Palm Bible Readers Comparison: Palm OS Utility

NOTE: I use a Palm TX PDA for many things including Bible reading and some study. If I'm not preaching I take my PDA to church and use that instead of a Bible in book-form. It is much easier for me to read and I can make notes with the scripture. I use the MyBible software mentioned in the article and have multiple Bible translations and reference books always with me, clipped to my belt.

One of the great things about PDA's is the ability to carry a huge library of books in electronic form. I must have a couple hundred books on mine, ranging from reference to how-to to light fiction. It is sweet to be able to carry 20-30 pounds worth of paper in a few ounces of electronics!

Many Palm users use this ability to carry one or more versions of the Bible with them- makes those cute, little, nearly impossible to read 'pocket-sized' Bibles obsolete! There are many options for 'e-Bibles', from iPod versions to MP3 spoken versions to e-texts that can be read by most text readers, to dedicated readers with special tools for the job. These last versions are what we will look at here.

'Special tools'? Few general-purpose text readers have the ability to quickly find a single sentence in a large book the way Bible verse-finder tools can. Most of the programs we will look at can find a verse in about three taps, or search for a single word or phrase. Many text readers allow book-marking, and some even allow note-taking, but few do it as well as dedicated Bible readers do- and the ability to highlight or make notes is a key element for serious students in any field. A big difference is that most Bible readers can do some form of split screen to allow you to compare two documents at the same time.

Read the rest of this review on The Gadgeteer.