Monday, February 26, 2018

Proofread Pīnyīn Web Material for the February 26–March 4 Bible Reading Posted

While we greatly appreciate the availability of the official Pīnyīn NWT Bible PDF file, the PDF format was conceived of in a world dominated by paper. Unfortunately, that means that PDF files are often not optimal for reading on the mobile devices that are now so prevalent among Mandarin field publishers.


The Pīnyīn Plus NWT Bible web material that is now available has been designed to be mobile-first, so it automatically adjusts itself to be optimal for reading on mobile devices of various shapes and sizes, including tablets and smartphones 📱.


Proofread Pīnyīn web material for the February 26–March 4 Bible Reading is now available:


A screenshot of the above-mentioned material being used offline on an iPhone 📱, using the app GoodReader. (Other similar apps can also be used, e.g. Documents.)


Also, partially proofread Pīnyīn web material (better at least than auto-generated Pīnyīn like that displayed by the Equipd app, and more mobile-friendly than the older 3-line PDFs) or better is now available for the Bible Readings from March 5 to March 25.


The above material is part of this resource:

  • NWT Bible (Pīnyīn Plus, Web)
    (2007 Printing, proofread, mobile-friendly, unofficial,
    incomplete but with many often-used scriptures,
    flashcards integrated with the text,
    context-appropriate English translations
    with literal & effective meanings,
    Simplified & Traditional characters,
    📖 Reveal All, 📄 Reveal Advanced, and
    📘 Reveal None controls
    for all the “flashcards” in a chapter, paragraph, etc.,
    extensive links for getting around, audio links,
    Night Theme that can be turned on or off
    using the ☀️/🌙 button at the top right,
    adjustable text size)
    (Info re offline viewing and printing)
  • Short Links:
    LinksPublications
    New World Translation Bible Links (tiandi.info/bi)

To expand on why the above resource provides an excellent Mandarin reading experience on mobile devices:

  • The above web material resource provides easy enlarging and automatic reflowing of the text to accommodate displays of various shapes and sizes, including those of many mobile devices.
    • This is especially an advantage compared to the situation with PDF files, which have preset page sizes, text sizes, and line renderings baked in. As a result, PDF files are often cumbersome and difficult to read on smaller mobile devices. E.g., when you are zoomed in and get to the bottom of a column, it can be difficult to scroll up and to the right in order to get to the top of the next column without interrupting the flow of the reading. While trying to do so quickly, you may even accidentally turn the page, causing an even greater interruption as you try to figure out where you are, and then tap/swipe, zoom, and scroll back to where you actually want to be.
  • In the above resource, Pīnyīn, an excellent tool for confidently and easily reading out Mandarin, is presented in a highly legible and readable way, and is given the primary focus.
    • In fact, the material can easily be set to only display the highly legible Pīnyīn, without the beautiful and traditionally-used, but actually unnecessary Chinese characters distracting and taking up limited display real estate. (This can be done on the above resource by selecting 📘 Reveal None from the drop-down list near the top of the Pīnyīn Plus web page you are on. The web browser you are using will remember the setting for whenever it is again used to access the above resource until the setting gets changed manually, or until your browser gets reset, perhaps from being deleted and reinstalled.)

The introduction for the above resource explains why it’s good to use Pīnyīn as a writing system on its own. Here is a quote:

“Taken as a bewitchingly complex, independent system for directly representing meanings visually, the characters can actually be a distraction or a diversion from the Mandarin words themselves, which are already a system for representing meanings through Mandarin speech sounds. Really, a Mandarin word still means what it means, no more and no less, whether it is spoken, written in characters, or written in Pīnyīn. Shakespeare said that “a rose by any other name would smell as sweet”, and indeed, a rose would smell as sweet whether the spoken Mandarin word for it is written as “玫瑰” or as “méigui”. Writing the word in characters does not add to its meaning, and writing it in Pīnyīn does not take away from its meaning.”

To expand on the points listed re the above resource, note that:

  • The material in the above resource has been carefully translated, rendered, and proofread. Material with a grey background has been partially proofread. Pīnyīn material with a golden-hued background has been proofread, but not all of its “flashcards” have been added and proofread.
  • The material in the above resource is based on the latest 2007 printing of the Mandarin Chinese NWT Bible. If you notice that some changes need to be made to the material in the above resource to bring it in line with revisions to the Mandarin Chinese NWT Bible, please email me to let me know.
  • The above resource is mobile-friendly—it is quite legible and usable on everything from desktop/laptop PCs and Macs to iPads and other tablets to iPhones and other smartphones.
  • The above resource provides a control on each page for changing the text size. This should make it easy for most people to set the text to a comfortably readable size. When a new text size is selected, the text automatically reflows to allow you to read it without you having to scroll left or right.
  • In the above resource, links are used extensively to make it quick and easy to get around in the material, drastically reducing the amount of manual scrolling needed.
  • The above resource contains links to the official Mandarin MP3 audio files on jw.org.
  • An active Internet connection is required to access the above web resource directly. However, its material can be downloaded in a zip file for offline use. More information is provided at the Info re offline viewing and printing link.
  • For your convenience, a short link (New World Translation Bible Links (tiandi.info/bi)) is available for the above resource.

