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Posted on October 14, 2017
by Nathan
I'm happy to report that our web development marathon is well underway, and we are making good progress! Josh and Trevor are optimistic that within a couple days, we will be able to start importing test data into the new app. Then we can take things for a test drive and spend the rest of Trevor's time here squashing bugs and ironing out wrinkles. Hopefully by the time Trevor leaves on the 24th, we will be to the point where we are comfortable with importing our actual student data into the app, and we will begin using the app ourselves.
Trevor and Josh discuss the best way to structure the application.
On a personal note, I am by far the junior developer on the team, but I am excited that I have been able to make some meaningful contributions to our forward progress. As a result of everything going on, my abilities have increased exponentially in the last few weeks, but I sill have a long ways to go. I am looking forward to making more progress in the near future!
Family
Our family is currently dealing with some colds, so we would appreciate your prayers. School is going well. The weather has taken a turn for the cooler and the trees are starting to turn, but according to the forecast, we have a bit of Indian Summer coming our way next week (or Grandma Summer, as they call it over here). It will be nice to set aside the jackets for a few days before the cooler weather sets in for good.
Posted on September 14, 2017
by Nathan
I've spoken many times in the past about our desire to create a website that would allow people to study through Bible First online. I've also mentioned a young man named Trevor Brown from Florida who is helping to build that website in his spare time. Well, I have two pieces of good news to report on:
- Trevor survived Hurricane Irma.
- Trevor is coming to Ukraine for just over two weeks in October to help finish the website.
While the website will still need more work after Trevor goes back to the States, the hope is that we will get it to the point to where we can start using it ourselves. Once we get the bugs worked out, we will open it up for others to use.
While Trevor doesn't arrive in Ukraine until October 8th, we are making a lot of progress on the website as we speak. Now that Trevor's trip is on the calendar, everyone is doing their best to get as much work done ahead of time, so that we can make as much progress as possible while he is in Ukraine.
Good and Evil
Tolik is continuing to make progress on translating Good and Evil. I have been working on converting the text into a format more suitable for translation, and hope to finish that project soon so I can focus on preparing for Trevor's trip.
Family
The big news of the month is that we have officially started school! Katelin has been "unofficially" doing school with the girls for a while now, but now it's official: Katelin and I are homeschool parents, and Melissa is a first grader. Melissa is doing quite well, and is already turning into quite the bookworm!
Working on Lydia's birthday cake.
Posted on August 19, 2017
by Nathan
But watch thou in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, make full proof of thy ministry. (2 Timothy 4:5)
When the Apostle Paul wrote these words to Timothy, he had something else in mind besides proofing text. Nonetheless, this past month has been a month of just that: proofing text.
For the past two months, Ralph has been working hard to convert the English, Russian, Ukrainian, and Spanish texts of Bible First into Markdown format. This is important because we intend to use the text online in the future, and it also allows us to put the text under version control. (If you want to know what that is, be sure to read Josh's article about Ralph.) Once the text has been converted, it has to be proofed for errors introduced by the conversion process, as well as for mistakes made by the translators.
In addition to the Bible First project, we are also overseeing the translation of Good and Evil into Ukrainian, and the Ukrainian text of Good and Evil is one more thing that has to be proofed. As we work on the translation into Ukrainian, I have also been making a list of suggestions on how to improve Good and Evil which will eventually be sent to the publisher of the English edition.
Josh and I proof Chapter 3 of Good and Evil via Skype.
New Team Members
I'm excited to announce that Anatoli and Anastasia Zhylavy have joined the ETO Team! I personally have known them since they were teenagers, and if you'd like to get to know them, you can visit their page on ETO's website. Initially, Anatoli's main responsibilities will be the re-translation of Bible First and Good and Evil into Ukrainian.
Anatoli (Tolik), Anastasia (Nastia), and their children: Kateryna, Valentyna, Hanna, and Lukian.
Family
Katelin's cast has been off for a month now, and life has pretty much returned to normal, except that she tries to avoid long walks and/or heavy loads. For which I am very thankful. I much prefer being Mr. Dad to Mr. Mom!
Posted on July 21, 2017
by Nathan
Kelsie and Katelin started the month off with another talk for young moms, similar to the one they did back in April. The main difference was that this was more like a half-day seminar, with three different sessions, whereas last time, there was just one session. And like last time, the event was well-attended and well-received.
Katelin, Kelsie, and the rest of the group.
Bible First
We are continuing to make progress on various aspects of Bible First. Maria Sanchez has basically finished the first draft of the Spanish translation, with only a few spots needing some cleanup. Ralph has been going great guns on converting Bible First text into Markdown format, which is necessary to make it available online. He has recently finished converting the English text, and has now moved on to the Ukrainian and Russian. I'm sure it won't be long before he moves on to the Spanish text!
Family
This month will go down in Day Family history as the month of the broken foot. Not long after the aforementioned seminar for young moms, Katelin went to the local market to buy strawberries and rolled her ankle in a pothole. An X-ray revealed that it was a break, not a sprain, so the doctor put Katelin's foot in a cast and told her to wear it for 3.5 weeks. The cast is now off, and Katelin is making steady progress in rehabilitating her foot.
All that to say, it's been a busy month on the home front! When she wasn't resting, Katelin did her best to keep things rolling around the house, but I still spent most of the month being Mr. Mom. It's a good thing that we skipped CMO this summer, because I would have had to bow out almost completely!
One of many outings that I took the girls on this month. Briana was playing in a fountain, and I had to keep a tight hold on her, just in case she tried to go for a swim. ;)
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