a question from an Accordance User

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  • Graham Criddle
    Graham Criddle MVP Posts: 32,630

    Kristin said:

    The "Factbook" is another example. I have sort of gathered that it is just a quick summary of a word based on your personal resources.

    It is actually more than / different to this.

    https://support.logos.com/hc/en-us/articles/360016146691-Factbook provides an outline of what it provides.

  • Jonathan Huber
    Jonathan Huber Member Posts: 143 ✭✭

    Kristin- I’d highly recommend that you start going through the support options. I’ve worked through the QuickStart for Logos 10 videos (you can find this in the library) and then start working through the Logos page on features. Many of the features have a short video to explain what the feature is and how it works. You’ll get a much better feel for the program that way. 

    Thank you to the experienced Logos users for chiming in with pointers. This is a big UI change for us newbies. :) If there’s a place to suggest webinar topics, I would love to find a video explaining how to replicate common/beloved Accordance functions in Logos. 

  • Donovan R. Palmer
    Donovan R. Palmer Member Posts: 2,661 ✭✭✭

    Kristin said:

    What are you referring to as "clutter" in this situation?

    One person's clutter, is sometimes another person's treasure. I find a marketing slogan that says 'Skip the Clutter' rather presumptuous on what I am studying.

    At least in my study use case, some would say 'out dated scholarship' is clutter. I actually find it very useful to see how others over time have translated and interpreted scripture, forming their beliefs and doctrine.

    So a lot of the classic commentaries, studies and monographs in Logos are very useful to me. I have invested heavily in fathers of the church  materials as well.  The key to managing a large library is to tag, rate resources, create collections and become proficient in using Logos' tech and guides to mining for gold when you are studying.

    Of course, for some these materials might get in the way and be their 'clutter'.  I tend to use a more positive term that this is not their focus of study.  That's ok. We are all different.

    Logos is a swiss army knife. When you pull out your swiss army knife for a 'task', you don't pull out all of the tools. You select a few to achieve the task efficiently. So designing workflows for each task is important. I use some tools for more devotional reading, some for language and exegetical work, and some for research.  It is fun to roam when you have a swiss army knife that is ready for your imagination to engage, particularly if you have a large library.

    I would say that there are some limitations with some of the tools in Logos.  A few personal opinions:

    - tag management is really limited and with a little investment could be greatly enhanced.

    - prioritisation of resources assumes you use the same priority of resources for all tools and modes of study

    - monograph management is lacking compared to other types of resources

    - visuals and atlas management are not as good as Accordance (albeit Accordance has not invested in this space for years)

    - the tooltip popup for parsing word information is almost invisible in the way it is designed, the information panel is not a like for like replacement

    - managing text in panes could use greater granular controls in size, spacing, etc to economise screen space 

    - liturgical tradition resources are not very well served in how some resources are leveraged

    - archaeological resources could be added to and strengthened

    - it would sure be nice to be able to export highlights to Readwise

    With all this said, it is a very cool swiss army knife. I am really excited to see what Logos 11 brings to town.

  • DMB
    DMB Member Posts: 13,613 ✭✭✭

    One person's clutter, is sometimes another person's treasure. I find a marketing slogan that says 'Skip the Clutter' rather presumptuous on what I am studying.

    I'd vote for Factbook as clutter. It reminds me of our garage ... there's a couple cars in there somewhere!  I have the same issue with other Bible apps that 'dump' into the kitchen sink, offering to organize my study or access.

    Instead, I'm a worshipper of an excellent layout. All organized visually, always as I prefer. A lot like my sewing room.

    Now, I'm only illustrating that Logos is quite flexible to peoples' preferences. You got your tag'ers. Then, you got you collection'ers. Your link'ers vs your MultiBook'ers. Initially confusing, but generally, Logos can do mostly what one wants.

    I'm not a workflow'er, but I'd bet, refined per MJ, it'd be another powerhouse.

    "If myth is ideology in narrative form, then scholarship is myth with footnotes." B. Lincolm 1999.

  • Kristin
    Kristin Member Posts: 325 ✭✭

    Hi everyone,

    (I edited this post since after posting, all my returns were gone. So I tried to add mores spaces). <-- it didn't work. :( Responses are to Dave, Jonathan, than Donovan.

    I tried to do that sort of convoluted multi-quote option, but for some reason it wasn’t working right, so I will need to just respond without quotes.