Saturday, February 24, 2018

“Sing Out Joyfully” Bk. Partially Proofread Pīnyīn Web Material or More Available for Songs for February 26–March 4 Mandarin Meetings

Thankfully, an official Pīnyīn PDF file for the new songbook “Sing Out Joyfully” to Jehovah (sjj) is now available for download from jw.org. (The short link for the new songbook, tiandi.info/sjj, has been updated accordingly.) Note, however, that the currently available official Pīnyīn PDF file only contains lyrics—it does not contain musical notation. An official version of the new songbook with both musical notation and Pīnyīn lyrics may be in the works, but was not available from jw.org, the WOL, or the JW Library app at the time of this writing.


While we greatly appreciate the official Pīnyīn songbook PDF file that is available, the PDF format itself was conceived of in a world dominated by paper. Unfortunately, that means that PDF files are often not optimal for reading on the mobile devices that are now so prevalent among Mandarin field publishers.


Also, with past official Pīnyīn songbook PDF files, having to share limited display real estate with Chinese characters and musical notation has at times forced the Pīnyīn text to be rendered in small type that can be difficult to read, especially for older people.


Another difficulty that is encountered, especially when one needs to quickly find the song that is about to be sung at a meeting, is that the official meeting schedules only list the numbers of the songs to be used, and the brothers announcing what song is about to be sung often only mention the song number, but in the current official Pīnyīn songbook PDF file, there is no listing of song links in song number order.


Partially proofread Pīnyīn web material (better at least than auto-generated Pīnyīn like that displayed by the Equipd app, and more mobile-friendly than the older 3-line PDFs) or more for all the songs scheduled to be used during the February 26–March 4 Mandarin Our Christian Life and Ministry and “Watchtower” Study meetings has been posted to this resource that seeks to help with these challenges:





Screenshots of the above resource being used offline on an iPhone 📱, using the app GoodReader. (Other similar apps can also be used, e.g. Documents.)


Production of at least partially proofread Pīnyīn web material (better at least than auto-generated Pīnyīn like that displayed by the Equipd app, and more mobile-friendly than the older 3-line PDFs) with a few basic Pīnyīn Plus “flashcards” is expected to keep up with all the songs scheduled for Mandarin Our Christian Life and Ministry and “Watchtower” Study meetings. Proofread Pīnyīn lyrics and musical notation is available for all the songs scheduled for Mandarin 2017–2018 circuit assemblies.


The Pīnyīn songbook material in the above unofficial resource has been designed to be mobile-first, so it works well on mobile devices of various shapes and sizes, including tablets and smartphones 📱. Some of the ways in which it does so are:

  • Song material with musical notation automatically loads “prezoomed” to take full advantage of the width of your device’s display, so as to render its Pīnyīn lyrics in as large a size as possible.
  • In the song material with musical notation, the typeface (font) chosen for the Pīnyīn lyrics is one that is especially legible at smaller text sizes.
  • The lyrics-only material uses Pīnyīn Plus technology, so the text automatically reflows according to the width of the display. Also, the text can be set to different sizes by the user, and a Night Theme is available. As time allows, more Pīnyīn Plus “flashcards” will be added, with their English translations, Chinese characters, etc.

The introduction for the above resource explains why it’s good to use Pīnyīn as a writing system on its own.


In the material with musical notation in the above resource, the Pīnyīn lyrics do not have Pīnyīn Plus “flashcard” functionality because they need to stay aligned with the musical notation. As time allows, Pīnyīn lyrics will be presented on their own as well, using Pīnyīn Plus technology. This will allow for the adding of Pīnyīn Plus “flashcards” with English translations, Chinese characters, etc. in the future.


While the original intention re the above resource was to prioritize production of material with musical notation and leave off production of Pīnyīn Plus lyrics-only material indefinitely, further analysis has led to the realization that since proofread Pīnyīn lyrics must be produced in some form for the musical notation material anyway, and since Pīnyīn Plus technology is a time-effective way to record proofread Pīnyīn text, it would be efficient to first produce proofread Pīnyīn lyrics in Pīnyīn Plus format for a particular song, and then to use those proofread Pīnyīn lyrics to speed up the production of musical notation material for that song. So, that will be the production workflow going forward for the above resource.


Previously, musical notation in the above resource was taken from screenshots of an official PDF file. Note (and make it a musical note ♪, at that 😄), though, that the musical notation for song 77 marked the debut in the above resource of musical notation produced “from scratch” to be mobile-first in design. This should provide for better and more consistent user experiences going forward, especially on smaller mobile devices like smartphones 📱.


Tuesday, February 20, 2018

The NWT Pinyin App Now Supports the “Sing Out Joyfully” Book

The NWT Pinyin app now supports the official lyrics-only Pīnyīn PDF file for the “Sing Out Joyfully” book that we are now using as our songbook. Accordingly, a link for it has been added to the tiandi.info/sjj short link.

