Posted on

New Bible App Update for Windows Phone Mango Now Available

The last time we updated the Bible App for Windows Phone, we completely rewrote it from scratch. This release, version 2.3, is a major upgrade to Windows Phone “Mango,” designed specifically to bring you the very best of all this platform has to offer. You can find the latest release now at Windows Marketplace for Mobile, featuring all of the following improvements:

Dashboard of Bible App™ for Windows Phone on Nokia Lumia 900

True Multitasking. The Mango version of Windows Phone now lets you leave an app open and running as you do something else with a different app. This means that now you can listen to an audio Bible and, even when you switch away from the Bible App, it will keep playing. Listen to an audio Bible with your screen locked—or even with your display turned off to save battery power!

Fast App Switching. More than just multi-tasking, Windows Phone Mango now includes fast app switching, which lets you jump rapidly between tasks. We’ve optimized the Bible App to take full advantage of this handy new feature, so you can leave it running, easily switch to something else for a minute, and then hop back just as quickly.

Custom Start Screen Tiles. With Mango, Windows Phone added a slick new feature that allows you to add non-app tasks to your start screen. Pin a Reading Plan, saved search, or other task to the start screen so you can quickly jump into it. Once you’ve saved a new tile, you can tap directly through to the tasks you use most, right from your start screen!

More Versions than Ever. By the time you read this, the Bible App for Windows Phone will offer more than 200 different versions of the Bible, in 75 languages. Now, whatever version
of the Bible you like, and whatever language you prefer,
chances are good that YouVersion has it.

Verse selected in the Bible App™ for Windows Phone on Nokia Lumia 900

The Bible App in 5 Languages. Besides English, thanks to YouVersion’s extraordinary community of passionate volunteers, you can now set the Bible App’s interface—all of the menus, buttons, and controls—to display entirely in Russian, German, Swedish, or Korean.

Bug Fixes. We take every opportunity to correct problems and improve performance, and certainly this release is no different. As always, when you find errors in the Bible App (on any platform), please report them to us at our Support website, so we can address them in upcoming releases.

Dashboard Verse of the Day. Now you can set the Bible App for Windows Phone to display a fresh Bible verse every day. At whatever time you choose, each day you’ll receive new inspiration right in your Dashboard, displayed in the last version of the Bible that you were reading.

This latest release of the Bible App for Windows Phone is available immediately. Update yours today, and please come let us know what you think on Facebook and Twitter!

Posted on

All-New, Completely Redesigned YouVersion.com Launches

YouVersion.com is All-NewYouVersion.com is all new! If you’ve visited recently, maybe you saw the “Preview” link at the top. Or if you have a YouVersion account, you might have received an email in February that told you how to get a sneak peek at the website’s new design. Either way, the response was overwhelming and immediate, as many of you tried it out and offered some great feedback. Today we’re pleased to announce the official release of the all-new, completely redesigned YouVersion.com.

You’ll find YouVersion.com has a much cleaner interface, even as it offers many of the features you’ve grown accustomed to in the Bible App:

Bookmarks. Bookmarks are a great way to track and organize passages you want to return to again and again, whether for sharing, memorizing, or reminding yourself of God’s promises. Of course, YouVersion.com already offered Bookmarks, but now they’re much more similar to those in the Bible App.

Highlights. While Bookmarks excel at giving you a place to store your thoughts and helping you keep organized, Highlights are great at drawing your attention back to passages visually. Just as in the Bible App, Highlights let you choose from a variety of colors that suit your purposes (or your mood).

Audio Bibles. Now all of the same audio Bibles you’ve already been enjoying through the Bible App (depending on your device) can take advantage of the fast network connection streaming to your desktop. Make God’s Word the soundtrack to your life while you work. Or even use it to help you absorb more as you read along. Just find the version you want and click play.

And these are just the beginning. We’ll share more tomorrow about some of the other features we think you’ll enjoy at the all-new YouVersion.com. But don’t wait for us! Go to YouVersion.com and check it out for yourself. We want to hear from you. We’ll be bringing you even more new updates and exciting features in the coming weeks, and we’d love for you to let us know what you think on Facebook and Twitter.

Posted on

Now Available: Beta Version of the Bible App for Windows 8!

The Bible App™ for Windows 8 on Samsung Slate

The Beta version of the Bible App™ for Windows 8 is one of fewer than 100 apps now available in the Windows Store. And of course as always, the Bible App is 100% free. If you’re running the Windows 8 Consumer Preview on a compatible device, please go check it out. We’d love you to hear from you on Facebook or Twitter!

