Mobile Ministry Magazine

In a reecent discussion that I passed thru at Laridian (http://blog.laridian.com/?p=73), a woman who posted asked a question of what devices would work best with their software. As many of us find out when we move to handhelds, smartphones, and event UMPCs and TabletPCs, the used to be simple aspect of just choosing software and using it is made a lot harder. Because these devices are used more intimately, and are therefore more personal, we take a certain amount of chance and care when we select a platform that we are going to use to improve connectivity, communication, and personal productivity.

One of the things that you shohuld then always keep in mind is your reason for adopting the said hardware or software. There is not only the aspect of using something that could meet your needs, but also some level of administration and understanding of it that you will also want in order to determine that you have gotten your best value out of it. For example, if the woman in the above linked article purchased the iPhone expecting Laridian's software to work with it, should wouldbe disppointed. One, because Laridian has not announced iPhone BIbles, but two because her idea of the value of mobile tech goes beyond what it looks like, but rather, what it enables her to do to carry out the vision God has given her.

The other part of this is understanding what is out there so that you are more capable with what you already have. For example, I review Windows Mobile and Symbian smarttphones, and have a Palm OS one as my normal phone. Each offers different strengths and weaknesses depending on the application. But, in order for me to use my Treo better, I need to also know what other platforms have or will do. This gets me into thinking outside of the box and recommending to myself and others alternate methods of doing mobile, but also refreshes what I already know so that I am able to give an answer as to why his device or software works for me.

So, if you really wanted to know why I use Bible+, or why I carry a Treo and an N800, then just ask. You might be surprised that the answer isn't because they are the best, but rather, in juding the scope of what else is out there, these help me best persue God's heart for me, and display God's heart thru mobile tech.