Isilo - Tutorial

[trottigy]

I wanted to do a little tutorial as so many ask, "How do I put the WTLibrary on my mobile device?"

 

First, you need to purchase iSilo from the app store (all OSes have it - Windows Mobile, Apple, and Android). I will mostly use the PC version as it is easier to cut and paste, but it looks almost exactly the same no matter the version you are using.

 

You can also purchase iSilo at - http://www.isilo.com/ , but I strongly recommend it be purchased at the various app stores. Why? If you get a new device it can be re-downloaded using the same account for FREE, where as it is "iffy" coming straight from iSilo. I also use the same copy for both my tablet and phone - I did NOT have to pay for 2 copies.

 

Next, there are 2 main files that encompass the Watchtower Lbrary -

 

1. WTPub-EN-Full_2012.pdb

2. WTPub-EN-DX-2012.pdb

 

You will note these are the EN or English files. This is also available in several other languages:

 

Portuguse

WTPub-PT-DX-2012.pdb
WTPub-PT-Full-2012.pdb

 

Spanish:

WTPub-SP-DX-2012.pdb
WTPub-SP-Full-2012.pdb

 

German:

WTPub-DE-DX-2012.pdb
WTPub-DE-Full-2012.pdb

 

French:

WTPub-FR-Full-2011.pdb

WTPub-FR-DX-2011.pdb

 

English

WTPub-EN-DX-2012.pdb

WTPub-EN-Full-2012.pdb

 

Italian

WTPub-IT-DX-2011.pdb

WTPub-IT-Full-2011.pdb

 

Dutch

WTPub-NL-DX-2011.pdb
WTPub-NL-Full-2011.pdb

 

EDIT and 2013 has been available for a while now.

Edited October 23, 2014 by trottigy

[Musky]

Just to add to Jerry's post. For the English isilo Library, you also need these two files for the scripture links to work.

 

RBi8-E.pdb

NWT-Rbi8-E.pdb

 

Also, all isilo files need to be in the same folder for the links to work.

[trottigy]

Now you have these files. Did you save them some place you will remember?? Do you know how? If you need help installing these files or even finding them - meekspace.com is THE place to go for help. GET AN ACCOUNT!!!

 

They have VERY talented volunteers that are willing to help. And if they can get SurferGirl up and running - they can help ANYONE    (Love ya girl    )

 

So, now you have saved them in a place you can remember and find - open them. On a mobile device there is one way to access them and on a PC the other.

 

PC first - just open like you would any other program and browse to the folder you saved them in and click on the one with FULL in the name:

 

 

Now Mobile - across the top are 5 tabs - recent / new / cat / faves / device. I only have used recent & device. You will need to use device the first time. Find those 2 files and then click on the one with FULL in the name (the good news is - it will show in recent from then on - so I won't have to "find" it each time. Looks like this:

[trottigy]

Yes, I LOVE iSilo and have MANY files as you can see, but for now let's focus on the WT Library:

 

The PC version and the Mobile version are very similar once the files are open - except the menu options are at the top for PC and bottom for Mobile (note: this is the "HOME" screen for this file - if you ever get "lost" click the button that looks like a house and it will take you back here / HOME):

 

And mobile:

 

One more thing about the "HOME" button. In the mobile version the options across the bottom automatically disappear. Scroll until there is some empty space at the bottom and click in that area and the buttons will come back.

 

Across the top is:

 

ES= Examining Scriptures - click it gets you the current year 2013 daytext, then select the month and then day - TADA

SS - School Schedule - click it gets you the current year schedule, then click the month and TADA - in here most of the scriptures are linked up but not the reasoning book

 

Now for these 2 items above - I prefer JWReader - which is another thread - http://jwtalk.net/forums/topic/6254-jwreader-updated/?hl=jwreader

 

Continuing -

IT - Yep - IT books, click on it and it just gives you the title of each subject - you don't have to click book 1 or 2

VOL - Watchtower & Awakes - all that are on the CD:

 

KM - same thing - all available on the CD and I like the Question box feature - click it and ALL the QBoxes are listed by date - check it out VERY handy.

