An article written by Rub�n G�mez, Bible software translator and beta tester. Copyright � 2004-2009 by the author. All rights reserved. Please do not reproduce any part of this document without obtaining permission from the author.

I. INTRODUCTION

In his excellent review, Parunak bemoans the fact that he has not been able to review either Accordance for the Macintosh or the new 32-bit version of Gramcord (p. 465), and adds that "when the new Gramcord is available, I will be eager to compare it against the baseline in this review" (p. 466).

In this article, I intend to compare the latest version of Accordance against the baseline in H. Van Dyke Parunak's assessment of various Bible software packages for Windows. To this end, and since it is meant to be read alongside the aforementioned review, I am deliberately following the same headings and codes used in the original.

II. THE PACKAGE

Accordance Bible Software, version 6.2 is a commercial package. The Scholar's Collection Core Bundle sells for $199 (plus $288 for HALOT 4 and BDAG 3).

Forgetting for a moment about the huge conceptual differences between Windows and Mac OS X, Accordance's interface would be closer to the "desktop" layout ― where windows can be dragged around anywhere on the screen ―, with the addition of different floating palettes.

III. TEXTS

* Note ― Scholar's Collection CD-ROM comes with a Bible Unlock CD-ROM, which includes a $30 Bible unlock chosen by the user. This means you can have the NIV with footnotes at no additional cost.

Accordance does support linked windows, so that different translations of the same passage, in any of the available languages, can be linked and scrolled together.

IV. SEARCH

Accordance includes a very thorough and flexible Concordance feature.

Interestingly enough, a very large proportion of this section deals with statistical plots and timing. As a scientist, H. Van Dyke Parunak has already shown a very special interest in plotting results (cf. his article "Computers and Biblical Studies", ABD, vol. 1, pp. 1112-1124). As for timing, he asserts in his review: "one of the most important characteristics of a Bible software package for me personally is searching speed" (p. 482).

Accordance's Graph, Analysis and Table features adequately meet the needs of gathering statistical information and seeing it displayed graphically. As for searching speed, the different architecture of Macs and PCs make it absolutely impossible to establish any sort of significant comparison, in my opinion. Besides, I am not at all convinced that speed is such an important factor. Obviously, the faster the better, but the way users perceive speed is highly subjective.

Having said that, my use of Accordance on a number of Macintosh systems has led me to believe that it is generally slightly slower than BibleWorks (the fastest, by far, of all Windows-based programs), but overall it is very fast. For most searches, speed differences are hardly noticeable.

V. COLLATERAL RESOURCES

Accordance offers a wide range of resources. Among them one can find original language texts ― both biblical and extra-biblical (Samaritan Pentateuch, Hebrew Inscriptions, Qumran, Mishnah, Targum, Pseudepigrapha, Josephus, Apostolic Fathers), some of the most authoritative Greek and Hebrew lexicons (BDAG, NIDNTT, Liddell-Scott, Louw-Nida, TDNT [Abridged in one volume], Newman, Spicq, LEH, Thayer, HALOT, NIDOTTE, TWOT, Jenni-Westermann, BDB) Greek grammars (Wallace, Stevens), Bible dictionaries (ABD, ISBE [1915 edition], Eerdmans, IVP's Dictionaries) Bible commentaries (EBC, NIBC, IVP's Commentaries, Calvin), periodical publications (Theological Journal Library) and two special-purpose tools: a superb Bible Atlas and a Bible Timeline. These last two are fully customizable.

Many of these resources need to be unlocked separately, and one can certainly build quite a large electronic library with them. However, in the technical sense of the word, Accordance is not a digital library (a la Libronix), although as Parunak himself admits, "to some extent every package reviewed here is a 'library' that helps the user interact with multiple electronic 'books' (including biblical texts and reference works)" (p. 466), but rather should be viewed as a highly sophisticated Bible study program.

VI. USER-ORIGINATED MATERIAL

Under this category it should be pointed out that Accordance can import a variety of texts (plain text, HTML and most TLG files) and turn them into User Tools. Notice that in order to import files from the Thesaurus Linguae Graece CD-ROM, one needs to have a current license agreement and pay an additional unlock fee of $49.

VII. GETTING HELP

Accordance offers a detailed on-screen Help system and Tutorial, plus a Mini-Manual and a full User Guide in PDF. There are also a couple of video demos at the website. Further on-line articles are also available, and users can take advantage of the Accordance User Forum and the tips section, as well as the recent Accordance Blog.

VIII. CONCLUSION

I cannot but subscribe to Parunak's concluding remarks: "Bible study software has reached the stage of maturity where every student of the Bible should become acquainted with it" (p. 495).

With such a wide choice of excellent applications you cannot go wrong. There is bound to be something for everyone (which does not mean that everything will be equally useful to everyone). I hope this article will help to see where Accordance fits into the general picture drawn by H. Van Dyke Parunak, particularly now that with emulation software it has become another option for Windows users as well as for die-hard Mac fans.