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More than three years in development, Logos 4 represents the new standard in digital Bible study.
"When we sat down to design Logos 4, we knew it couldn't be just another upgrade to the previous version," said Bob Pritchett, President of Logos Bible Software. "Logos 4 is a complete re-imagining of what a desktop biblical study library ought to be."
The Logos 4 interface is streamlined, powerful, and yet easy to use, which is a great achievement for software that can manage digital libraries of more than 10,000 titles. Some of the features in Logos 4 include:
• An advanced search system that can return library-wide searches in less than 1 second.
• A Smart searching that suggests synonyms and alternate terms.
• Synchronization "to the cloud" for backup and to keep preferences, notes, reading plans, and your library in sync across all your computers, including PCs, Macs, and iPhones.
• A smart tab and window management system for workspace customization and multi-monitor support.
• The Cited By tool, which returns the books from your library that cite the material in your active window.
• 60 new high-resolution maps of the biblical world.
• A custom-built index of all the places mentioned in the Bible.
• A one-of-a-kind family tree diagram for every person mentioned in the Bible.
• A database of every thing in the Bible (like altars, fig trees, or Goliath's sword), with cross references, pictures, and links to dictionary articles.
Mac Users: We're sorry, it's coming!
Logos Bible Software 4 is dual platform, but the Mac version is not finished. We are presently shipping a pre-release Alpha of the Mac version.
The Alpha for Mac shares the same underlying code as the Windows version, but is missing much of the user interface, which needs to be coded specifically for the Mac.
The Alpha can update itself over the Internet. We plan to release an update every two weeks or so, which it detects and downloads automatically when it is run.
If you order Logos Bible Software 4 today, you will receive one disc that installs the Mac Alpha on Macs, and the Windows version on Windows.
You can install on either Mac or Windows or on both. Any data you create in either version -- Mac or Windows -- will be automatically synchronized over the Internet.
You can choose to run the Windows version now, and know that your data, notes, and settings will transfer to the Mac version when it is complete, or you can choose to run the pre-release Alpha version on the Mac. Or both.
If you are already a Logos Bible Software for Mac user, upgrading to Logos Bible Software 4 will not change your existing installation. You can run the older product side-by-side with the Alpha for Mac.
If you are not an existing user, but need a stable Mac version right now, you can purchase Logos Bible Software 4 now and install it on either Mac or Windows. We will soon make available a free download of the old Mac product with instructions on how to activate it to use the larger set of licenses that come with Logos Bible Software 4 base packages. This is a bit of a hassle, for which we apologize.
Logos Bible Software 4 is a completely new product. We started over so that we could take advantage of the latest technology for both Windows and the Mac, and because we wanted to do things right.
The first version of Logos for Mac was started long ago using our last generation design. It took too long, and was still being developed (by an outside partner) as we worked on new platform development for Windows. We had to choose between continuing that effort and having a Mac product that remained a generation behind, or starting a new Mac project that shares code and matches—or exceeds!—the Windows product feature-for-feature, complete with synchronization of all your data.
It was an easy choice, but a hard pill to swallow in regards to timing, because it reset Mac development to the starting line just after we'd shipped our first version.
Today we have all of our Mac development in-house. We have a team of talented developers working long hours to finish Logos Bible Software 4 for Mac. We just moved a Windows developer to the Mac team to get there faster. (Don't worry—he's a Mac user at home and at heart. He only coded for Windows to feed his family when that was the job available!)
The good news is that we're moving forward as a multi-platform product. Logos Bible Software 4 is not even sold for Mac or Windows; we have both a Mac and a Windows version on every disc. (And iPhone support as well!) We don't have different pricing. You don't have to specify Mac or Windows when ordering. Our goal is that Logos Bible Software 4 just works—for Mac and Windows.
The Mac version is not finished yet, though. We have the core of the system working on both platforms, and the Mac Alpha release reads and indexes the exact same resources and data files as the Windows version. It synchronizes with the server and even uploads and downloads notes, settings, and other data. It can automatically update itself over the Internet.
It just needs work at the user interface level, and we're doing that as fast as we can.
Why didn't we wait? Because the Windows and iPhone ( http://www.logos.com/iphone ) versions were both ready, and because the new collections have so much value in them we didn't want to delay offering them to our users. Delaying wouldn't speed up the Mac product, it would just delay access for the larger group of users.
Windows users are still the majority of our customers, but we're seeing an incredible move to the Mac. That's why we've developed a common code base and a unified product. And our powerful synchronization system accommodates those poor souls forced to use Windows at work when they have a Mac at home as well as making it easy for switchers to jump. You'll be able to make Bible study, not your platform, a priority, and switch easily from Windows to Mac to iPhone (to web!) without losing a thing.
We're so sorry to be late with the Mac version again, but we know you're going to love the result, and we want you to know that the Mac is a top-priority.
Please Note: You may purchase Logos Bible Software 4 for Mac Alpha right now, and use it on Mac or Windows, but there will be no technical support for the Mac version until it becomes a final release. Every two weeks or so, it will automatically download an update, and keep getting better all the time. If you aren't comfortable with an Alpha release you should probably wait until it is a final release and support is available.
For a demonstration, pricing, and full feature list, visit:
http://www.logos.com/4
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