Then:

BK = Books, BR = Brochures & BL = Booklets (clicking these just takes you down that first page to the topic titled one of these.)

[trottigy]

Now my personal Favorite use of iSilo - you ever know what a verse says or at least some of what the verse says, but can't remember WHERE it is?? The older you get the more often that happens 

 

Ah - CN to the RESCUE!!!

This is the Concordance - every word used in the NWT is listed alphabetically.

 

Say you are looking for where that verse is where Jehovah humbly asks the angels for suggestions. You remember He used the word "fool" as in - who will "fool" Ahab? OK - Click on CN and then F - for Fool and scroll down to fool (note: in options you can set several buttons up to do different things - I have set my volume buttons to scrolls - makes life MUCH simpler - if you can't figure out how to do that - ask and I'll add that to this thread).

 

You have found the word "Fool" and see (13) next to it. This tells you it is only used 13 times in the NWT. This should be EASY! Click "fool" and all 13 instances and there locations show:

 

 

Now the "f" in each verse is where fool is used. Quickly you see this must be 1 Ki(ngs) 22. So, you click on that and POW you are at those verses and YEP! that is the one. If it wasn't - you could just click back and try another verse till you get it.

 

PS - looking at this - one could also use 2 Ch(ronicles) 18: starting at 19, eh?

[trottigy]

OK  - DX is the Index. Click on it and it opens the "WTPub-EN-DX-2012.pdb" file and you get:

 

You see your options. If you Click "Publications" this will take you back to your original file "WTPub-EN-Full_2012.pdb" The one we started with. Or you could just click back and go back. But if you click the button that looks like a House (the HOME button) you are taken back to this screen - as it is HOME for this file.

 

note: if you click the "HOME" button while in the other file - it takes you to the "Home" screen I showed earlier - in the "Full" file.

 

This is where much of your "searching" is going to be done - just like if you were using the CD. Also, this is the file that gets opened if you click the + button next to a verse.

[trottigy]

Next - there are links for all the Bible books. You click those and are taken to the chapters and then verses. This is where the power of iSilo comes in handy. Let's go back to our example of "Fool" and go to 2 Ch 18:19:

 

Do you see the + symbol next to the verse? Click it and it will take you to the "Index file" where that verse can be found. I have done some experimenting and sometimes you are taken to the scripture index for "86-12" and sometimes "30-85". I haven't found a rhyme or reason for how they decided which to take you to.

 

In this case you are taken to the "30-85" - perhaps because there isn't any listing for this verse in the "86-12" one. Hey, it doesn't take long to figure which you are taken too. If you see 56 - you know it is the older one. You can always click HOME and look in the "Scriptures 86-12" just to make sure there isn't something more current.

 

Just as when you are using the CD - you look at the surrounding verse and note if a particular Watchtower article is used for that "series" of verse. If there is, you KNOW the article is going to talk extensively on THAT topic. In this case there is a nice 1956 Watchtower - study article that talks about these verses. Unfortunately, when you click on the link to that article - it takes you to the beginning of the article - NOT to where that verse is used in it. You will need to scroll through that article looking for that verse. OR you can use the "search" feature and type something like CH or as I did - 18. 4 or 5 clicks later I found it at the bottom of paragraph 33 (WOW! they were LONG study articles back then).

[trottigy]

A quote from that article is interesting and But you know me - always willing to go OFF 

 