    Hi Dave, 

    If you don't mind, could you clarify this "subscription"? I have heard that word before, but I don't entirely understand it. It almost sounds like people using a subscription are renting resources or something, in contrast to actually owning it. I find it concerning since I don’t like subscriptions. Yet from what you wrote, it sounds like the option to just buy it like normal is still available, is that correct?



    Thank you also for the Tagging link, that was helpful. :)



    Hi Graham,

    Thank you for the Factbook link. I will take a look at it. :)



    Hi Jonathan,

    Thank you for the QuickStart videos idea. To be honest, I almost found them too “quick” and not in depth. I had been looking at a few of them a few weeks ago to get certain questions answered, but as of yet they have just gone over info I already knew. When I started with Accordance I think I watched every single Dr. J video, and he was remarkably helpful. A lot of why his videos were so good is because he didn’t assume anything and walked people though things without acting like people already knew the software.



    Hi Donovan,

    Ok, thank you for clarifying what you had meant, and I agree 100% that clutter isn’t the right word. I also agree with your assessment that some resources are of higher or lower priority depending on the workflow. I know Accordance has the ability to set different saved workspaces, and it appears that Logos has that same function, which helps somewhat with this, but nonetheless seems somewhat separate from what you are referring to, I think.



    The key to managing a large library is to tag, rate resources




    This rating system has truly confused me for a few reasons. First, a lot of the resources come already rated. Who is rating them? Second, if I rate something, does that stay on my computer, or am I contributing to some sort of community rate? Third, the concept is sort of confusing to me, as different resources would have a higher or lower rate based on what specific task I am doing.



    Thank you for any clarity anyone is able to provide.
  • Kristin
    Kristin Member Posts: 325 ✭✭

    DMB said:

    I'm a worshipper of an excellent layout.

    haha, that made me laugh. :) 

    DMB said:

    , I'm only illustrating that Logos is quite flexible to peoples' preferences.

    Do you still use both platforms for specific tasks?

    Btw, I had created this long response to everyone, but when I did, it deleted ALL my returns and made a huge text blob. So I edited it adding spaces, and it didn't work. So then I edited to mention the names of people I responded to (Dave, Jonathan, Donovan), but then it got flagged for moderation (for two edits, I guess). I had listed a few questions in my post, but I won't ask them again and will just wait for the post to appear. I wanted to mention this so everyone knows I didn't mean to ignore the comments above.

  • Kristin
    Kristin Member Posts: 325 ✭✭

    I know Factbook has its critics,

    Hi Donovan,

    I had the chance to look at that link Graham provided, and the Factbook looks like it would be helpful for people who are unfamiliar with the text, or harmless for people who are familiar with it. So what are the critics saying?

    Also, as mentioned, I checked out that link Graham provided, and so I went to the ESV and just searched for "Herod" like the video suggested. What I felt was really lacking was a pure list (like Accordance Concordance). Does Logos have something similar? It seems l like I need to actually scroll through the text for all the hits.

  • scooter
    scooter Member Posts: 1,131 ✭✭✭

    Kristin said:

    DMB said:

    I'm a worshipper of an excellent layout.

    haha, that made me laugh. :) 

    DMB said:

    , I'm only illustrating that Logos is quite flexible to peoples' preferences.

    Do you still use both platforms for specific tasks?

    Btw, I had created this long response to everyone, but when I did, it deleted ALL my returns and made a huge text blob. So I edited it adding spaces, and it didn't work. So then I edited to mention the names of people I responded to (Dave, Jonathan, Donovan), but then it got flagged for moderation (for two edits, I guess). I had listed a few questions in my post, but I won't ask them again and will just wait for the post to appear. I wanted to mention this so everyone knows I didn't mean to ignore the comments above.

    So, you not a post'er??!!  

    Mebbe I'm not either.  I tried an emoji after the above line and it wouldn't emote.

  • Kristin
    Kristin Member Posts: 325 ✭✭

    scooter said:

    Mebbe I tried an emoji after the above line and it wouldn't emote.

    Hi scooter,

    I am frankly not very familiar with the forum at all, but my understanding is that if you make a smile with your keyboard, it will just be the text version, and for an emoji you need to click the emoji button above, or use brackets around it, but clicking the emoji is simpler, I think. Here is my test:

    :)

    [:)]

  • DMB
    DMB Member Posts: 13,613 ✭✭✭

    Kristin said:

    Do you still use both platforms for specific tasks?

