Any thoughts as to how you may incorporate this feature?

I'm anxiously awaiting its availability :-)

We are working on this, and it'll definitely be done before the end of the year (hopefully much sooner.)

We'll be offering a way to select from multiple reading plans, with the ability to "check off" as you read. 

Sounds wonderful! I'm looking forward to it, and I appreciate your attention.

I'm really looking forward to the reading plan feature.  As of now, I open up the YouVersion app to get the bible reading of the day, then read it in Mantis, so I can access the commentaries and cross references in TSK.

Our goal is to have it before the end of the year.  We can release it as a separate free "book" (or books) quite easily, with links to the beginning of the chapters you read.  This would not require a program update.

We may be able to get it in as a program update and have it slightly more accessible and more integrated with the product.  We'll see.

Quick answer:  yes -- we'll integrate Bible reading plans into the program, and it'll be as flexible and complete as you'd expect given the rest of our program.

Now, I just wanted to say.... I used Laridian for years on the Palm, and have nothing but great things to say about them.  Their software, and the ability to read and study the Bible anywhere and any time on my Palm Treo is what inspired me to create Mantis Bible Study.  I'm truly thankful for the great years of Bible study I had with my Treos and Laridian.

Yesterday we made significant progress on integrating the Bible Reading Plan(s).  We'll be offering up to 99 different plans to choose from, possibly allowing you to create your own.  Or at least, we might take user-submissions for plans.

Plans are based on a calendar year, so they're all 365-day plans, but that doesn't mean you have to do them in a single year -- you can take them at any pace you like.

Each item read from any plan can be "checked off" or "un checked".

We hope to release this in time for year end.

For those of you monitoring this thread, I'd like to update you.

Reading plan integration should appear in the next update.  Since Apple has not approved our 4.0 release yet, I can't say when that will be -- but hopefully very soon.

We've built significant flexiblity into the reading plan feature, but also decided to structure it into the "yearly calendar" like we've done with our devotionals.  Now, that's great if you start on January 1st and work through the Bible in a year, but it's not perfect.  What if you start your plan on April 1st?  What if you desire to read through the Bible in 2 or 3 years instead of 1?

Our solution was to implement an optional setting that asks:  "Open your selected reading plan to Today's reading, or to the last unread reading."

So, if you're on track from January 1, you'll just open to the current date.  Simple.

But, if you're not going on the calendar system, it'll open you to the first item that hasn't been "checked off" regardless of the date. 

Hope this makes sense, and I hope we've covered all our bases on how you guys want to use this.

[QUOTE]burggraf wrote

For those of you monitoring this thread, I'd like to update you.

Reading plan integration should appear in the next update.  Since Apple has not approved our 4.0 release yet, I can't say when that will be -- but hopefully very soon.

We've built significant flexiblity into the reading plan feature, but also decided to structure it into the "yearly calendar" like we've done with our devotionals.  Now, that's great if you start on January 1st and work through the Bible in a year, but it's not perfect.  What if you start your plan on April 1st?  What if you desire to read through the Bible in 2 or 3 years instead of 1?

Our solution was to implement an optional setting that asks:  "Open your selected reading plan to Today's reading, or to the last unread reading."

So, if you're on track from January 1, you'll just open to the current date.  Simple.

But, if you're not going on the calendar system, it'll open you to the first item that hasn't been "checked off" regardless of the date. 

Hope this makes sense, and I hope we've covered all our bases on how you guys want to use this.

[/QUOTE]

Sounds like that should cover the bases. Will the setting be available for all books/devotional type materials? For instance, I would want my devotionals to open to the current date, but probably would want the Bible reading plan to open to the first item that has not been checked off.

The setting will only apply to Bible Reading Plans.  Devotionals will always open to the current date.

Anyone still monitoring this thread....

We've included a basic reading plan with 4.0, and have prepared 2 others for free download immediately.  These plans can be found on http://www.esv.org/biblereadingplans.  The first is the basic "Daily Reading Bible Plan" (the first one.)  The second is Chronological plan, and the third is the M’Cheyne plan.

We can do more if you feel there are others we should include.  Or, if anyone wants to submit a plan, we'll consider putting it up.  No guarantees, but if it looks good, we'll probably make it available.

To submit a plan, it should be in a text file, with the following format:

Jan 1 Gen 1, Matt 1, Ezra 1, Acts 1
Jan 2 Gen 2, Matt 2, Ezra 2, Acts 2
Jan 3 Gen 3, Matt 3, Ezra 3, Acts 3
Jan 4 Gen 4, Matt 4, Ezra 4, Acts 4

There should be 365 lines in the file, months are all 3 character abbreviations.  Readings for the day are separated by a comma and a space, and multiple chapters can be given like this:  Gen 1-3, or you can split chapters up like this:  Ps 119:49-72 (meaning Psalm 119 verses 49 through 72.)

Email any proposed plans to support (with a heading telling us what it is.)