Looking for stories of General Authority Use of LDS Apps

[lmcguire]

It was quite a while ago.

Are we talking Palm Pilot era?

That made me laugh out loud! Thanks for starting my morning off right.

Liz

[johnshaw]

Our family just started reading the Doctrine and Covenants, and half of us use mobile devices, the other half have paper. One of my daughters started reading a section heading and the electronic is different than the paper scriptures. She was told that she skipped some stuff and so I had to explain that the scriptures got an overhaul a couple years back, particularly the section headings of the Doctrine and Covenant Section headings.

So, in a way, if you're not using the electronic version, or purchased new paper versions in the last year or so, you're not using the current church authorized standard

[gilldavid]

The Church should pioneer electronic classrooms and wide dissemination of information. But there are at least three things a digital device in my hand cannot do: 1) allow me to look quickly from one verse to another, comparing the wording and context in careful examination of the writ, 2) browse the content with a feeling of familiarity and "I've been here many times before," and 3) share my love of the word (whether a scripture book or a lesson manual) with my neighbor who is new, sitting next to me in a classroom and thirsting for both instruction and fellowship. Strength in the gospel is ultimately about relationships (with God, family, and others); sending a link is fairly impersonal, and most digital media tend to isolate us as individuals rather than bring us together. That is the prize we should all keep our eyes on.

[davesudweeks]

The Church should pioneer electronic classrooms and wide dissemination of information. But there are at least three things a digital device in my hand cannot do: 1) allow me to look quickly from one verse to another, comparing the wording and context in careful examination of the writ, 2) browse the content with a feeling of familiarity and "I've been here many times before," and 3) share my love of the word (whether a scripture book or a lesson manual) with my neighbor who is new, sitting next to me in a classroom and thirsting for both instruction and fellowship. Strength in the gospel is ultimately about relationships (with God, family, and others); sending a link is fairly impersonal, and most digital media tend to isolate us as individuals rather than bring us together. That is the prize we should all keep our eyes on.

I love that I have so much information available in a small, easy-to-carry form. However, when I read your post, I have to say, "WELL SAID."

[russellhltn]

It was quite a while ago.

Are we talking Palm Pilot era?

That made me laugh out loud! Thanks for starting my morning off right.

It was a serious question. In my mind, that's when electronic scriptures started. I'd think by the time the iPhone came along, most wards would have had at least one member with a Palm device and using it for their scriptures.

[johnshaw]

The Church should pioneer electronic classrooms and wide dissemination of information. But there are at least three things a digital device in my hand cannot do: 1) allow me to look quickly from one verse to another, comparing the wording and context in careful examination of the writ, 2) browse the content with a feeling of familiarity and "I've been here many times before," and 3) share my love of the word (whether a scripture book or a lesson manual) with my neighbor who is new, sitting next to me in a classroom and thirsting for both instruction and fellowship. Strength in the gospel is ultimately about relationships (with God, family, and others); sending a link is fairly impersonal, and most digital media tend to isolate us as individuals rather than bring us together. That is the prize we should all keep our eyes on.

I'm a contrarian when it comes to each of the steps above, I think you hit the nail on the head when you said that these three things 'IN MY HAND' cannot do. Each of the above could either apply to you or not. My kids would not relate in any way with what you've said above.

What I hope is that we don't start to think about paper vs digital as a good/better/best thing, but that we have different strokes for different folks. I'll never go back to paper, and I'll never break my covenants because I don't use paper. I'll never 'miss' out in an opportunity to share thoughts with others, use the scriptures as a teaching tool with my family, or any other thing that someone thinks is more valuable in a 'paper' format. It may be your own perspective or point of view, but don't foist it on my or my kids please.

This is where I have problems, Seminary teachers who insist on paper, sunday school or YW leaders who insist on paper - It makes no sense, I'd rather have our family scripture marking stored in a cloud service that will survive mediums as they come and go (I learned that lesson in month 23 of my mission when my scriptures were stolen)

[lmcguire]

It was a serious question. In my mind, that's when electronic scriptures started. I'd think by the time the iPhone came along, most wards would have had at least one member with a Palm device and using it for their scriptures.