    Actually, I have my own Bible software, and then use Logos and Accordance as my 'research assistants'.  My own is highly adapted to analytics and my own 'theology' (as most have their own beliefs). 

    Accordance currently does most graphics. Timelines, maps, etc Also, I love offline access to manuscripts and inscriptions. Then, Accordance still has some unique OL modules (hebrew, syriac, and a little greek). Even though I have lot of duplication between Logos and Accordance (mainly from BW), Logos does the heavy lifting on the big library searches.

    Regarding your frustration with the forum software, you're just experiencing old software ... I have the same frustrations. 

    "If myth is ideology in narrative form, then scholarship is myth with footnotes." B. Lincolm 1999.

  • Kristin
    Kristin Member Posts: 325 ✭✭

    DMB said:

    Actually, I have my own Bible software, and then use Logos and Accordance as my 'research assistants'.  My own is highly adapted to analytics and my own 'theology' (as most have their own beliefs). 

    That is intense that you have your own software! That's very impressive! The way you use your software, Accordance, and Logos, sounds sort of complicated, but it sounds like you have really maximized the advantages of all of them.

    DMB said:

    Regarding your frustration with the forum software, you're just experiencing old software ... I have the same frustrations.

    Thank you for letting me know. :)

  • Randall Cue
    Randall Cue Member Posts: 676 ✭✭

    It is good to see Rick, Jonathan, and Mark again. Hello old friends!

  • Rick Mansfield (Logos)
    Rick Mansfield (Logos) Member, Community Manager, Logos Employee Posts: 206

    It is good to see Rick, Jonathan, and Mark again. Hello old friends!

    🤗 The gang's all here (or may be soon).

    Senior Publisher Relations Specialist
    Logos Bible Software

  • DAL
    DAL Member Posts: 10,669 ✭✭✭

    It is good to see Rick, Jonathan, and Mark again. Hello old friends!

    🤗 The gang's all here (or may be soon).

    If Nate behaves we might just welcome him here when Accordance’s ship sinks! 😂 Irony of ironies — Accordance sent me an email years ago offering a cross over special since Logos’s ship was sinking.  They later on (couple of hours after sending the email) apologized for sending the email and said it was a marketing mistake.

     I definitely wish them well, but the new owner needs to get his head out of the water and realize his strategy, whatever it is, needs to change! Banning and pushing customers away is not the way to keep a business afloat!

    DAL

  • Kristin
    Kristin Member Posts: 325 ✭✭

    🤗 The gang's all here (or may be soon).

    That's how I feel too! [:)]

  • Kristin
    Kristin Member Posts: 325 ✭✭

    DAL said:

    Banning and pushing customers away is not the way to keep a business afloat!

    DAL

    For sure true. 

  • Jonathan Huber
    Jonathan Huber Member Posts: 143 ✭✭

    🤗 The gang's all here (or may be soon).

    Oh, I'm here, not just testing the waters. Can't say yet what the workflow will look like going forward, but Logos will be a part of it. 

    Hi, Randall! :) 

  • Dave Hooton
    Dave Hooton MVP Posts: 35,767

    Kristin said:

    I checked out that link Graham provided, and so I went to the ESV and just searched for "Herod" like the video suggested. What I felt was really lacking was a pure list (like Accordance Concordance). Does Logos have something similar?

    Some more explanation would help. How did you  "search" for Herod? What is a pure list?

    Dave
    ===

    Windows 11 & Android 13

  • Kristin
    Kristin Member Posts: 325 ✭✭

    Some more explanation would help. How did you  "search" for Herod? What is a pure list?

    Hi Dave,

    I had watched that "Factbook" video, and in their example they searched for "Herod" so I decided to try the same search to see what I could learn about the Factbook. In doing so, I found that with Accordance there was a simple, clear list I could see with all the hits, whereas with Logos my only option seemed to be to literally scroll through the text looking for the 40 hits. Is there a way for Logos to look more like Accordance in this regard?

    Also, do you, or anyone, have any clarity about how Logos is connected to Logos online? I understand it needs to connect to the server to check for updates, but is that all it's doing? It is making me nervous how often that little wheel spins. I will attach a picture with these issues.

    Thanks.