32 But how had one of Jehovah's spirit creatures become a lying or deceptive spirit and how could the God of truth authorize him to become a "deceptive spirit in the mouth of all of [Ahab's] prophets"? In this way: Ahab wanted to be encouraged in a suicidal plan of action by lying prophets. He showed this when he imprisoned Micaiah for telling the unpleasant truth. Lies were what Ahab wanted to hear to his own death; so Jehovah was agreeable to Ahab's hearing lies then because Ahab was sentenced to death and the time for his execution was at hand. Jehovah did not interfere by exercising his spirit upon Ahab's prophets to make them tell the truth, as when one of his angels turned the prophet Balaam's curse into a blessing upon Israel. One of Jehovah's spirit creatures saw the need of the lie to prevail to induce Ahab on to his own execution, by having the liars outnumber the truthtelling Micaiah. A spirit creature from Jehovah God has power to make a creature talk, even a dumb brute like Balaam's ass. So he offered to exercise his power upon Ahab's prophets to speak, just to speak, letting them speak out of their own hearts what they wanted to speak to please the one supporting them, their king. Thus the spirit creature or angel was responsible, not for their lies, but merely for their speaking. (question)
 

33 Jehovah was agreeable to the angel's doing this, because He wanted to show that it is disastrous to rely on lying prophets and also because it was time for his sentence of death to be executed upon Ahab. He knew that Ahab desired to be fooled by the lie, especially when the liars were so many. Hence Jehovah told the spirit creature that the operation of his power upon Ahab's prophets would open the way for them to utter the death-dealing lie, and it would win out over the faithful warning of Jehovah's prophet Micaiah. It did and Ahab shed his blood like an executed criminal for canines to lick, and Jehovah the God of truth stood exonerated of lies.—1 Ki. 22:29-38; 2 Chron. 18:1-34. (question)

 

Interesting, Jehovah doesn't force people to do something they wouldn't already do. But He DOES execute justice!

 

OK - back to the topic.

[trottigy]

Just to add to Jerry's post. For the English isilo Library, you also need these two files for the scripture links to work.

 

RBi8-E.pdb

NWT-Rbi8-E.pdb

 

Also, all isilo files need to be in the same folder for the links to work.

 

In fact, I would DL these and the KM one and the WSM one for this week and the recent magazine ones and we can talk about each of these.

[mserskine]

 

Just to add to Jerry's post. For the English isilo Library, you also need these two files for the scripture links to work.

 

RBi8-E.pdb

NWT-Rbi8-E.pdb

 

Also, all isilo files need to be in the same folder for the links to work.

 

Where do I find     NWT-Rbi8-E.pdb

 

I can't find it

 

[carribbeangrl01]

How much memory does wt library using isilo take?

[trottigy]

The first file - the largest - is 171MB and the second - the index - is 17Mb for a total of 188Mb.

[bohemian]

But the WT library files are no longer at meekspace - now what?

[Brother_Bliss]

But the WT library files are no longer at meekspace - now what?

 

Apparently Meekspace can still provide them, but have to fill requests individually.

[bohemian]

It's all too complicated for me, and I thought I was computer literate!  It would have been useful to have it on my iPad, but it looks like the FDS doesn't want that (I assume that is why they requested the files removal), so I'll do without.  I just wish I had known beforehand, and then I wouldn't have bought an app I don't need, nor joined a forum I don't really want to join (have deactivated now).

[trottigy]

For over a decade (10 years) the FDS has permitted the brothers to put these files together and distribute them. They did so again for our latest CD 2012. Why? Because they DO NOT want you to have them? that just doesn't make sense. I used to get my files from our CO. I have many friends at Bethel and iSilo is used HEAVILY there on iPads.

Offtopic - Bethelites - the only group of people I know who make $100 a month, yet have the latest technology AND travel the world. There must be something to that vow of poverty

The branch just changed the distribution method. They didn't say STOP distributing them. Now they are "by request" - just like the CDs. And if you think this is complicated - what do you use your ipad for? Angry Birds?

[bohemian]

I don't have "Angry Birds" whatever that is! (It is on my Roku, but I have never clicked it)  I have iBooks on my iPad, so the latest material is on it. 

Edited May 30, 2013 by bohemian

[jayrtom]

It's all too complicated for me, and I thought I was computer literate! It would have been useful to have it on my iPad, but it looks like the FDS doesn't want that (I assume that is why they requested the files removal), so I'll do without. I just wish I had known beforehand, and then I wouldn't have bought an app I don't need, nor joined a forum I don't really want to join (have deactivated now).