[Update 2019-04-25: Unfortunately, it appears that this app is no longer in the App Store.]


Monday, February 19, 2018

Proofread Pīnyīn Web Material for the February 19–25 Bible Reading Posted

While we greatly appreciate the availability of the official Pīnyīn NWT Bible PDF file, the PDF format was conceived of in a world dominated by paper. Unfortunately, that means that PDF files are often not optimal for reading on the mobile devices that are now so prevalent among Mandarin field publishers.


The Pīnyīn Plus NWT Bible web material that is now available has been designed to be mobile-first, so it automatically adjusts itself to be optimal for reading on mobile devices of various shapes and sizes, including tablets and smartphones 📱.


Proofread Pīnyīn web material for the February 19–25 Bible Reading is now available:

A screenshot of the above-mentioned material being used offline on an iPhone 📱, using the app GoodReader. (Other similar apps can also be used, e.g. Documents.)


Also, partially proofread Pīnyīn web material (better at least than auto-generated Pīnyīn like that displayed by the Equipd app, and more mobile-friendly than the older 3-line PDFs) is now available for the Bible Readings from February 26 to March 11.


The above material is part of this resource:

  • NWT Bible (Pīnyīn Plus, Web)
    (2007 Printing, proofread, mobile-friendly, unofficial,
    incomplete but with many often-used scriptures,
    flashcards integrated with the text,
    context-appropriate English translations
    with literal & effective meanings,
    Simplified & Traditional characters,
    📖 Reveal All, 📄 Reveal Advanced, and
    📘 Reveal None controls
    for all the “flashcards” in a chapter, paragraph, etc.,
    extensive links for getting around, audio links,
    Night Theme that can be turned on or off
    using the ☀️/🌙 button at the top right,
    adjustable text size)
    (Info re offline viewing and printing)
  • Short Links:
    LinksPublications
    New World Translation Bible Links (tiandi.info/bi)

To expand on why the above resource provides an excellent Mandarin reading experience on mobile devices:

  • The above web material resource provides easy enlarging and automatic reflowing of the text to accommodate displays of various shapes and sizes, including those of many mobile devices.
    • This is especially an advantage compared to the situation with PDF files, which have preset page sizes, text sizes, and line renderings baked in. As a result, PDF files are often cumbersome and difficult to read on smaller mobile devices. E.g., when you are zoomed in and get to the bottom of a column, it can be difficult to scroll up and to the right in order to get to the top of the next column without interrupting the flow of the reading. While trying to do so quickly, you may even accidentally turn the page, causing an even greater interruption as you try to figure out where you are, and then tap/swipe, zoom, and scroll back to where you actually want to be.
  • In the above resource, Pīnyīn, an excellent tool for confidently and easily reading out Mandarin, is presented in a highly legible and readable way, and is given the primary focus.
    • In fact, the material can easily be set to only display the highly legible Pīnyīn, without the beautiful and traditionally-used, but actually unnecessary Chinese characters distracting and taking up limited display real estate. (This can be done on the above resource by selecting 📘 Reveal None from the drop-down list near the top of the Pīnyīn Plus web page you are on. The web browser you are using will remember the setting for whenever it is again used to access the above resource until the setting gets changed manually, or until your browser gets reset, perhaps from being deleted and reinstalled.)

The introduction for the above resource explains why it’s good to use Pīnyīn as a writing system on its own. Here is a quote:

“Taken as a bewitchingly complex, independent system for directly representing meanings visually, the characters can actually be a distraction or a diversion from the Mandarin words themselves, which are already a system for representing meanings through Mandarin speech sounds. Really, a Mandarin word still means what it means, no more and no less, whether it is spoken, written in characters, or written in Pīnyīn. Shakespeare said that “a rose by any other name would smell as sweet”, and indeed, a rose would smell as sweet whether the spoken Mandarin word for it is written as “玫瑰” or as “méigui”. Writing the word in characters does not add to its meaning, and writing it in Pīnyīn does not take away from its meaning.”

To expand on the points listed re the above resource, note that:

  • The material in the above resource has been carefully translated, rendered, and proofread. Material with a grey background has been partially proofread. Pīnyīn material with a golden-hued background has been proofread, but not all of its “flashcards” have been added and proofread.
  • The material in the above resource is based on the latest 2007 printing of the Mandarin Chinese NWT Bible. If you notice that some changes need to be made to the material in the above resource to bring it in line with revisions to the Mandarin Chinese NWT Bible, please email me to let me know.
  • The above resource is mobile-friendly—it is quite legible and usable on everything from desktop/laptop PCs and Macs to iPads and other tablets to iPhones and other smartphones.
  • The above resource provides a control on each page for changing the text size. This should make it easy for most people to set the text to a comfortably readable size. When a new text size is selected, the text automatically reflows to allow you to read it without you having to scroll left or right.
  • In the above resource, links are used extensively to make it quick and easy to get around in the material, drastically reducing the amount of manual scrolling needed.
  • The above resource contains links to the official Mandarin MP3 audio files on jw.org.
  • An active Internet connection is required to access the above web resource directly. However, its material can be downloaded in a zip file for offline use. More information is provided at the Info re offline viewing and printing link.
  • For your convenience, a short link (New World Translation Bible Links (tiandi.info/bi)) is available for the above resource.