You can learn more about Windows 8 Consumer Preview at Microsoft’s website, or even watch their video to see the new Windows 8 interface in action.

 

The Bible App™ for Windows 8 on HP Tablet

 

In this Beta version of the Bible App for Windows 8, you’ll find most of the features you’ve already come to expect from the Bible App on other platforms—now specifically designed to take full advantage of the rich user experience made possible by an exciting new generation of Windows 8 tablet devices!

Posted on

UK Program “The BigBible Project” Creating Conversation, Building Community

#BigRead12 from the Big Bible ProjectWith Lent now officially upon us, there seems no better time to take up a Bible reading challenge. One way to do that is to get involved with a great initiative like #BigRead12, a Lent Bible reading program from Durham University’s Big Bible Project.

The Big Read 2012 encourages Christians to meet together in house groups to engage with the Bible, knowing that there are others reading the same text at the same time, all over the world. (In 2011, the program had visitors from all sides of the globe.)

The house group material, freely downloadable from the website, offers conversation starters to examine how the realities of the Bible can transform lives. This year, The Big Read focuses on the third book of Tom Wright’s series Lent for Everyone, looking at Mark.

The Big Read team is encouraging people to share the conversations that arise: Tweet about their ideas (using the hashtag #BigRead12), join the Big Read 2012 group on Facebook, and comment on the blog entries that will be appearing throughout.

The Big Read’s coordinator, Dr. Bex Lewis, told us how she first got going with her own daily reading habits:

“I started to build up proper daily reading habits whilst working for Oak Hall (a UK Christian Holiday camp), as I had a number of speakers whose actions were clearly soaked in Biblical thinking…. It took me 3.5 years, but I read the Bible from cover to cover. I don’t want to equate it with ‘positive thinking’, but it helps me see where God is in everything that goes on in my life.

“I love the fact that I can read the Bible wherever I am these days, mixing between the Bible App from YouVersion, WordLive, and other tools for daily Bible readings, and using the Bible App as my Bible in church (whilst tweeting bits of the sermon!). I read far more of it than I ever used to!”

For more details, or to get involved with the #BigRead12, check out the Big Bible Project website.

Posted on

YouVersion Announces 21-Day Challenge Winners of iPad 2, Kindle Fire

YouVersion’s 21-Day Challenge

At the beginning of February, we invited everyone to join us for the 21-Day Challenge. Registered YouVersion community users who completed every scheduled day of an eligible Reading Plan from February 1 through February 21 had their names entered into a random drawing. The prizes were an iPad 2, a Kindle Fire, or a special pack of YouVersion stickers and T-Shirt. (Refer to original blog post for full contest rules.) The results are in, and we’re excited to announce the winners!*

iPad 2. Jovanna L. –  Congratulations, Jovanna!
(Don’t forget to put the Bible App on your new iPad, first thing!)

Kindle Fire. Nikita G. – Enjoy your Kindle Fire, Nikita!
(Remember: You can get the Bible App on your Kindle Fire, too!)

YouVersion T-Shirt and Sticker Pack. Congratulations to these 21 users:
  Tracy V. (United States) Randolph P. (Bahamas)
Debi O. (Germany) Andrew B. (United States)
Lorraine C. (Canada) Len S. (The Philippines)
Steven D. (United States) Roxie H. (United States)
Bryan M. (Great Britain) Pamela B. (United States)
Warren R. (United States) Laura E. (United States)
James B. (United States) Sarah B. (United States)
Jake L. (United States) Hannes B. (Great Britain)
Virginia M. (United States) Teresa R. (United States)
Veri N. (The Netherlands) Hazel S. (United States)
Stephen W. (United States)

YouVersion’s 21-Day Challenge Badge

Thank you, everyone! Besides our lucky winners, we’d like to thank everyone else who participated in the 21-Day Challenge! You can view your 21-Day Challenge badge on your YouVersion profile.

We hope that joining us for the challenge during these last 3 weeks helped you firmly establish your own daily Bible reading habit. But even more important, we hope this time brought you closer to God as you spent time with Him each day in His Word. And now, even though the challenge is over, there’s no reason to stop! With more than 200 Reading Plans, your next plan is already waiting for you…

*Winners can expect to receive prizes within the next 7–10 business days. Any correspondence with YouVersion must take place through the email address you used when you registered your free YouVersion account.