Different Versions of Accordance -- Which One?

[richthescholar]

Hello, everyone!  New member here.

 

For years I have used BibleWorks, version 4.0 (yes, I know, a really old version, but it worked for me) for Windows 95.  I still have it, but I had been thinking of upgrading to a newer version of BW when I discovered the BW had gone out of business!  So I've been looking at Accordance, but to a newcomer, there seem to be a bewildering variety of packages, and I'm wondering if I can get some overview here.

 

1.  I'm a Greek and Hebrew scholar, so I need all the best Greek and Hebrew tools.  I don't care all that much about commentaries, but I do want the best lexicons, grammars, etc. for Greek and Hebrew, and the best morphological and parsing stuff for those languages.  

 

2.  I have to have the Latin Vulgate as well.

 

3.  I want all the key English translations, including the old RSV (I never use the NRSV), and if possible the old 1917 JPS and the English Revised Version of the 1880s.  

 

4.  If there are Greek texts of Origen, Philo, Josephus etc. thrown in, I'm not averse to them.

 

5.  I'm not averse to commentaries if they are good scholarly ones, e.g., Calvin's or those of Origen or the like.  I don't need commentaries that are more devotional or homiletical in focus.

 

The most important thing for me to able to do is line up, as I could in Bible Works, the Hebrew, Greek, Latin texts followed by my English favorites, running down vertically, so I can see a dozen or so versions at once by scrolling up and down, and save such sets of choices as my standard working screen.  And of course, morphological and vocabulary searches.

 

From what I can see of the listed Bible texts and lexicons etc. for each product, (English Pro, Greek Master, Triple Discoverer, etc.) they are mixed and matched in odd ways.  For example, it looks as if I can only get the old RSV (not the new RSV) in some of the packages and not others, so that I would have to sacrifice the RSV in order to get, say, the Liddell-Scott lexicon or the Vulgate, etc., and vice versa.  I never had to make such choices in Bible Works.  All Bible Works versions had all the English translations available up to that time, all had the Vulgate, etc. 

 

Is it possible to buy one of the packages, and then add text bases to it, e.g., if English Master doesn't have the Vulgate, to buy the Vulgate extra for it, or if Hebrew Master doesn't have the RSV, to pay extra to get it?

 

Any general orientation or specific suggestions would be welcome.

 

 

[Joel Brown]

Hi Rich!  Thanks for taking a look into Accordance.  I know its a little tricky to find given the new website, as we continue to iron out some of the issues, but we actually have special packages designed just for Bibleworks users coming to Accordance:

 

https://www.accordancebible.com/accordance-4-bibleworks/

 

 

Unlike Bibleworks, Accordance is very much an a-la-carte program.  You buy whatever bundles, packages, collections, or individual items you like and add them together to your library.  While we offer larger packages to allow for bundle pricing, most modules are also available individually or in small sets.  So, yes, you could just add RSV to any package you like.  However, I bet you would be most interested in one of our 'Bibleworks' collections.  Depending on which Bibleworks you came from, you'll probably want the Basic package (Basic Package for BW versions 8-10: $199).  Since you mention the Vulgate, you may also want the Advanced package addon (Advanced add-on for BW version 10: $249) that includes the Vuglate, Josephus, Philo, MSS images, etc.  But, you could always just get the Basic package (or any of our other collections) and individually add on other items now or later.

 

If you have concerns, you can always call our Customer Service at (877) 339-5855.  They know our packages very well and would be happy to discuss all options.  As a colleague of mine recently said - none of us work on commission, so we are trying to find the best package for you, not upsell you into something massive.

 

Regarding the program, there is certainly a bit of a learning curve switching programs.  Accordance simply has a different approach to study than Bibleworks does. I believe (as do the many, many, Bibleworks users who have switched over) that it can work very well, but it will be hard for you to 100% perfectly match what you are used to in Bibleworks.  Once you get started, please feel free to ask if you have difficulty with any part of your workflow.  We added quite a few features to help ease in the transition (as mentioned on that first link), so be sure to check them out.

