The Logos Bible Software Blog
Arguably the most significant new Logos 8 feature is the Notes tool. I certainly have received more questions about it than any other feature. Once you understand how to save and retrieve notes you’ll develop your own organizing scheme.
For now however, allow me to jump start your Notes‘ creativity I’ll show how easy it is to create and search an Illustrations Notebook.
[Read more…]
Beginning in Genesis 6:14, God tells Noah to build a boat according to exact specifications: 300 cubits X 50 cubits X 30 cubits. I’m not sure about you, but I don’t normally speak in terms of cubits today. I understand feet and yards, but cubits are another story.
This isn’t an isolated occurrence because unfamiliar measurements appear throughout the Bible. Fortunately for us, as we study passages with Logos 8, we can easily convert measurements in the text. [Read more…]
As I’ve talked to Christians throughout the years, I’ve often heard statements like: Theology is just for pastors. I’d like to study different doctrines in the Bible, but I don’t know where to start. Understanding doctrine is difficult.
If you’ve ever expressed such sentiments, I’ve got great news for you. In Logos 8 we have a brand new research assistant called the Theology Guide. This Guide, based on the resource, Lexham Survey of Theology, assembles various pieces of information in one place so we gain a good survey of major doctrines in Scripture.
Let’s take it out for a spin: [Read more…]
As you well know, words are the building blocks of Scripture. If we’re going to study or exegete a passage we have to examine words. Perhaps, in an ideal world, we would thoroughly explore every word in the text. If, however, we’re only going to dig deep on some words, the question becomes, which ones?
While there’s certainly no definitive answer that applies equally to all passages, there’s a new feature in Logos 8 that may offer some guidance.
It’s called Important Words and here’s how it works: [Read more…]
As you begin working with Logos 8, you’ll discover many panels now contain a sidebar populated with filters or facets to help us locate pertinent information in that panel. Arguably the most helpful new sidebar is the one that resides in the Library. With its facets, we can now locate resources without having to know sometimes challenging rules.
For example, let’s say we want to locate commentaries in our library covering the book of Romans. What rule or query do we type? No need to ask that question in Logos 8. Let me show you a better way:
Usually when we’re studying a passage we like to explore cross-references related to that passage. For example, imagine we’re camped out in Luke 4:1 which states Jesus was full of the Holy Spirit, led by the Holy Spirit, and tempted by the devil. During our research, we may want to read other passages about Spirit fullness or guidance or temptation. Typically, however, we have to look up the cross-reference to see what it’s about.
That’s about to change with a new feature in Logos 8 called Important Passages. This Guide section not only lists a cross-reference but also tells us why it’s a cross-reference in the first place! [Read more…]
The makers of our Logos Bible Software have labeled all sorts of information in the Bible. Each group of tags or labels is called a dataset.
Recently, I’ve received several questions about explanations for specific datasets: [Read more…]
Sometimes an easy-to-use, helpful feature gets overlooked. For example, here’s a non-Logos, simple trick I learned recently from my elderly mother.
I was trying to tear a piece of aluminum foil, but the entire roll kept following out of the box. Upon seeing my frustration, my mom pointed out, “Why don’t you push in the tabs on either end of the box which will secure the roll in the box?” I had no idea what she was referring to, but I looked, and sure enough, the tabs were there complete with instructions on how to use them!
I asked, “Why haven’t you mentioned these to me before?” to which she responded, “I figured a 56-year-old man knows how to handle a roll of aluminum foil.” [Read more…]
A Logos user recently contacted me with the following scenario:
I know the Logos developers have tagged the biblical text with all sorts of labels or datasets. Normally I right click on words and scroll through the menu to see these tags. Is there, however, an easier way to view tags just while I’m reading the text? [Read more…]
In response to a recent blog about locating where Jesus speaks about the kingdom, a Logos user emailed me the following power-user tip that I wanted to pass along to you:
I create a Passage List of verses with Jesus as the Speaker in Reported Speech. Then in the future I search that list for the words I want. [Read more…]