Saturday, February 17, 2018

“Sing Out Joyfully” Bk. Partially Proofread Pīnyīn Web Material or More Available for Songs for February 19–25 Mandarin Meetings

The songs to be sung at Mandarin meetings and assemblies are now songs from the new songbook, “Sing Out Joyfully” to Jehovah (sjj).


Thankfully, an official Pīnyīn PDF file for this new songbook is now available for download from jw.org. (The short link for the new songbook, tiandi.info/sjj, has been updated accordingly.) Note, however, that the currently available official Pīnyīn PDF file only contains lyrics—it does not contain musical notation. An official version of the new songbook with both musical notation and Pīnyīn lyrics is likely in the works, but was not available from jw.org, the WOL, or the JW Library app at the time of this writing.


While we greatly appreciate the official Pīnyīn songbook PDF file that is available, the PDF format itself was conceived of in a world dominated by paper. Unfortunately, that means that PDF files are often not optimal for reading on the mobile devices that are now so prevalent among Mandarin field publishers.


Also, with past official Pīnyīn songbook PDF files, having to share limited display real estate with Chinese characters and musical notation has at times forced the Pīnyīn text to be rendered in small type that can be difficult to read, especially for older people.


Another difficulty that is encountered, especially when one needs to quickly find the song that is about to be sung at a meeting, is that the official meeting schedules only list the numbers of the songs to be used, and the brothers announcing what song is about to be sung often only mention the song number, but in the current official Pīnyīn songbook PDF file, there is no listing of song links in song number order.


Partially proofread Pīnyīn web material (better at least than auto-generated Pīnyīn like that displayed by the Equipd app, and more mobile-friendly than the older 3-line PDFs) or more for all the songs scheduled to be used during the February 19–25 Mandarin Our Christian Life and Ministry and “Watchtower” Study meetings has been posted to this resource that seeks to help with these challenges:





Screenshots of the above resource being used offline on an iPhone 📱, using the app GoodReader. (Other similar apps can also be used, e.g. Documents.)


Production of at least partially proofread Pīnyīn web material (better at least than auto-generated Pīnyīn like that displayed by the Equipd app, and more mobile-friendly than the older 3-line PDFs) with a few basic Pīnyīn Plus “flashcards” is expected to keep up with all the songs scheduled for Mandarin Our Christian Life and Ministry and “Watchtower” Study meetings. Proofread Pīnyīn lyrics and musical notation is available for all the songs scheduled for Mandarin 2017–2018 circuit assemblies.


The Pīnyīn songbook material in the above unofficial resource has been designed to be mobile-first, so it works well on mobile devices of various shapes and sizes, including tablets and smartphones 📱. Some of the ways in which it does so are:

  • Song material with musical notation automatically loads “prezoomed” to take full advantage of the width of your device’s display, so as to render its Pīnyīn lyrics in as large a size as possible.
  • In the song material with musical notation, the typeface (font) chosen for the Pīnyīn lyrics is one that is especially legible at smaller text sizes.
  • The lyrics-only material uses Pīnyīn Plus technology, so the text automatically reflows according to the width of the display. Also, the text can be set to different sizes by the user, and a Night Theme is available. As time allows, more Pīnyīn Plus “flashcards” will be added, with their English translations, Chinese characters, etc.

The introduction for the above resource explains why it’s good to use Pīnyīn as a writing system on its own.


In the material with musical notation in the above resource, the Pīnyīn lyrics do not have Pīnyīn Plus “flashcard” functionality because they need to stay aligned with the musical notation. As time allows, Pīnyīn lyrics will be presented on their own as well, using Pīnyīn Plus technology. This will allow for the adding of Pīnyīn Plus “flashcards” with English translations, Chinese characters, etc. in the future.


While the original intention re the above resource was to prioritize production of material with musical notation and leave off production of Pīnyīn Plus lyrics-only material indefinitely, further analysis has led to the realization that since proofread Pīnyīn lyrics must be produced in some form for the musical notation material anyway, and since Pīnyīn Plus technology is a time-effective way to record proofread Pīnyīn text, it would be efficient to first produce proofread Pīnyīn lyrics in Pīnyīn Plus format for a particular song, and then to use those proofread Pīnyīn lyrics to speed up the production of musical notation material for that song. So, that will be the production workflow going forward for the above resource.


Previously, musical notation in the above resource was taken from screenshots of an official PDF file. Note (and make it a musical note ♪, at that 😄), though, that the musical notation for song 77 marked the debut in the above resource of musical notation produced “from scratch” to be mobile-first in design. This should provide for better and more consistent user experiences going forward, especially on smaller mobile devices like smartphones 📱.


