Truth is Still Truth

About two weeks ago, I did what was, for me, the unthinkable. I parted ways with my iPhone 4 and switched to an Android phone (Samsung Galaxy Note II to be exact).

What makes it a shocker to me is the fact that the iPhone was the only smartphone (and cell phone for that matter) I ever owned. Unlike those who in the past used Blackberrys or Windows Mobile phones or even some other form of phone before the iPhone, I’ve been a “one phone person” my entire life, and my phone of choice has always been the iPhone.

And rightly so. Everyone knows me as a die hard Apple fan, using Macs since early 2006 (and waiting to switch to a Mac even before then). I switched to the Mac at a time before Macs became popular (and people thought I was crazy to switch to a Mac), so it obviously made sense to be an iPhone user as well. Apple and I have had a solid bond for years. One could even say I’ve had Apple juice coursing through my system.

Alas, the bond between Apple and I has severely begun to weaken, and the result of what occurred two weeks ago is proof of it.

Here’s why. Over the past couple of years, my pleasant experience with Apple has begun to sour. I’ve had more than my share of issues with both my Macs and my iPhone. I’ve spent countless trips to the Apple Store in Buford, Georgia, on hardware repairs, and now that I’m back in Arkansas, I’ve made a few trips to our Little Rock Apple Store for repairs as well.

I’m sure everyone’s heard the news by now that Google Reader, the popular feed reading service, is shuffling away to the grave on July 1. That leaves all of us Google Reader users with a serious choice to make about finding a solid alternative for our feed reading needs moving forward.

I’ve been comparing my options over the past few weeks, and I’ve come up with an excellent little list of Google Reader alternatives for those still wondering where to move their feed reading services, as well as a small evaluation of each service.

Feedly: Feedly is by far the simplest of the services to switch to. Feedly works by installing a small extension in one’s web browser, plugging one’s Google Reader credentials into the service, and presto, everything is simply moved over. Feedly also runs on mobile apps, and the added benefit is Feedly will continue to use one’s Google Reader credentials to authenticate even after July 1. The only thing that’ll change is the backend syncing platform, which should be pretty seamless. It’s the quickest way to future proof oneself from the Google Reader shutdown.

A Review on Abraham: Following God’s Promise

Logos Bible Software is launching a new series of interactive Bible study curriculum material, starting with Abraham: Following God’s Promise. This new series includes tools to allow churches and small group Bible studies to more thoroughly study the lives of Bible characters through these new, interactive tools. What’s especially nice is everything, from sermon starters to graphics to leader’s and participant’s guides, are all included, and everything syncs with the Logos ecosystem, so the curriculum integrates seamlessly with Logos Bible Software, Logos Bible Software’s mobile apps, the FaithLife Study Bible app and FaithLife community, and Proclaim for broadcasting slides on air.

When one purchases the curriculum through Logos.com (also available in a series), three volumes are included in the collection: the participant’s guide, the leader’s guide, as well as a set of instructional videos. Here’s a brief look at all three volumes.

Participant’s Guide