Almost ready to purchase Logos. A few questions.

Hi Folks,

First thanks to all the people that has answered my original post about Clergy usage of Logos. It was very informative. The more I look at this S/W the more I convince my self of its power and ability to help me in my ministry. I do have a few questions thought: I'm looking at ordering the following:

1) Logos 4 Bible study (I'm ambivalent about the leader and the bible study any experience with these two packages?)

How easy it is to update from one package to another?

2) Catena Aurea

3) Catholic Spirituality Collection

4) Collesville Collection

5) Early Church Fathers Collection (I noticed there is a "protestant version" for this collection. Can someone tell me the reason/difference?)

6) Catholic Theology and Dogma

7) Catholic Encyclopedia

I'm not sure about Aquinas Suma and how much it will help me in my ministry as this work is pure systematic theology and is more geared toward scholarly work. Any comments?

Also there are a number bibles in this package. However if a want a Catholic bible (i.e. one based on the LXX and not the Masoretic OT do I have to purchase one separately? Is there one available?)

When I get all these packages do I get a number of CD/DVDs or do I have to download everything on-line?

What are the chances of getting more Catholic resources? I thinking it would be nice to get all the encyclicals as well as other works such as Butlers Lives of Saints, and the Navarro commentaries.

I think this is enough for now. Thanks for any information you could provide.

Viva Cristo Rey!!

Deacon Harbey Santiago

Archdiocese of Baltimore

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Comments

spitzerpl

I suggest going with the leaders as a starting point for those in leadership positions. I think the additional resources you get are well worth the additional upgrade price. If you do go with the Bible Study you will be able to upgrade to the Leader without paying the full price of the Leader, but You'll pay more then the $40 difference between the packages.

Once you get the base package adding resources is very simple. You go to the website and purchase the resource or collection you want. After checking out its simply a matter of closing down Logos and re-opening it. Logos will determine that you purchased the license and will download the appropriate resource(s) automatically, or as Bob has called it automagically. :-)

Kevin Becker

The New American Bible is available in Logos http://www.logos.com/product/306/the-new-american-bible

The difference between the Catholic and Protestant editions of the the Early Church Fathers is one of footnotes. As I understand it some of the original footnotes are from a non to anti Catholic perspective the Catholic version deletes such notes.

If you get a base package then you can opt for a disc delivery but chances are that the file versions on the download servers will be newer and you'll have big downloads anyway. Logos is really moving towards all downloads with some few exceptions.

Will there be more Catholic resources? I think so, there is a passionate group of Catholic users who advocate for additions to Logos that will make it more useful for them. I believe Logos is listening to them.

Graham Criddle

Logos has an area on their website specifically looking at resources they believe would be of particular interest to Catholics - http://www.logos.com/catholic

Graham

David Carter

The New Jerusalem Bible is also available provided you live in the US or Canada which I see you do http://www.logos.com/product/315/the-new-jerusalem-bible

NetworkGeek

Butler's Lives of the Saints, the full 12 volume set, is due to release in Feb on PrePub: http://www.logos.com/product/5204/lives-of-the-saints

If you order before it ships, it will cost you $149 after, it will be $319.

Some other resources you may be interested in:

Karl Barth's Church Dogmatics

Confessions of St. Augustine

G.K. Chesterton Collection

Handbook of Christian Apologetics by Peter Kreeft (noted scholar at Boston College)

Aquinas' Summa Contra Gentiles

Raymond Brown Collection - Raymond Brown served in the Pontifical Biblical Council and was an excellent scholar. Editor of Jerome Biblical Commentary (which is no longer sold by Logos sadly)

Also, do some looking at the Anchor Yale Bible and some of their other references, you will find noted Catholic theologians like Raymond Brown and Joseph Fitzmyer are contributors.

Aquinas' Summa can be useful in a homily for a good quote or two at times, or to use one of his negative suppositions to articulate a point.

I believe you also get Eusebius' Canons in most if not all the base packages.

Friedrich

Logos has an area on their website specifically looking at resources they believe would be of particular interest to Catholics - http://www.logos.com/catholic

Graham

Good suggestion, Graham.

I'd just add this: you may want to consider Scholar's: you get a few more resources, and it gives you resources that will open all of Logos' tools to you, such as the "exegetical guide"--which looks at grammar, language, and word meaning. Leaders and Bible Study don't have some language (Greek/Hebrew) specific tools.

If original languages are still a new territory for you, you might want to consider this video series produced by logos that helps you, without any language knowledge, to get full use of language tools (and things like the exegetical guide). It is pretty expensive, but using this Christmas deal, it looks like you can ask for it at 50% off. And that will greatly help your study and teaching leadership.

Rosie Perera

Here's another one you might be interested in:

Catholic Principles for Interpreting Scripture

T Gerold Castle

If original languages are still a new territory for you, you might want to consider this video series produced by logos that helps you, without any language knowledge, to get full use of language tools (and things like the exegetical guide). It is pretty expensive, but using this Christmas deal, it looks like you can ask for it at 50% off. And that will greatly help your study and teaching leadership.

I don't think that is accurate. Wouldn't the Learn to Use Series have to be on the 2010 Master list? It is not.

Stein Dahl

Another thing to consider when deciding which base package to buy is the fact that - not all of the features of the software (Logos 4) will be available to you in the lower base packages.