Monday, February 12, 2018

Proofread Pīnyīn Web Material for the February 12–18 Bible Reading Posted

While we greatly appreciate the availability of the official Pīnyīn NWT Bible PDF file, the PDF format was conceived of in a world dominated by paper. Unfortunately, that means that PDF files are often not optimal for reading on the mobile devices that are now so prevalent among Mandarin field publishers.


The Pīnyīn Plus NWT Bible web material that is now available has been designed to be mobile-first, so it automatically adjusts itself to be optimal for reading on mobile devices of various shapes and sizes, including tablets and smartphones.


Proofread Pīnyīn web material for the February 12–18 Bible Reading is now available:

A screenshot of the above-mentioned material being used offline on an iPhone, using the app GoodReader. (Other similar apps can also be used, e.g. Documents.)


Also, partially proofread Pīnyīn web material (better at least than auto-generated Pīnyīn like that displayed by the Equipd app, and more mobile-friendly than the older 3-line PDFs) is now available for the Bible Readings from February 19 to March 4.


The above material is part of this resource:

  • NWT Bible (Pīnyīn Plus, Web)
    (2007 Printing, proofread, mobile-friendly, unofficial,
    incomplete but with many often-used scriptures,
    flashcards integrated with the text,
    context-appropriate English translations
    with literal & effective meanings,
    Simplified & Traditional characters,
    📖 Reveal All, 📄 Reveal Advanced, and
    📘 Reveal None controls
    for all the “flashcards” in a chapter, paragraph, etc.,
    extensive links for getting around, audio links,
    Night Theme that can be turned on or off
    using the ☀️/🌙 button at the top right,
    adjustable text size)
    (Info re offline viewing and printing)
  • Short Links:
    LinksPublications
    New World Translation Bible Links (tiandi.info/bi)

To expand on why the above resource provides an excellent Mandarin reading experience on mobile devices:

  • The above web material resource provides easy enlarging and automatic reflowing of the text to accommodate displays of various shapes and sizes, including those of many mobile devices.
    • This is especially an advantage compared to the situation with PDF files, which have preset page sizes, text sizes, and line renderings baked in. As a result, PDF files are often cumbersome and difficult to read on smaller mobile devices. E.g., when you are zoomed in and get to the bottom of a column, it can be difficult to scroll up and to the right in order to get to the top of the next column without interrupting the flow of the reading. While trying to do so quickly, you may even accidentally turn the page, causing an even greater interruption as you try to figure out where you are, and then tap/swipe, zoom, and scroll back to where you actually want to be.
  • In the above resource, Pīnyīn, an excellent tool for confidently and easily reading out Mandarin, is presented in a highly legible and readable way, and is given the primary focus.
    • In fact, the material can easily be set to only display the highly legible Pīnyīn, without the beautiful and traditionally-used, but actually unnecessary Chinese characters distracting and taking up limited display real estate. (This can be done on the above resource by selecting 📘 Reveal None from the drop-down list near the top of the Pīnyīn Plus web page you are on. The web browser you are using will remember the setting for whenever it is again used to access the above resource until the setting gets changed manually, or until your browser gets reset, perhaps from being deleted and reinstalled.)

The introduction for the above resource explains why it’s good to use Pīnyīn as a writing system on its own. Here is a quote:

“Taken as a bewitchingly complex, independent system for directly representing meanings visually, the characters can actually be a distraction or a diversion from the Mandarin words themselves, which are already a system for representing meanings through Mandarin speech sounds. Really, a Mandarin word still means what it means, no more and no less, whether it is spoken, written in characters, or written in Pīnyīn. Shakespeare said that “a rose by any other name would smell as sweet”, and indeed, a rose would smell as sweet whether the spoken Mandarin word for it is written as “玫瑰” or as “méigui”. Writing the word in characters does not add to its meaning, and writing it in Pīnyīn does not take away from its meaning.”

To expand on the points listed re the above resource, note that:

  • The material in the above resource has been carefully translated, rendered, and proofread. Material with a grey background has been partially proofread. Pīnyīn material with a golden-hued background has been proofread, but not all of its “flashcards” have been added and proofread.
  • The material in the above resource is based on the latest 2007 printing of the Mandarin Chinese NWT Bible. If you notice that some changes need to be made to the material in the above resource to bring it in line with revisions to the Mandarin Chinese NWT Bible, please email me to let me know.
  • The above resource is mobile-friendly—it is quite legible and usable on everything from desktop/laptop PCs and Macs to iPads and other tablets to iPhones and other smartphones.
  • The above resource provides a control on each page for changing the text size. This should make it easy for most people to set the text to a comfortably readable size. When a new text size is selected, the text automatically reflows to allow you to read it without you having to scroll left or right.
  • In the above resource, links are used extensively to make it quick and easy to get around in the material, drastically reducing the amount of manual scrolling needed.
  • The above resource contains links to the official Mandarin MP3 audio files on jw.org.
  • An active Internet connection is required to access the above web resource directly. However, its material can be downloaded in a zip file for offline use. More information is provided at the Info re offline viewing and printing link.
  • For your convenience, a short link (New World Translation Bible Links (tiandi.info/bi)) is available for the above resource.

