a quick note on your problem with Gmail. Like many others I have
several mail accounts, and I have noticed that it takes a long time to
make the connection to Gmail via POP3 compared to all other mail
account I have. I don't think it takes a long time to download the
mails, but checking password and making the connection takes a long
time, and this must be worse on a slow connection, so perhaps there is
somehow related to the slow connection.
Best regards
Mads Gorm Larsen
- Hi Mads,
I've noticed that, too, although the lag seems variable depending upon
the time of day (and server load?). Gmail is still a beta. I expect
they are working on this issue.
Charles
Eudora, SSL, Gmail
From Patrick Fergus
Your article about Eudora and Gmail piqued
my curiosity, especially since Eudora has dozens of options that are
not available via the GUI, and they tend to be rarely used. I found a
forum posting discussing Eudora and Gmail <http://www.gmailforums.com/index.php?showtopic=6605>.
That points to a Eudora KnowledgeBase article <http://www.eudora.com/techsupport/kb/2456hq.html>,
which indicates that there were some substantive changes with SSL in
5.2. You can get Eudora 5.2 from <http://tinyurl.com/2lnd5>.
Since 5.2 (and probably 5.21) seems to require only 8.1 to work
<http://tinyurl.com/6bdh7>, you might
be able to get it to work.
Good luck,
- Patrick
- Hi Patrick,
I have a Eudora 5.2 installer on my Pismo. When I get a spare
moment, I will transfer it to the 1400 and see if that proves the
charm.
Thanks for the research.
Charles
POP3 Client for Older Macs
From Bryan Wiggins
Charles,
By the time I discovered it, I was using a 200 MHz 604 (Umax S900), but a Japanese program called
Musashi was
the absolute embodiment of lean and mean. Don't know if it's still
actively developed, and at the time was around $25, but I thought it
was well worth it.
- Bryan
/'\ ASCII Ribbon Campaign
\ / No HTML/RTF in email
X No Word docs in email
/ \ Respect for open standards
- Hi Bryan,
I've reviewed Musashi, although some
years back. It's still available, but it hasn't been updated for
several years. I would be very surprised if it supports the SSL that
POP3 Gmail requires.
Charles
Dwindling Support for Older Macs
From Kevin Weise
Mr. Moore,
FWIW, its not just for email, either. My son is in the 5th grade,
there are two Macs in his bedroom that he's had for years, a PM 7100 and a Umax C600 (with 320 MHz G3 upgrade), both
with RAM maxed out.
The 7100 is running Mac OS 8.6 for one specific program (although
I've had 9.1 on it before); the C600 has Mac OS 9.2.2 on it (thanks to
OS9Forever.com). But he primarily
likes games (both on CD and Internet sites), and although he has quite
a few that play well, the newer ones don't work on his equipment.
They're either too slow, or Netscape doesn't render properly, or
(gasp!) they require Mac OS X.
Seeing as how Mom & Dad have Mac OS X on their systems (iBook G4 & PowerBook Lombard G3/400, resp.),
he wants (& needs) a Mac OS X system, too. I wonder how long
that 350 MHz G4 (Yikes!)
donation that is unwanted by his school will last him? (By the same
token, I wonder how long that Lombard will last me? It's made 5-1/2
years so far!) I plan to give him that Yikes! machine, but he's still
having trouble letting go of the computers he currently has, even
though they're antiques & don't provide the power that he
wants.
Kevin J. Weise
- Hi Kevin,
I'm still using my old WallStreet daily running OS
9.2.2, but I'm getting more and more addicted to OS X. I don't
think I would be very happy with X performance on a 233 MHz G3 with a
800 x 600 monitor, however.
I expect that the old Lombard (and early iBooks) may be the next models
cut from current OS X support (lack of built-in FireWire would be
a logical cutoff criterion), although I've heard nothing about that
coming with Tiger, so you may have some service life headroom
yet.
Charles
Re: OS 9 on 8100?
From Philip May
Hi Charles.
Yes. It says:
- Note: A Mac OS 9.1 CD is required for installation on NuBus-based
Power Macintosh computers; see technical document 106089
Since I have an 8100 (a
NuBus Mac) I would have to have the CD to install it. No? Maybe there's
something I don't understand.
Philip
- Hi Philip,
No, it's more an issue with the NuBus machines that I wasn't aware of
or had forgotten.
Come to think of it, I've only ever used CDs to install OS 9.1 on our
PowerBook 1400s, which are NuBus architecture.
Charles
Phillip with the Power Mac 8100
From Ken Watanabe
Charles,
- "If you have any version of OS 9, from 9.0 on up, you can update
right up to OS 9.2.2 for free, although 9.1 is the latest build
supported for your 8100."
Regarding Philip Mayor with the G3-upgraded Power Mac 8100...
Normally, you would be right. However, with the NuBus Power Macs (6100,
7100, 8100, and related models), the upgrade to 9.1 requires a Mac OS
9.1 Full Install CD. For some reason, Apple did not support
those oldest of Mac OS 9 compatible Macs with the free
updaters.
I would also recommend finding the "retail" 9.1 CD, the ones that
are white with the big orange 9. The other ones (CDs that came with new
Macs) may (?) work for Phillip, because he has a G3 upgrade, but the
retail 9.1 CD is a safer bet. And like you mentioned in the article, it
is definitely best to do a clean install from the CD instead of
updating an existing Mac OS installation.
If Philip does really have Mac OS 9.0.1, he should at least update
it to Mac OS 9.0.4, which IS a free updater that DOES work on the good
ol' 8100.
- Ken Watanabe (with his G3 Power Mac 8100)
- Hi Ken,
You're right, and I was mistaken. I either never knew or had forgotten
about the NuBus issue.
I also agree with your good advice about install CDs. Other World
Computing had some OS 9.1 Full Install CDs for $49.95, but I don't know
if there are any left.
http://eshop.macsales.com/
Charles
CD Archiving Program?
From Steven Hunter
So we have 18 Jaz disks we want to move to CD-R. The problem is that
some of the disks hold more than 700 MB, so it isn't going to be a 1:1
ratio. My problem is that I want to make best use of the space without
having to manually figure out what files to put where. I can copy the
disks to the hard drive, but I need a utility that will separate them
into 700 MB folders for burning to CD-R. Any suggestions?
Thanks!
Steven Hunter
- Hi Steven,
I can't recall any utility that does that. If there is one, perhaps
someone in readerland can help point the way.
Charles
Ethernet on an SE
From: Keith Jones
Charles,
Recently, you wrote, in your column, "DSL? I don't think the SE supports an ethernet card* (the
SE/30 does), so that would
be out."
If the SE has a SCSI port on the back, then SCSI-to-ethernet
adapters work just fine. I have one for my Mac Classic and have shared
connections over ethernet before.
Just a thought.
Keith
- I hadn't thought of that. Thanks for the suggestion.
Charles
WMA to MP3 Conversion
From Peter da Silva
I noticed one of your readers commenting about WMP problems.
If they're trying to play WMV video, they're out of luck, but for
WMA audio files I've recently found a program, EasyWMA, that lets you
convert WMA to MP3.
Works like a charm.
- Thanks for the tip, Peter.
Charles
Editor's note: EasyWMA is donationware.
Apple IIgs & IIe Software
From Michael Tulloch
I assume he's looking for System 6.x files and other old operating
systems for these machines. The best place to start really is a2central.com. They have a lot of that
stuff for download. If he needs them on 3.5" diskettes, he can check
out http://store.syndicomm.com/.
~Mike
- Thanks, Mike.
Charles
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