New in Factbook: Online Results from Print, Cloud, and Locked Books

Adam Borries (Logos) · 2025-03-15T00:15:30+00:00

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In the desktop app version 41, by default, Factbook will act a lot more like Factbook on the web app. Exactly like the web app, in fact. This offers the benefit of returning results from books you don't have downloaded, including your Print Books. If you prefer to keep the old Factbook experience, you can change the setting Prefer Local Data to Yes.

What's different

In prior desktop versions, Factbook primarily used local resources to get the data for its reports. Some sections of Factbook, like Factbook Tags, rely entirely on online services; others like Media are a mix if local and online sources. But in general, if Factbook could use a local resource, it would.

Now, Factbook behaves exactly as it would on the web app: it uses Logos's web APIs to populate the data for the reports. If you are running offline (or have an intermittent network outage), Factbook will fall back to using local data.

Why you should use Factbook online

Running online offers several benefits:

Get results from all your Cloud Books. No need to have your whole Library downloaded.
Get results from your Print Books.
1. Available in the Commentaries, Dictionaries, Journals, and Sermons sections.
2. Requires a license for the Print Library Catalog feature.
Get results from books you don't have in your Library yet.
1. Available in the Commentaries, Dictionaries, Journals, and Sermons sections.
2. At the end of your results, click "More to discover" to find out what other resources are available for this topic.
3. Subscribers can also Summarize these articles (Logos Pro and higher).
Some users may find Factbook to be faster load results.

Why you should stick with using Factbook locally

There are some desktop features that our web services don't handle well yet.

You should use Factbook in local mode:

If you have Personal Books that would return results in Factbook. (Running Factbook in online mode will not include these.)
If you have added custom titles to the books your library. (Running Factbook in online mode will use the default resource title.)
If you have customized a Series name, and prioritized that Series. (Running Factbook in online mode does not respect prioritization of custom Series.)
If you have slow, intermittent, or limited internet bandwidth.

How to change between online and local modes

In Program Settings, set Prefer Local Data to Yes to switch Factbook back to the old behavior. (This setting also governs the data source for the Insights sidebar in Bibles and other books.) Changing this setting requires a recent software license (Logos 9 feature set or later).

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Comments

DMB

I'm trying real hard to remember what 'Locked Books' are. Oh … I bet they're unowned.

Dave Hooton

@Adam Borries (Logos)

That is a good Summary (please use in the Help resources) and saved some queries from the wording in Program Settings, where the last Yes sentence would benefit by replacing "have" with "use".

The Settings name Prefer Local Data is rather ominous even though it is stated to apply only to Factbooks and Insights. Would that Setting apply if other features go "online/cloud/Print" e.g. Collections?

Dave Hooton

@Adam Borries (Logos)

You need to state that Layouts disappear from Dig Deeper in "online/web" mode. I'm staying with "local data".

NichtnurBibelleser

Generally, I like the new options (and the explanation).

But

You should use Factbook in local mode: 1.-4….
PLUS
In Program Settings, set Prefer Local Data to Yes to switch Factbook back to the old behavior.

seems a bit complicated to me.

Couldn't be implemented a Switch for Online/Offline be integrated somewhere directly into Factbook?

Paul Gibson

I, and I suspect many others, have renamed series and prioritized them. I've have some commentaries that have the OT as one series and the NT as a different series. I've renamed the series on each resource to have the same series name. Without knowing the caveat "If you have customized a Series name, and prioritized that Series. (Running Factbook in online mode does not respect prioritization of custom Series.)", this could be a big problem for people. I think Factbook cloud should default to off, and display a list of the consequences when a user tries to turn it on.

Dave Hooton

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/1362777#Comment_1362777

My reason for preferring normal Factbook is because of the those limitations on Web (and it still does not recognize Advanced Prioritization). So "Online" is as misleading as "Local Data" as a description/view/mode. And "Online" has extra sections compared to the web app for some inputs.

Adam Borries (Logos)

You need to state that Layouts disappear fromDig Deeperin "online/web" mode.

Good catch. I'm not sure if this is expected; I'll follow up.

Adam Borries (Logos)

seems a bit complicated to me.

Couldn't be implemented a Switch for Online/Offline be integrated somewhere directly into Factbook?

That was a designed we considered; but ultimately we thought it would be less complicated overall to have a more central setting that controls both Factbook and Insights, and perhaps more in the future.

Adam Borries (Logos)

Thanks for the feedback, Paul.

I've have some commentaries that have the OT as one series and the NT as a different series.

What series? That sounds like incorrect metadata that we should correct our end; you as the user shouldn't have a fix it.

I've renamed the series on each resource to have the same series name.

The Commentaries section in Factbook (as in the desktop Passage Guide section) displays both the resource title the series abbreviation by default. Try it in Factbook's online mode to see how you like it.

"does not respect prioritization of custom Series"… could be a big problem for people

and Dave's comment

Web… still does not recognize Advanced Prioritization

These are fair criticisms, and we plan to address them in time. In the meantime, we want to be up front about them for power users like yourselves.

But that's also kind of the point: most users aren't power users. We are trying to be smart about picking the default that works best for most people "out of the box."

Adam Borries (Logos)

"Online" has extra sections compared to the web app for some inputs.

Hm. Not that I know of, but we could have missed something. What sections, on what topics?

Adam Borries (Logos)

Update: Edited post to reflect that we've added support for Print and Locked Books in the Commentaries section, as well.

Donovan R. Palmer

Couldn't be implemented a Switch for Online/Offline be integrated somewhere directly into Factbook?

This was my question.

Dave Hooton

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/1362841#Comment_1362841

type March 15 or any Day of Year.

See

https://community.logos.com/discussion/247525/daily-devotional-in-factbook-seems-to-be-lacking-in-online-web

Dave Hooton

@Adam Borries (Logos)
and Dave's comment
Web… still does not recognize Advanced Prioritization
These are fair criticisms, and we plan to address them in time. In the meantime, we want to be up front about them for power users like yourselves.
But that's also kind of the point: most users aren't power users. We are trying to be smart about picking the default that works best for most people "out of the box."

This has been a real issue for several years because the Mobile/Web app cannot recognize my preferred bible when an Advanced Prioritization for another bible is listed above it i.e.
NET (Advanced… )
ESV (preferred).

I am effectively being penalized for being a "power user".

MJ. Smith

I cannot get it to show me any locked resources in any section. Is there a hidden perimeter?

When I own both the ebook and a print book it shows me the symbol from the print book. Is this the intended behavior?

Adam Borries (Logos)

Hi, MJ,

I cannot get it to show me any locked resources in any section. Is there a hidden perimeter?

For the Verbum app, yes. We filter locked results to books that are either from a Catholic perspective, or doctrinally neutral. (I'd love to have your opinion on how well we do at that: Are there some books/series that we need to add? Are there some locked results you find surprising?) My guess is, with your large library, you already own those resources. If you wish, you could test the experience with a new/free account at app.verbum.com (at least for Dictionaries, Journals, and Sermons; theCommentaries section is for subscribers only for now).

When I own both the ebook and a print book it shows me the symbol from the print book. Is this the intended behavior?

Yes. When you have indicated that it's one of your Print Books, the UI doesn't distinguish whether or not you have a license for it in Verbum/Logos.

Anderson Abreu

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/1362777#Comment_1362777

I use the option to rename resources a lot. It's one of the first things I do when I buy books/packages.