Sunday, February 11, 2018

“Sing Out Joyfully” Bk. Partially Proofread Pīnyīn Web Material or More Available for Songs for February 12–18 Mandarin Meetings

The songs to be sung at Mandarin meetings and assemblies are now songs from the new songbook, “Sing Out Joyfully” to Jehovah (sjj).


Thankfully, an official Pīnyīn PDF file for this new songbook is now available for download from jw.org. (The short link for the new songbook, tiandi.info/sjj, has been updated accordingly.) Note, however, that the currently available official Pīnyīn PDF file only contains lyrics—it does not contain musical notation. An official version of the new songbook with both musical notation and Pīnyīn lyrics is likely in the works, but was not available from jw.org, the WOL, or the JW Library app at the time of this writing.


While we greatly appreciate the official Pīnyīn songbook PDF file that is available, the PDF format itself was conceived of in a world dominated by paper. Unfortunately, that means that PDF files are often not optimal for reading on the mobile devices that are now so prevalent among Mandarin field publishers.


Also, with past official Pīnyīn songbook PDF files, having to share limited display real estate with Chinese characters and musical notation has at times forced the Pīnyīn text to be rendered in small type that can be difficult to read, especially for older people.


Another difficulty that is encountered, especially when one needs to quickly find the song that is about to be sung at a meeting, is that the official meeting schedules only list the numbers of the songs to be used, and the brothers announcing what song is about to be sung often only mention the song number, but in the current official Pīnyīn songbook PDF file, there is no listing of song links in song number order.


Partially proofread Pīnyīn web material (better at least than auto-generated Pīnyīn like that displayed by the Equipd app, and more mobile-friendly than the older 3-line PDFs) or more for all the songs scheduled to be used during the February 12–18 Mandarin Our Christian Life and Ministry and “Watchtower” Study meetings has been posted to this resource that seeks to help with these challenges:

(Note: The above resource used to be called “Sing Out Joyfully” Bk. (Pīnyīn, Music, Web). The name was adjusted because now the resource also includes Pīnyīn Plus technology.)





Screenshots of the above resource being used offline on an iPhone, using the app GoodReader. (Other similar apps can also be used, e.g. Documents.)


Production of at least partially proofread Pīnyīn web material (better at least than auto-generated Pīnyīn like that displayed by the Equipd app, and more mobile-friendly than the older 3-line PDFs) with a few basic Pīnyīn Plus “flashcards” is expected to keep up with all the songs scheduled for Mandarin Our Christian Life and Ministry and “Watchtower” Study meetings. Proofread Pīnyīn lyrics and musical notation is available for all the songs scheduled for Mandarin 2017–2018 circuit assemblies.


The Pīnyīn songbook material in the above unofficial resource has been designed to be mobile-first, so it works well on mobile devices of various shapes and sizes, including tablets and smartphones. Some of the ways in which it does so are:

  • Song material with musical notation automatically loads “prezoomed” to take full advantage of the width of your device’s display, so as to render its Pīnyīn lyrics in as large a size as possible.
  • In the song material with musical notation, the typeface (font) chosen for the Pīnyīn lyrics is one that is especially legible at smaller text sizes.
  • The lyrics-only material uses Pīnyīn Plus technology, so the text automatically reflows according to the width of the display. Also, the text can be set to different sizes by the user, and a Night Theme is available. As time allows, more Pīnyīn Plus “flashcards” will be added, with their English translations, Chinese characters, etc.

The introduction for the above resource explains why it’s good to use Pīnyīn as a writing system on its own.


In the material with musical notation in the above resource, the Pīnyīn lyrics do not have Pīnyīn Plus “flashcard” functionality because they need to stay aligned with the musical notation. As time allows, Pīnyīn lyrics will be presented on their own as well, using Pīnyīn Plus technology. This will allow for the adding of Pīnyīn Plus “flashcards” with English translations, Chinese characters, etc. in the future.


While the original intention re the above resource was to prioritize production of material with musical notation and leave off production of Pīnyīn Plus lyrics-only material indefinitely, further analysis has led to the realization that since proofread Pīnyīn lyrics must be produced in some form for the musical notation material anyway, and since Pīnyīn Plus technology is a time-effective way to record proofread Pīnyīn text, it would be efficient to first produce proofread Pīnyīn lyrics in Pīnyīn Plus format for a particular song, and then to use those proofread Pīnyīn lyrics to speed up the production of musical notation material for that song. So, that will be the production workflow going forward for the above resource.


(Interestingly, the organization is also using a lyrics-only material first approach with the official Pīnyīn material for the new songbook. Hopefully, both the official and unofficial Pīnyīn resources for the new songbook will thus be helped to contain the most needed material producible, considering the time and resources available.)


