EnduserFAQ

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End user FAQ

Here are some commonly asked questions about the CrossWire Bible Society and The SWORD Project and answers to them.

CrossWire is a non-commercial organization which produces Bible related Free Software. We have several software products. We also have numerous text modules (Bible translations, commentaries, lexicons, ...) which can be used with our software. All products are made by individual volunteers who may or may not know each other's work. Therefore it is important that you first know which product you have questions about. Then you can select the category and question below. If your question is not answered here and you have to ask us directly, please attach as much information about your problem as possible, especially about the product you are using. Considering the volume of mail we receive daily and the few workers we have to answer support emails, vague email and email that asks questions clearly answered on this page are likely to go unanswered.

Questions about text modules

Do you or will you have NIV/NASB/NLT/Message/NKJV/other translation?

NASB is under work and will be sold commercially by the publishing company. Most other copyright holders, including the publisher of the NIV, have not been interested in publishing their material in our format even when they could get money out of it. Strange world, isn't it?

Some people recommend using a couple of good modern freely available translations instead. The ESV and NET are both high quality.

The ESV is a word-for-word "essentially literal" translation which continues the KJV legacy but is based on modern textual criticism. It is freely downloadable from our repositories.

The NET uses more dynamic equivalence principle and is downloadable from bible.org in either a free (with registration) version containing limited notes or a premium ($20) version with the full NET translation note set.

What happened to the Portuguese module?

It was removed because it was not what it claimed to be and had errors. Negotiations are underway to provide another translation.

Where are the deuterocanonical books and the apocrypha?

Sword does not currently support any books other than the 66 OT/NT protocanonical books. The reason is technical, not theological. The SWORD Project is ecumenical, benefiting from the labor of workers from a broad gamut of Christian churches. Work is currently underway to support a broader canon.

How do I convert e-Sword modules to Sword modules?

The SWORD Project does not support the conversion of texts from other Bible software vendors.

I have purchased and lost a key to a locked module. Can you tell me what it is?

The SWORD Project does not sell or handle locked module keys. You should contact the module vendor for help in this matter.

Personal modules shows some strange text, why?

It was a bug in the configuration file (mods.d\personal.conf). You can download and re-install the latest version but then you may lose the contents. Alternatively, you can just replace the configuration file with the new one.

Questions about what we do for free or for money

Would you send me free Bibles or other material?

It is very unfortunate that some web sites have "information" according to which we are able to help you get free material. That is not true. There is no money involved in our work and we handle only electronic material. All our products are freely downloadable on our web site (or their own web sites) and that is all we do.

Can I donate to your ministry?

While we appreciate offers of donations, the SWORD Project does not solicit or accept such offers. We have been blessed already by the donation of those resources which we do use. If you feel the need to donate to ministry outside your local church, you might consider Compassion International, Habitat for Humanity[, or [http://www.wycliffe.org/ Wycliffe Bible Translators.

Would you donate to my ministry?

As our project does not solicit or accept donations and does not itself produce any profit, we do not have monetary or other resources to offer to other ministries either (besides downloadable resources).

Can I sell advertising on your website?

No, we do not allow advertising on our website, as you might have noticed.

Will you allow me to link to your website on my website in exchange for linking mine on yours?

You may link to our website, including to our BibleTool, however we do not do link exchanges.

Where's my CD?

• NEEDS ATTENTION*

Questions about our software

If you don't find an answer to your question here and want to ask directly, PLEASE TELL US WHAT SOFTWARE YOU ARE USING. There are many products related to CrossWire. The most common is The Sword Project for Windows. It's extremely difficult to answer a question like "I'm trying to open a Bible but it doesn't work" if we don't even know which application you are using. It also helps if you attach as much exact information about your problem as possible, like "After I have opened the program I select action A from the menu and click button B, but it does nothing". NOT something like "I can't do C".

Many problems are due to outdated software or text modules. Please check first which version you are running. Notice also your operating system and version.

How do I uninstall?

Sword for Windows has uninstaller which should be in the same place as the program. You can also just delete the folder and possible menu entries.

Is it possible to install Sword for Windows / text modules into USB disk (or some other place)?

The Sword for Windows applications is really simple, all is installed under one folder, including the modules. You can copy it anywhere as it is and run the program from there.

When I read the Syriac Peshitta and some other modules all I see are boxes?

You don't have a proper font installed. It should be unicode font and have the Syriac or other letters which the module uses. Not all unicode fonts have those.

I love your Bible Tool. Can I install it on our churches website?

Yes.

Do you have a Sword program for my phone? my pda? my handheld?

Maybe.

I've found a bug. How do I report it?

Use the bug reporting facilities of the project you are using.

Why doesn't your program do such and so? I'd like it to do it. It should to be competitive.

Yes, it would be nice, but this is volunteer based project and we do this in our free time. Help if you can and give feedback but don't complain too much. The best you can do is pray for us.

How do I do something in MacSword? BibleTime? GnomeSword? BibleDesktop? The SWORD Project for Windows?

Please read the attached documentation and other supporting material of the project you are using. Many problems will be solved by reading the documentation. After that use the support forum/list/pages of that project. After that you can ask your question in our forum or our support list.

Somebody sells your software in net, is it right?

It's not forbidden to sell Free Software. However, according to licence the source code must be included. Some people also sell free programs without telling that they are really free, and that is morally wrong.