[ScottDF]

Quite a few of us have come from a Bibleworks background. I was deeply embedded in BW and had a few hiccups on how to do things during the transition. But as Joel says, Accordance tech support is excellent and this forum covers most every question you might have. After being on Accordance for quite a few months I can tell you it is more feature-rich overall than BW. The Accordance for BW users packages are very generous and made my transition quite cost effective. (Sorry for sounding like a commercial.  )

 

Joel, as to the a la carte aspects, I think both programs are similar in that respect. I added to my collection almost solely through single item purchases. But that's quibbling.    

[Joel Brown]

Apologies, Scott! I was always under the impression Bibleworks was a 'Buy the package and call it done' perspective, with just a few commentary or advanced addons.

[danielamari]

The starting point is easy: one of the Bibleworks packages. If you qualify for the more advanced one, then go for it. These are the best deals here.

 

Then the next step is to look at the Hebrew and Greek collections. Compare the Pro, expert and master packages. Determine what you want. Then wait until they are on sale. The master packages never go on sale. The only time you can apply a coupon on them is when there is 25% coupon on everything. But the pro and expert usually go up to 35% off.

[richthescholar]

Thanks very much to everyone for all these replies!  I will call the Customer Service office, definitely.

 

I have some follow-up questions.

 

1.  If one purchases the Advanced package for Bible Works 10, does one actually have to Bible Works 10?  I don't have Bible Works 10; the last Bible works I have is BW 4, and it's on my old Windows 95 computer.  I wouldn't be using that old computer for Accordance; I'd be using this new Windows 10 computer I'm typing on now.  And I doubt BW 4 for Win 95 will load onto this Win 10 computer.  So I'd be loading the Accordance advanced package onto a computer that does not have any version of BW on it.  Is that permissible?  And will the software work fine even if no BW is on the computer?

 

2.  Also, on the Advanced package for Bible Works 10, I see that some items, such as the Vulgate, have a price tag attached to them.  Does that mean that, for those items, one would have to pay that much extra, beyond the price of the Advanced package?

 

3.  Does anyone know the reasoning behind the exclusions in the complex set of Accordance packages?  To me, it's just common sense that anyone working seriously on the Bible (at least, here in North America) would want every major English translation included in all packages, whether Greek Master, Hebrew expert, or whatever.  Why exclude any of them?  Even a Hebrew or Greek specialist often wants to know what all the different English versions say.  Similarly, the historical importance of the Vulgate and the Luther Bible would seem to make it common sense that all Accordance packages would have those two items for sure.  And of course at least one each of the major French, German, and Italian translations. I can see why certain fancy lexical tools and commentaries and so on might be only in the specialized packages, but the English versions and and least the most historically influential translations into the major European languages, one would think would be included as a matter of course.  (This is handy not just for Bible study for but history of ideas, history of theology, etc., since it's important to be able to look at the German, French, Italian, etc. that Luther, Simone Weil, etc. would have been reading.)

[Joel Brown]

1. Unfortunately, yes, these upgrade options are only available for users of that appropriate version of Bibleworks.  You'll need to ask the Customer Service staff if we have any options available for users of BW 4.  (Windows 95 - wow!)  The software works just fine without BW installed, but we do need you to be an owner of the prior versions to get such a great crossover deal.

 

2.  Those prices are the value of the items if they were to be purchased individually.  The price you see at the top of the page is the total price.

 

3. I think it depends a lot on the scholar and the nature of their research/approach.  I've worked with many scholars who don't want any translation - they only want the original text.  Perhaps they want NRSV only.  It's pretty rare that I see a scholar come up to me and request access to NIV11 or NLT.  Similarly, while the Vulgate is of course of critical importance, many starting users simply don't need it (yet).  We'd love to offer all of our texts to every user, but the publishers need their royalties, so we try to keep the price down wherever we can.  Our basic Starter collection does include a French, German, and Italian translation (as well as other languages).

 

One package that may be of interest to you is the English Bible Addon, as its a great way to add lots of our English texts that may not other wise come with the package.  Remember, Accordance is very much a build-as-you-go package.  While many people just fine one collection or bundle and call it quits, most of our users have some combination of a collection plus many bundles and individual items.

[Fabian]

I have, as you can think, reported that the BW-Crossover page doesn't say the same as Rick does here. 

 

Rick say: "Basically, if you owned any version of BW, you qualify for the BW crossover". 

 

 

 

 

I have often reported things which are wrong or should be better on the website, but mostly the time I spend to report was time wasting. Please consider my inputs!

Edited December 10, 2020 by Fabian