While previously, musical notation in the above resource was taken from screenshots of an official PDF file, the musical notation for song 77 marked the debut of material produced “from scratch” to be mobile-first in design. This should provide for better and more consistent user experiences going forward, especially on smaller mobile devices like smartphones.


Monday, February 05, 2018

Proofread Pīnyīn Web Material for the February 5–11 Bible Reading Posted

While we greatly appreciate the availability of the official Pīnyīn NWT Bible PDF file, the PDF format was conceived of in a world dominated by paper. Unfortunately, that means that PDF files are often not optimal for reading on the mobile devices that are now so prevalent among Mandarin field publishers.


The Pīnyīn Plus NWT Bible web material that is now available has been designed to be mobile-first, so it automatically adjusts itself to be optimal for reading on mobile devices of various shapes and sizes, including tablets and smartphones.


Proofread Pīnyīn web material for the February 5–11 Bible Reading is now available:

Also, partially proofread Pīnyīn web material (better at least than auto-generated Pīnyīn like that displayed by the Equipd app, and more mobile-friendly than the older 3-line PDFs) is now available for the Bible Readings from February 12 to February 25.


The above material is part of this resource:

  • NWT Bible (Pīnyīn Plus, Web)
    (2007 Printing, proofread, mobile-friendly, unofficial,
    incomplete but with many often-used scriptures,
    flashcards integrated with the text,
    context-appropriate English translations
    with literal & effective meanings,
    Simplified & Traditional characters,
    📖 Reveal All, 📄 Reveal Advanced, and
    📘 Reveal None controls
    for all the “flashcards” in a chapter, paragraph, etc.,
    extensive links for getting around, audio links,
    Night Theme that can be turned on or off
    using the ☀️/🌙 button at the top right,
    adjustable text size)
    (Info re offline viewing and printing)
  • Short Links:
    LinksPublications
    New World Translation Bible Links (tiandi.info/bi)

To expand on why the above resource provides an excellent Mandarin reading experience on mobile devices:

  • The above web material resource provides easy enlarging and automatic reflowing of the text to accommodate displays of various shapes and sizes, including those of many mobile devices.
    • This is especially an advantage compared to the situation with PDF files, which have preset page sizes, text sizes, and line renderings baked in. As a result, PDF files are often cumbersome and difficult to read on smaller mobile devices. E.g., when you are zoomed in and get to the bottom of a column, it can be difficult to scroll up and to the right in order to get to the top of the next column without interrupting the flow of the reading. While trying to do so quickly, you may even accidentally turn the page, causing an even greater interruption as you try to figure out where you are, and then tap/swipe, zoom, and scroll back to where you actually want to be.
  • In the above resource, Pīnyīn, an excellent tool for confidently and easily reading out Mandarin, is presented in a highly legible and readable way, and is given the primary focus.
    • In fact, the material can easily be set to only display the highly legible Pīnyīn, without the beautiful and traditionally-used, but actually unnecessary Chinese characters distracting and taking up limited display real estate. (This can be done on the above resource by selecting 📘 Reveal None from the drop-down list near the top of the Pīnyīn Plus web page you are on. The web browser you are using will remember the setting for whenever it is again used to access the above resource until the setting gets changed manually, or until your browser gets reset, perhaps from being deleted and reinstalled.)

The introduction for the above resource explains why it’s good to use Pīnyīn as a writing system on its own. Here is a quote:

“Taken as a bewitchingly complex, independent system for directly representing meanings visually, the characters can actually be a distraction or a diversion from the Mandarin words themselves, which are already a system for representing meanings through Mandarin speech sounds. Really, a Mandarin word still means what it means, no more and no less, whether it is spoken, written in characters, or written in Pīnyīn. Shakespeare said that “a rose by any other name would smell as sweet”, and indeed, a rose would smell as sweet whether the spoken Mandarin word for it is written as “玫瑰” or as “méigui”. Writing the word in characters does not add to its meaning, and writing it in Pīnyīn does not take away from its meaning.”

To expand on the points listed re the above resource, note that:

  • The material in the above resource has been carefully translated, rendered, and proofread. Material with a grey background has been partially proofread. Pīnyīn material with a golden-hued background has been proofread, but not all of its “flashcards” have been added and proofread.
  • The material in the above resource is based on the latest 2007 printing of the Mandarin Chinese NWT Bible. If you notice that some changes need to be made to the material in the above resource to bring it in line with revisions to the Mandarin Chinese NWT Bible, please email me to let me know.
  • The above resource is mobile-friendly—it is quite legible and usable on everything from desktop/laptop PCs and Macs to iPads and other tablets to iPhones and other smartphones.
  • The above resource provides a control on each page for changing the text size. This should make it easy for most people to set the text to a comfortably readable size. When a new text size is selected, the text automatically reflows to allow you to read it without you having to scroll left or right.
  • In the above resource, links are used extensively to make it quick and easy to get around in the material, drastically reducing the amount of manual scrolling needed.
  • The above resource contains links to the official Mandarin MP3 audio files on jw.org.
  • An active Internet connection is required to access the above web resource directly. However, its material can be downloaded in a zip file for offline use. More information is provided at the Info re offline viewing and printing link.
  • For your convenience, a short link (New World Translation Bible Links (tiandi.info/bi)) is available for the above resource.

