Article Highlights
- The updated LDS Media Library app offers easier searches, media trimming, customizable presentations, and offline use.
"The Gospel Library app is a personal study tool. The Mormon Channel app is for inspiration. The LDS Media Library app is a media presentation and teaching tool." ---Marianne Jennings, LDS Media Library product manager
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The LDS Media Library app---the mobile app version of the LDS Media Library on LDS.org---has released a software update that makes it even easier for members to teach the gospel at church, at home, and on the go using Church media.
With the LDS Media Library app, you can search the largest selection of Church media, trim video and music, organize clips in a presentation, and present offline---all on a user-friendly interface.
Aside from its new bright pink icon, LDS Media Library 2.0 stands out from other Church apps in several ways. Marianne Jennings, LDS Media Library product manager, explained the differences between the Church's apps: "The Gospel Library app is a personal study tool. The Mormon Channel app is for inspiration. The LDS Media Library app is a media presentation and teaching tool."
Whether you're in charge of a Sunday School lesson, a family home evening, or a missionary discussion, you now have the most comprehensive database of Church media at your fingertips.
Browse and search
When users first open LDS Media Library 2.0, they are guided through a quick walk-through of the purpose of the app and some of its highlights.
Because the Church frequently releases new media, it can be hard to keep up with all the latest material. With LDS Media Library 2.0, you can stay up to date with newly added items. "Every Friday, we add new media to the app," Jennings said.
The Browse tab allows users to explore the largest selection of Church media, sorted into three collections: images, music, and video. Simply tap on one of the categories and you'll be directed to a list of topics and collections that simplify how you plan lessons. You can also conduct a quick search by title, topic, or speaker. Images can now be viewed full screen while browsing.
"Teachers can easily find lesson media, especially the general conference messages for third-hour lessons," Jennings said.
My Media
You can easily arrange, trim, and delete videos or music within your media presentation.
Under the My Media tab, members can create media presentations, sort and manage their downloaded media, and refer back to favorites.
"We've changed the word 'playlist' to 'presentation' so people can understand that the app is a presentation tool ... like a PowerPoint or a Keynote with media---not a Pandora or a Spotify sort of app," Jennings clarified.
The improved app also separates two actions:
- Download
- Add to Presentation
When you want to download a single item, you can do so, and it will save in its own tab. As you're creating a presentation, you can add media while searching or browsing, or go to the Downloads tabs, select the appropriate items, and tap "Add to Presentation."
If you don't want to present an entire 15-minute general conference talk, you can easily trim sections of the media, which will conveniently autosave. "If you want to show just the two-minute quote from a conference talk that goes right with your lesson, you can do that. Using sliders, you can control when the video or audio clip starts and stops," said Jennings. From there, you can easily drag and drop clips in the order you want to present them.
Not ready to download a clip yet? You can tap a small heart icon by the media you're considering, and it will automatically save into a Favorites tab for future reference.
In the first release of the app, users could only use presentation mode when they were connected to a second screen, like a projector or TV. Now, you can present full-screen presentations on your phone, tablet, or computer.
"We have a lot of missionaries using the app, and they only have their tablets or smartphones," Jennings said. "Now they can build media presentations right into the app, hit the presentation icon, and it goes full screen. They can now swipe through their slides too. It's kind of like the old-fashioned flip charts, except it's digital and they can customize it."
User friendly
The app tells you how much storage space each video or music clip will take up on your device.
All of the updates for LDS Media Library 2.0 are geared for a more user-friendly experience.
Because presentations play offline, you won't have to worry about buffering videos. Download your media at home, and you'll be ready to go by the time you get to church. Your video will play without interruption, regardless of the Church building's Wi-Fi connection, or a lack thereof.
Users can access LDS Media Library 2.0 in multiple languages, including English, Spanish, and Portuguese. Jennings said more languages are planned for a future release, especially for creating language captions in videos.
The 2.0 software update offers media in smaller file sizes to save users' storage on their device. "When you download media, the app tells you how much storage is taken up by that media. You can delete the download but keep the presentation for future use if you don't want an old presentation taking up space," Jennings said.
Even though the files are smaller than before, the app's production team has ensured that media quality remains high. That way, videos will display clear resolution on both small and large screens.
Watch for more updates
Not ready to download a video or music item yet? Tap the heart icon and it will save to your Favorites tab for later.
The production team for LDS Media Library anticipates more updates this year, based in part on user feedback. Jennings commented on planned improvements:
"Videos will soon have the ability to turn on and view captions. We're adding the ability to add text slides, so members can add text to their presentation," she explained. "If you've got personal music, images, or videos on your phone or tablet that you want to add to your presentation, you'll be able to do that. That means that if teachers want to show a video of a Mutual event or fireside to further personalize the presentation, they can," she said.
LDS Media Library provides a downloadable presentation and handout on the app's landing page for teacher training. "We have a how-to presentation about [LDS Media Library 2.0] that teachers can download and present to other teachers on how to use the app," Jennings said.
With a quick search of any topic, you can browse media in a number of categories, including videos, images, and music.
Under Settings, users can submit feedback, read a user guide, and browse frequently asked questions. Jennings encourages users to submit their feedback, including videos they'd like added and languages they would like the app in.
If users have issues while using the app, they can now take a screenshot of their problem and send it to the production team for assistance.
Tell us what you think about the new app by emailing ldsmedialibrary@ldschurch.org.
You can download the app for both Android and Apple mobile devices and learn more about its exclusive features here.
If you don't want to present an entire video or song, you can easily trim sections of the media, which will conveniently autosave.
The updated software allows you to easily arrange videos in your presentation.
Missionaries with tablets and smartphones can create personalized lessons for those they teach. "It's kind of like the old-fashioned flip charts, except it's digital and they can customize it," said Marianne Jennings.
Engage class members with up-to-date media content.