You have the wol which is cross platform, so no need to say the FDS only cares about Microsoft

The isilo is cross platform also and is great (although the search out of the index is a bit difficult)

Can you share your doubts? I understand saving the files on the device are a bit more difficult than android. I had a windows phone and had to upload the files over isilo server and then download inside the app

What is that you can't do?

[trottigy]

As the branch wants these distributed "by request " now - For any that would like them PM me an email address and i am happy to provide them.

[Brother_Bliss]

It would have been useful to have it on my iPad, but it looks like the FDS doesn't want that (I assume that is why they requested the files removal), so I'll do without.

Actually, they could care less about you having them on your iPad. They just wanted a more refined way of distributing copyrighted materials than just having them available for anyone to download. It's the same reason why we cannot have them here in our Files Library.

For what it's worth, Meekspace will still give them to you, and so would probably most of us in this forum.

[trottigy]

OK more iSilo fun - "OPTIONS"

 

One would think you click the "menu" button on your phone and then click "tools" BUT NO!!! - you click EDIT:

 

Once clicked - THEN you can select options

 

Lets talk about each of these "options":

[izzydee83]

Thank you so much for this tutorial, Jerry! I have the WTL on my Transformer Prime now, and your step-by-step instructions with screenshots made it very easy. :-)

[trottigy]

I left off at "Options". Let's start with the 3 I use the most:

 

1. FONT ->

There aren't a lot of options here, but sometimes the font on a file is JUST TO SMALL for my aging eyes.

 

After this, there are options of "Relative Size" or "Absolute Size" - you just have to experiment here and see what works best. I like the absolute one as then everything is the same size.

 

Now this is JUST a setting for this particular file - UNLESS you check the box - "Also Set As Defaults" - then all your files will default to this.

 

 

Next - BUTTON

 

 

Edited June 11, 2013 by trottigy

[trottigy]

Let's say you are using that concordance feature and you are looking for that verse - like me the other day looking for the verse that talked about NOT calling down evil on the Kings as a little birdie will tell him and you will be in trouble (used this for the government spying on you - topic -> I thought it fit very WELL!)

 

Anyway, you look up the word "King"  2477 times used in the Bible. Yeah, sort through ALL of those verses to find the one you want  OK so you try something else - how about "Evil"? Better - only 110 times, but that is still a lot as you are scrolling through them on your phone and using that "flick" motion. What would be nice is having a button you could press to scroll > Hmm, you think - I don't use the volume button when I am in iSilo - how about that??  YEP!

 

You go to buttons and see that volume up and down is an option - cool!

 

Once selected - then select the action - scroll down - TADA, but be careful I have noticed on tablets - sometimes volume up scrolls down (as up is down on them - you'll see) - just come back here and switch it.

 

Do the same for volume down = scroll down. Now you have a handy way of scrolling quickly through those 110 options as you know the verse is either Proverbs or Ecclesiastes and there are only 11 possibilities there. The one you want just jumps out.

[trottigy]

One more "Option" and remember we arrived here by clicking -> Menu -> Edit -> Options ->  (see above if you get lost).

 

"Tap Actions" - what are these? When you tap on the screen - once, double or triple, they are actions that iSilo will take. For example: you are reading your Bible and you want to go to the next chapter - how do you do it? Well, you can't just flick left at right - that doesn't work (note: it does work in JWReader, but this isn't that). If you use the arrow keys at the bottom of the screen - you quickly see that doesn't work either as those are for following "the crumbs" (you go backwards and forwards to whereever you have already been).

 

Wouldn't it be great if you could just tap somewhere on the screen and poof you went to the next page? Well - "Tap Actions" is what you want.

 

I personally don't use Single tap actions as sometimes I just tap on the screen for no reason and I don't want anything to happen. So I use the double or triple ones. Here is the doubles:

 

It shows a grid of the screen and then you just select the individual grid you want and then select the actions like "Page next" or "Page previous". I set up 3 different grids for "Page previous" and again for "Page next" as sometimes I can't find that one grid while tapping.

 

I hope you find these useful.