  • Brian Leathers
    Brian Leathers Member Posts: 178 ✭✭

    It is so encouraging to see so many Accordance users that I followed in their forums and I learned so much from over the past three years migrating here to the Logos forums. It's like family members coming home! I highly recommend checking out MP seminars for learning Logos's software. Lots of great training videos that has helped me over the past year to get more confident doing so many neat searches in the original languages and all of the datasets that Accordance can't compete with. Worth checking out! 

  • Mark Allison
    Mark Allison Member Posts: 540 ✭✭✭

    Kristin said:

    I found that with Accordance there was a simple, clear list I could see with all the hits

    Kristin,

    There might be a way to get you closer to the Accordance list view, but this might help. Turn off the options that you see in this screenshot:

  • Kristin
    Kristin Member Posts: 325 ✭✭

    There might be a way to get you closer to the Accordance list view, but this might help. Turn off the options that you see in this screenshot:

    Hi Mark,

    Thank you for the screenshot. So if I understand correctly, setting it like that makes the text cleaner, but there isn't a true "concordance" list like Accordance has. Is that correct?

  • Mark Allison
    Mark Allison Member Posts: 540 ✭✭✭

    Kristin said:

    Thank you for the screenshot. So if I understand correctly, setting it like that makes the text cleaner, but there isn't a true "concordance" list like Accordance has. Is that correct?

    Thanks for the tip @ReformedDoc! I'm learning something too :-)

    So Kristin, here's what you do. Open your Bible text (for me it was the CSB). Then go to Tools—>Concordance. It's going to take a long time to generate the initial concordance, but it's really fast after that. Then, press Command-F to bring up the search box. Search for "Herod." It'll give you the following list:

  • Aaron Hamilton
    Aaron Hamilton Member Posts: 906 ✭✭✭

    Kristin said:

    Thank you for the screenshot. So if I understand correctly, setting it like that makes the text cleaner, but there isn't a true "concordance" list like Accordance has. Is that correct?

    Mark provided a helpful answer. However, usually for my purposes a Bible search proves more helpful than the concordance tool and will give you a list of passages as well. Factbook really isn't designed to function as a concordance. 

  • Mark Allison
    Mark Allison Member Posts: 540 ✭✭✭

    usually for my purposes a Bible search proves more helpful than the concordance tool and will give you a list of passages as well. 

    Nice! I really don't know anything about Logos, so I'm enjoying learning from others as I go :-)

  • Mark Allison
    Mark Allison Member Posts: 540 ✭✭✭

    And the advantage to performing a Bible search is that you can add versions.

  • Kristin
    Kristin Member Posts: 325 ✭✭

    Then go to Tools—>Concordance. It's going to take a long time to generate the initial concordance, but it's really fast after that. Then, press Command-F to bring up the search box. Search for "Herod."

    Thank you for the link ReformedDoc, and thank you for the screenshot, Mark!

    A couple of things. First, I think this is actually a good example of what I mean how the quick videos haven't worked for me. I tried to follow the video's instruction, but there were two issues. First, the video uses an example of a resource people may, or may not, have, making it difficult to follow as a pattern. Second, in lieu of the resource she used, I decided to search my ESV, but there is literally no way to search for anything, and "command F" is not even mentioned.

    Second, while Mark provided far more info than the video, there is still no way to search and command F does nothing. I can open a Bible, so I opened the ESV and searched "Herod," but that provided literally the same results as not using the concordance, as the ESV is just another resource and nothing was actually searched for with the concordance.

    Also, from Aaron's and Mark's screenshot, it seems like it really is done though the "Bible" tab, so I am not sure what I am missing. 


  • Aaron Hamilton
    Aaron Hamilton Member Posts: 906 ✭✭✭

    Kristin said:

    from Aaron's and Mark's screenshot, it seems like it really is done though the "Bible" tab, so I am not sure what I am missing. 

    No worries; it takes some getting used to. However, with your level of interest you'll be an expert in no time. Perhaps you should hit the arrow in the bottom left corner of the screen to expand the left menu. Having words to describe the icons may be easier until you are more familiar with the software. The easiest way to do a search is by utilizing the search tool. I have highlighted this tool in the screenshot below.

  • Jonathan Huber
    Jonathan Huber Member Posts: 143 ✭✭

    Try searching directly in a Bible tab. Open the inline search (Cmd + Shift + F), do your search, and then share the results (via the button that looks like an up arrow over a wide U) to a passage document. The whole process is pretty quick and gives you a list similar to a concordance.