In case you have been wondering, I will have a major announcement to make concerning Bible Software Review soon. It so happens that I cannot tell you what it is just yet, so please be patient

Those blessed souls who own an iPhone and/or an iPod Touch will want to check out this new release from Laridian.

The June 2007 issue of the Biblical Studies Bulletin includes a “review” (read “extremely short kind of review”) of New International Greek Testament Commentaries released in Accordance Bible Software format. At one point, the reviewer (Michael B. Thompson?) says,

In addition to English text you can search for Greek and Hebrew words across the set, as well as for manuscripts (e.g. p46) and of course, biblical references. The biblical reference search casts a wide net; looking for Mark 3.5 brings up its occurrences within a range (e.g. Mark 2.1-3.6).

In fact there is a tip I learned a long time ago that allows users to find the exact biblical reference. So, if we wanted to locate Mark 3.5 only, we could use the following search syntax: Mark 3:5 〈NOT〉 〈WITHIN 1 Words〉 (Mark 3:4 〈OR〉 Mark 3:6). This will prevent Accordance from finding any instances where Mark 3:5 is part of a range.

Hope this helps!

Users of OliveTree’s BibleReader software will be glad to know that they can now access a Learning Center that allows them to acquaint themselves with the program at a deeper level. This learning “hub” contains video tours, article on available resources and features, user’s manuals and selected blog entries that focus on the use of the program. As one would expect, the stated purpose is to learn how to get the most out of BibleReader.

I should also mention that on top of the regular study collections currently available, OliveTree is now offering the possibility of putting together a customized software bundle, adapted to the users’ particular needs, at a discounted price.

As a follow-up to my previous entry, I can now announce that PocketBible for Windows is already available. See full press release here.

Synchronization of notes, bookmarks and highlights between the desktop edition and the different mobile versions (PocketBible for Pocket PC/Smartphone and MyBible for Palm OS) will be possible shortly, as soon as the PDA-based programs are updated.

Mark G. Vitalis Hoffman has posted a useful review on his blog, where he compares and contrasts the implementation of Louw-Nida’s Greek-English Lexicon in BibleWorks 7 and Logos 3. You can follow the link to the online version. Do check it out.

Zondervan Software offers a free download of the latest Pradis 6.0, as well as electronic books via download. All you need to do is visit this site and register. Once you have created your personal account, you can download up to $25 worth of electronic books (use code AVZCS8 at checkout) for free. Obviously, you can buy any number of books and build your own custom-made electronic library, but you will receive a $25 credit regardless of your sum total. At the end of the process you will be directed to your personal download link. Click on that link to get your book(s) and the program.

I downloaded the third edition of “How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth” and “Today’s New International Version” for just under $25, ran the executable and got my copy of Pradis 6 up and running in no time. The good thing is that all my previous modules from versions 5 and 5.1 are fully compatible.

Keep in mind that this offer is good through September 17, 2007 (thanks to Michael White, of Rejoice Christian Software, for the heads-up).

Yes, it’s official now. PocketBible will be released as a Windows Bible software product before too long. You can read all about it here.

In Craig Rairdin’s words,

We have a couple of goals with PocketBible for Windows. First, we wanted it to be “home base” for your mobile Bible software. We wanted to eliminate the need to separately back up your notes, highlights, and bookmarks by providing a way that these could be automatically copied to your desktop PC. Once there, PocketBible for Windows lets you view, edit, and create new notes, highlights, and bookmarks which are automatically re-synchronized with your mobile device.

And again,

Our second goal for PocketBible for Windows was to create a great Bible program in the spirit of the original versions of QuickVerse we all worked on back at Parsons Technology. Many of you have written to me over the years to say that QuickVerse 4.0 was “as good as it gets”. We agree. Up until we started working on our own desktop Bible software most of us here used QV4 for our Bible study and lesson preparation needs.

It’s hard to identify what made QuickVerse 4.0 so great, but near the top of the list has to be speed and ease of use. What it did, it did quickly and it did well.

This could prove to be one of the highlights of the year!

A couple of days ago I received an email from Peter Laitres that I thought I would share with you. He makes what I believe is a valid complaint. Here is what he has to say:

I have Quickverse MAC Gold (also had White [gave away] and Black [upgraded to Gold]). There is a fault in the programming that makes it so any word that is the FIRST IN A VERSE will not return in a search. For example, search “WINE” in the find window and Proverbs 20:1 WILL NEVER COME UP! This is true for any word and certain other instances where there is embedded code (like footnotes) that are attached to certain words. I have contacted QuickVerse support REPEATEDLY and finally one of them said, “yes, this is an issue” but nothing has ever been done. I think it is awful that they are selling software that doesn’t work properly! How many messages have been incomplete or preaching in error based upon their bogus searching?

I called Quickverse the other day and demanded a refund or free upgrade to the new version out of QV MAC to see if this has been fixed. Was told the supervisor was on vacation and would call me back. Well I’ll be calling them back one way or the other. I think others should be exposing this fraud.

If any of you have anything else to say on this, I’ll be happy to post it.

Spam comments and trackbacks have been a real pain in the neck ever since I decided to give Movable Type a try. Besides, apparently some spammers were exploiting some security hole in the previous version. As a result, both comments and trackbacks have been temporarily disabled. Just send me an email if you want to get in touch. Thanks!