The Scholars Silver Library base package is the lowest one that includes all of the functionality advertised as being in Logos 4 Bible Software.

I started with the Leaders Library and soon found out that there were certain things missing, like the Biblical People, Biblical Places and Biblical Things reports. There were also some Interlinear functions not available to me in the Leaders Library. So I upgraded to the Scholars Library and found out that there were still things missing.

Then I called Logos support and was told that in order to have all of those features available to me I would need to move up to at least the Scholars Silver Library. I eventually upgraded to the Scholars Gold Library, but I wish Logos would have made this information easier to discover for a newbie.

Now, I'm not saying this to knock Logos - (although it would have been nice to know) - but just to make you aware that this is what you will find.

My advice? Consider at least the Scholars Silver Library. That way you will have all of the features and functionality of the Logos 4 software and you'll have a lot more resources also. Yes, it's expensive but don't forget that you can arrange to spread the payments out over 12 months when you purchase it.

That sweetens the deal. At least it did for me.

Friedrich

Then I called Logos support and was told that in order to have all of those features available to me I would need to move up to at least the Scholars Silver Library.

Stein, what resources were missing? Interesting, while contacting sales for my neighbor who ended up purchasing L4, I was told by sales that the Scholars would be the one that permits full use. I just haven't checked it all out.

TCBlack

My advice? Consider at least the Scholars Silver Library. That way you will have all of the features and functionality of the Logos 4 software and you'll have a lot more resources also. Yes, it's expensive but don't forget that you can arrange to spread the payments out over 12 months when you purchase it.

There are good reasons why the Scholars library is the top seller.

Todd Phillips

The Scholars Silver Library base package is the lowest one that includes all of the functionality advertised as being in Logos 4 Bible Software.

I started with the Leaders Library and soon found out that there were certain things missing, like the Biblical People, Biblical Places and Biblical Things reports. There were also some Interlinear functions not available to me in the Leaders Library. So I upgraded to the Scholars Library and found out that there were still things missing.

I'm not sure what you were told, Stein, but the Biblical People, Biblical Places and Biblical Things databases are included in all base packages except Home. They are even included in the Minimal Crossgrade package (http://www.logos.com/minimalcrossgrade).

Also, according to the comparison page (and experience), Scholars is the minimal package you need to have all the features enabled:

I don't want someone spending more than they need to. (If they want to, that's a different story).

Stein Dahl

Interesting, while contacting sales for my neighbor who ended up purchasing L4, I was told by sales that the Scholars would be the one that permits full use. I just haven't checked it all out.

I'm not sure what you were told,
Stein, but the Biblical People, Biblical Places and Biblical Things
databases are included in all base packages except Home. They are even
included in the Minimal Crossgrade package (http://www.logos.com/minimalcrossgrade).

Also, according to the comparison page (and experience), Scholars is the minimal package you need to have all the features enabled:

Hi Guys,

Sorry. I may have misspoken. I think you are correct. I do seem to remember - now - (it's been a while) - being told that the Scholars Library was the level at which all functionality and features were present.

There was a completely other reason that I upgraded to the Scholars Gold Library - resources mainly. And also it was affordable for me by using the 12 month payment plan - which I did.

Thanks for the correction guys.

Friedrich

lol, no problem. And I would agree, silver begins to have more relevant resources for my needs, too.

fgh

if a want a Catholic bible (i.e. one based on the LXX and not the Masoretic OT do I have to purchase one separately? Is there one available?

There are 3 Collegeville packages. Version 1 includes the NRSVCE and the NAB, version 2 the NAB, and version 3 I can't find right now, but I believe it includes both (my guess would be that the page is just temporarily removed in order to change from CD only to download; they're doing that a lot these days). Separately you can also find the New Jerusalem, several Vulgates, and some other languages. Though you'll have to use the other NRSV for interlinear work, since none of the Catholic Bibles have an interlinear yet. (I'm going to push Logos for that; please feel free to join me!)

I believe you also get Eusebius' Canons in most if not all the base packages.

Only Scholar's and above.

Personally, I would avoid any dictionary or encyclopedia which is pre-Vatican II. For example, Logos offers an old version of the "Catholic Encyclopedia" which is seriously out of date for liturgical and other things.

True, but the old one is Public Domain, and it's going to be very cheap. I think we can be pretty sure that the newer one isn't going to turn up in Logos for several years, and it's going to be an awful lot more expensive when it does. There's still lots of useful stuff in the old, and presumably a deacon has training enough to know what is outdated.

What are the chances of getting more Catholic resources?

Send your requests to suggestions@logos.com, and check the Suggestions forum regularly to add your vote to titles that interest you. Also make sure to stay updated on what turns up on the Community Pricing and Prepub pages, so that you can help bring Catholic resources into production faster -- and earn some money at the same time.

Harbey Santiago

Please forgive my ignorance but. What do you mean with "interlinear work"?

Viva Cristo Rey!!

Deacon Harbey Santiago

Archdiocese of Baltimore

Kevin Becker

Interlinears align two languages. A traditional interlinear has the source language (i.e. the Greek and Hebrew of the Bible) with an English gloss, or translation underneath it. Some Bibles in Logos have reverse interlinear capabilities. This mean the English words are aligned with the Greek/Hebrew from which they were translated.

Interlinears are a way that people without language training can do some limited work in those languages.