I don't doubt it - Palm provided my first e-scriptures too. For whatever reason, though, that comment made me laugh out loud (maybe I'm getting senile).

Liz

[lmcguire]

But there are at least three things a digital device in my hand cannot do: 1) allow me to look quickly from one verse to another, comparing the wording and context in careful examination of the writ, 2) browse the content with a feeling of familiarity and "I've been here many times before," and 3) share my love of the word (whether a scripture book or a lesson manual) with my neighbor who is new, sitting next to me in a classroom and thirsting for both instruction and fellowship. Strength in the gospel is ultimately about relationships (with God, family, and others); sending a link is fairly impersonal, and most digital media tend to isolate us as individuals rather than bring us together. That is the prize we should all keep our eyes on.

I understand #1, and hope one day they'll add to the Gospel Library the requested feature of viewing two content items side by side. (When I'm really desperate for this, I use two devices side by side.)

But I don't understand #2 or #3. When I browse through the Gospel Library, I do get the feeling of having been there many times before - especially when I see my highlights (which for clearly neurotic reasons, I make more readily in e-books than in paper books). And I've shared viewing of my device with a neighbor in class and out of class. I've even switched mine to another language, given it to a visitor who didn't speak English well and didn't have the manual we were using, pointed out where we were, and shared with someone else so I could see it in English. I've also helped people install LDS apps on their device - akin to handing them a paper copy.

Sending a link is as personal or impersonal as the people involved wish to make it - if you don't take the time to write a note, or if there was no conversation beforehand, then it's impersonal; but if you take the time to include a personal note, or if the other person is right there, saying, "Oh, send me a link to that," it's quite personal. Similar for using digital media - if you're in a group reading to each other from e-devices, it's no more isolating than reading to each other from paper. If you're completely absorbed in paper scriptures and oblivious to the world around you, it's no less isolating than being completely absorbed in e-scriptures.

While I'm not saying electronic can, should, or must replace paper in any or all instances (e.g. it's a good idea to have a paper Book of Mormon nearby so you can give it out at a moment's notice), I don't think electronic prevents you from feeling at home in the scriptures, or from sharing in a personal way. If you prefer paper, use paper. If you prefer electronic, use electronic. Either way, your admonition is valid: don't lose sight of the purpose of life.

FWIW,

Liz

[lajackson]

lajackson:
It was quite a while ago.

russellhltn:
Are we talking Palm Pilot era?

lmcguire:
That made me laugh out loud! Thanks for starting my morning off right.

russellhltn:
It was a serious question.

Get your laugh track back out, Liz.

I used to generate the ward directory from IBM 80-column punched cards. The new member gave me their information, I punched the card and inserted it into the deck. During the week I ran two copies of the updated directory, one for the new family and one for the bishop, on an IBM System 370 mainframe.

Run that through your chronometer, Russell. "Do not fold, spindle or mutilate." And don't forget the FIN card.

If you need another chronological hint, try white, yellow, blue, green, pink. Or was it white, yellow, green, blue, pink?

Seriously, I did own a used Palm Pilot for about a year. It had two functions in my life, calendar and to do list. It was not reliable enough to use at Church for scriptures or anything else. It had a good backup system that I kept on my 486, which I used to recover when the Palm Pilot cratered.

[lmcguire]

Get your laugh track back out, Liz.

I used to generate the ward directory from IBM 80-column punched cards. The new member gave me their information, I punched the card and inserted it into the deck. During the week I ran two copies of the updated directory, one for the new family and one for the bishop, on an IBM System 370 mainframe....

Oh, I can't come close to that one. I think Palm Pilot or LDS Info Bases (for Win3.1) - whichever came first - is as far back as my electronic church stuff goes. (I still possess the former, but haven't touched it in ages; I still use the latter, on an XP virtual machine.)

I wonder what Elder Murray's ward members would say in reaction to me telling users at work, "It turns out the chicken bones weren't arranged properly. But we got them straightened out and everything should work now." (You know, cuz what geeks do is magic according to the users.)

Liz