Thursday, February 01, 2018

“Sing Out Joyfully” Bk. Partially Proofread Pīnyīn Web Material or More Available for Songs for February 5–11 Mandarin Meetings

The songs to be sung at Mandarin meetings and assemblies are now songs from the new songbook, “Sing Out Joyfully” to Jehovah (sjj).


Thankfully, an official Pīnyīn PDF file for this new songbook is now available for download from jw.org. (The short link for the new songbook, tiandi.info/sjj, has been updated accordingly.) Note, however, that the currently available official Pīnyīn PDF file only contains lyrics—it does not contain musical notation. An official version of the new songbook with both musical notation and Pīnyīn lyrics is undoubtedly in the works, but was not available from jw.org, the WOL, or the JW Library app at the time of this writing.


While we greatly appreciate the official Pīnyīn songbook PDF file that is available, the PDF format itself was conceived of in a world dominated by paper. Unfortunately, that means that PDF files are often not optimal for reading on the mobile devices that are now so prevalent among Mandarin field publishers.


Also, with past official Pīnyīn songbook PDF files, having to share limited display real estate with Chinese characters and musical notation has at times forced the Pīnyīn text to be rendered in small type that can be difficult to read, especially for older people.


Another difficulty that is encountered, especially when one needs to quickly find the song that is about to be sung at a meeting, is that the official meeting schedules only list the numbers of the songs to be used, and the brothers announcing what song is about to be sung often only mention the song number, but in the current official Pīnyīn songbook PDF file, there is no listing of song links in song number order.


Partially proofread Pīnyīn web material (better at least than auto-generated Pīnyīn like that displayed by the Equipd app, and more mobile-friendly than the older 3-line PDFs) or more for all the songs scheduled to be used during the February 5–11 Mandarin Our Christian Life and Ministry and “Watchtower” Study meetings has been posted to this resource that seeks to help with these challenges:

(Note: The above resource used to be called “Sing Out Joyfully” Bk. (Pīnyīn, Music, Web). The name was adjusted because now the resource also includes Pīnyīn Plus technology.)


Production of at least partially proofread Pīnyīn material (better at least than auto-generated Pīnyīn like that displayed by the Equipd app, and more mobile-friendly than the older 3-line PDFs) with a few basic Pīnyīn Plus “flashcards” is expected to keep up with all the songs scheduled for Mandarin Our Christian Life and Ministry and “Watchtower” Study meetings. Proofread Pīnyīn lyrics and musical notation is available for all the songs scheduled for Mandarin 2017–2018 circuit assemblies.


The Pīnyīn songbook material in the above unofficial resource has been designed to be mobile-first, so it works well on mobile devices of various shapes and sizes, including tablets and smartphones. Some of the ways in which it does so are:

  • Song material with musical notation automatically loads “prezoomed” to take full advantage of the width of your device’s display, so as to render its Pīnyīn lyrics in as large a size as possible.
  • In the song material with musical notation, the typeface (font) chosen for the Pīnyīn lyrics is one that is especially legible at smaller text sizes.
  • The lyrics-only material uses Pīnyīn Plus technology, so the text automatically reflows according to the width of the display. Also, the text can be set to different sizes by the user, and a Night Theme is available. As time allows, more Pīnyīn Plus “flashcards” will be added, with their English translations, Chinese characters, etc.

The introduction for the above resource explains why it’s good to use Pīnyīn as a writing system on its own.


In the material with musical notation in the above resource, the Pīnyīn lyrics do not have Pīnyīn Plus “flashcard” functionality because they need to stay aligned with the musical notation. As time allows, Pīnyīn lyrics will be presented on their own as well, using Pīnyīn Plus technology. This will allow for the adding of Pīnyīn Plus “flashcards” with English translations, Chinese characters, etc. in the future.


While the original intention re the above resource was to prioritize production of material with musical notation and leave off production of Pīnyīn Plus lyrics-only material indefinitely, further analysis has led to the realization that since proofread Pīnyīn lyrics must be produced in some form for the musical notation material anyway, and since Pīnyīn Plus technology is a time-effective way to record proofread Pīnyīn text, it would be efficient to first produce proofread Pīnyīn lyrics in Pīnyīn Plus format for a particular song, and then to use those proofread Pīnyīn lyrics to speed up the production of musical notation material for that song. So, that will be the production workflow going forward for the above resource.


(Interestingly, the organization is also using a lyrics-only material first approach with the official Pīnyīn material for the new songbook. Hopefully, both the official and unofficial Pīnyīn resources for the new songbook will thus be helped to contain the most needed material producible, considering the time and resources available.)


While previously, musical notation in the above resource was taken from screenshots of an official PDF file, the musical notation for song 77 marked the debut of material produced “from scratch” to be mobile-first in design. This should provide for better and more consistent user experiences going forward, especially on smaller mobile devices like smartphones.