Introduction to Accordance Bible Software for Windows

Accordance has been designed around a few key concepts, which open the door to understanding the interface and using it effectively. Understand these concepts, and you are well on your way to becoming an Accordance power user!

The Bible is CentralThe Bible is Central

The primary purpose of Bible Study software is to help you to study the Bible, and the Accordance interface is designed accordingly. When you launch Accordance, the first thing displayed is a workspace with the entire text of the Bible (whichever one you choose as your default). Thus, the Bible itself serves as the central hub around which your study revolves.

Searching is CentralSearching is Central

Accordance Bible Software is centered around the act of searching the Bible. You have everything needed to perform a search right from the start.

The Accordance Search tabClosed The core tab used to search Bible texts, it consists of a search entry area and a search results area is designed to make defining a search as quick and painless as possible. You can find a passage by entering its reference, or search the text of the Bible for a particular word or phrase. You can also specify the Bible translation or original language text to search, limit the search to a specific range of verses, and use a variety of sophisticated search criteria. There are many additional items you can search for, and you can search all content in your Accordance Library. All search options can be accessed directly from within the Search tab, so there's no digging through dialog boxes or preference panels just to define the search.

Systematic Study for Personal and Research PurposesSystematic Study for Personal and Research Purposes

Whether approaching the Bible for personal Bible study or in-depth research, you should be able to study in a manner that matches your needs. Accordance provides numerous tools to help you do just that. Here are just a few things you can do:

What You See Is What You GetWhat You See Is What You Get

The WYSIWYG concept was pioneered by Mac: that what you see on screen should faithfully represent what you get on the printed page.

Accordance for Windows is built around this simple WYSIWYG concept. That's why the Search tab is not just where a search is defined, but also where the search results are displayed.

A search is defined in the Search Entry area at the top of the Search tab. Simply press Return, and the search results are displayed in the bottom area of the same tab. If you leave this tab open and come back three hours later, you can immediately see what you were searching for before you left.

This WYSIWYG concept has been carried over to every other screen elementClosed Any part of an application that is visible, such as workspaces, menu bars, or windows in Accordance. For example, in the Atlas tab, settings in the pop-up menus at the top of the tab determine the geographical features displayed on the map. This makes it easy to use different Accordance tabs since any differences between them are merely a function of the type of information being accessed.

Instant AccessInstant Access

Bible software should be unobtrusive, placing a wealth of information at your fingertips without getting in the way. It should encourage you to ask questions of the biblical text by making it easy to find the answers to those questions. It should enable you to follow a path of study, consulting other resources as needed, without leading you away from the biblical text itself.

This is accomplished in Accordance by making almost every feature and moduleClosed Any Bible text, or other single tool that can be read in Accordance, including reference texts and articles; may also be referred to as content or resource readily available from the Workspace toolbar or the Library. No matter where you are in the program or what you're looking at, you can select any Bible text, commentary, dictionary, map, timeline, or other resourceClosed Any Bible text, or other single tool that can be read in Accordance, including reference texts and articles; may also be referred to as content or module to open or to search.

If you select a word or verse reference before choosing a resource from the Library, Accordance automatically searches that resource for the selected word or verse. This AmplifyClosed To select words or a reference and search for the selection in the text or tool of your choice. You can select the resource in the Library or Amplify menus. A triple-click is a shortcut which amplifies to the top tool of the relevant category. feature enables you to get the information you need almost instantaneously, making it easy to follow a train of thought through multiple resources.

Remember My PlacesRemember My Places

Pick up where you left off in any Accordance resource. Accordance automatically remembers your last location whenever you close a resource and later reopen it. This feature works across devices by syncing via Dropbox.

Economy of EffortEconomy of Effort

Following a train of thought means not having to jump through unnecessary hoops to get the information you need. Yes, the toolbar and Library makes it easy to open and search any module in your Accordance library, but Accordance offers several shortcuts to the most important resources.

Triple-click the words or verses you're interested in, and the relevant dictionary or commentary opens with more information on your selection.

Simply pass your cursor over a word or item to display more information in the Instant Details, initially located at the bottom of the screen.

To see your search results in an entirely new light, click Analytics (Click to open graphs and tables for analyzing your search results) on the Search tab to display them in different graphs and tables.

The menus at the top of the screen, and shortcut menus (right-click) in different areas of the screen elements, offer quick access to additional features.

Minimal ClutterMinimal Clutter

For Bible software to be unobtrusive and avoid getting in your way, you should be able to view a multiplicity of resources with a minimum of screen clutter. Every second spent shuffling through lots of open tabs is time taken away from your study of the Bible.

Accordance keeps clutter to a minimum through the use of panes, workspaces, tabs, and zones.

Panes are used to compare multiple Bible texts or translations, view a commentary in parallel with the text of the Bible, or keep your User Notes for a passage clearly visible, all within the same tab.

While panes help to keep Bible texts, commentaries, and User Notes neatly organized, what about the other resources available, such as lexicons, dictionaries, general books, maps, timelines, and parallels? The Accordance Workspace keeps these separate resources together in one place, neatly organized and displayed as tabbed zones. In general, each zone acts as the display area for related modulesClosed Any Bible text, or other single tool that can be read in Accordance, including reference texts and articles; may also be referred to as content or resource, with text displayed in one zone, tools in another, and Analytics in yet another (although if desired, zone content can be mixed). You never have to worry about losing one tab behind another or having to rearrange them!

Each Workspace has a toolbar for accessing frequently used commands/items.

Optimal CustomizationOptimal Customization

You can customize the appearance and function of almost every tab or workspace so that Accordance displays what you want, the way you want. The Preferences options are used to set your preferred working defaults, and they stay that way until you change them.

Customizing the display has never been easier. You can set the defaults for whichever tab is activeClosed The application, window, tab, or other screen element which is currently being used; sometimes called the "front" or "frontmost" screen element in the display. Then select the first item in the Display menu (Set Tool Display or Set Text Pane Display), or press Ctrl+T , to set the options that apply to that tab and the text it displays.

Keep these key concepts in mind as you begin working with Accordance Bible Software.

So, are you ready to get started?