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About
this siteInstructionsTechnical
Information Report
a BugAs
an English-speaking recent convert to Islam, I wanted to collect some of
the more popular English translations of the Holy Qur'an, and format them
in a way that would provide a simple interface for study. The design plan
was based on the following desires:To
be able to search for keywords and filter on translation, Sura and AyaTo
quickly jump from one Sura or Aya to anotherTo
view entire sections of the Qur'an in a legible formatTo
provide multiple English translations for comparisonTo
provide the original Arabic text and transliteration to help in the transition
to Arabic from EnglishTo
ensure that the texts provided are reliable and accurateUse
the various filters at the top of the page in combination with one another
to narrow your results. All of the filters are optional, however, if you
skip them all, you will get back four entire English translations of the
Qur'an. Any filter that you skip will assume ALL options are acceptable.
The more filters you use, the smaller the result set you will get back.
The
translation drop-down list offers the option of filtering to only one of
the four translations. Drop the list, and point & click on the name
of the translator you want. Use the top "Translation" option to
use all four. 
Select
from the Sura list to narrow results to only the Sura (Chapter) of your
choice. Each Sura is listed by name and sequential ID number. Use the top
"Sura" option to search the entire Qur'an.
IF
YOU CHOOSE A SURA, the Aya drop-down list will be automatically populated
with numbers for each Aya (Verse). Changing the Sura selection will clear
any Aya selection, and re-populate the list. Once a Sura has been selected,
you may also select an Aya to search. You CAN filter to a specific Sura
WITHOUT selecting an Aya.
Enter
optional keywords into the text field, using a plain space to separate words.
If the cursor is in the keywords entry field, you can press the [Enter]
key on your keyboard to submit your search.NOTE:
As of this writing there are two features that may need expansion in the
future.1)
Quoted "exact phrase" searches are NOT supported. 2)
Your search words may be found within other words, so "not" will
match "Condemn us NOT" as
well as "between one and aNOTher".
Select
whether you want to match ALL keywords or ANY keyword. If you choose ALL,
then every word must appear within the same Aya. Choosing ANY is helpful
when searching across multiple translations. For example, Shakir never uses
the name "Jesus", but prefers to use the transliterated Arabic
version, "Isa". To find references to both, you might enter "Jesus
Isa" as your keywords, and choose the ANY option from this drop-down
list. The default is to match ALL keywords.
Press
this button to get your results.SEARCH RESULTS EXPLAINED: CLICK HERE FOR DIAGRAM #1
Notice the
individual sections circled on the diagram.A:
This section of the search results title bar summarizes your query.B:
This button will open a popup window containing the Arabic text and transliteration
for the any Aya that matches your search. Obviously, duplication due to
translation will be eliminated; all four translators use the word "the"
in s. 1, a. 1 but the Arabic for s. 1, a. 1 will only be displayed once.NOTE:
Netscape
4.x browsers will NOT have this button.C:
At the beginning of each Sura, the name of the Sura appears along with the
name of the translator. If two consecutive Ayat match your search criteria,
they will be listed tightly one following the other. If two non-consecutive
Ayat from the same Sura appear in your results, they will be separated by
"..." on a line by itself. This feature helps to minimize confusion
on large pages of matches.D:
You can click the Sura or Aya number in any match to re-filter the results
to only that Sura or Aya.E:
This section allows quick navigation individual matches, sorted by translator
and Sura.TAKE ANOTHER LOOK: DIAGRAM
#2
;){kind=link}
Our second
diagram uses the same search keywords, however, there is no longer any filter
constraint on Sura or Aya. Also, rather than ANY match, we require ALL keywords
to appear within an Aya to match. Notice that there are matches in many
different Surat and Ayat. Also, notice the navigation links on the left
have expanded to represent all these new matches.I
have tried to make this site compatible to the widest possible audience,
but due to the various factors involved, some users may not enjoy all the
features of this site. These factors include your operating system, and
the brand and version of your web browser, among others.Minimum recommended configuration:
Windows 2000 operating system on Pentium II PC
Internet Explorer 5+ web browser
800 x 600 monitor resolutionAlthough these are not required, this is the configuration that I used while building this site. Other configurations may not function as well as possible.
Netscape 6+ web browser supports all the features of this site, but the
way it renders Arabic text leaves quite a bit to be desired.
Netscape 4.x browsers do NOT support Arabic text or transliteration text
on this site.Many
hours have been spent making sure this site is accurate and functions correctly.
However, due to the huge amount of data present (over 12 megs of text alone),
and general human error, there may be something wrong someplace. If you
find something that is inaccurate or broken, PLEASE don't hesitate
to contact me: Admin@ISNJ.org