They publish many titles and their catalog usually offers special pricing for those lucky enough to receive it. In addition to their special titles they offer great deals on Quicken and many of the DeLorme products which have been reviewed by members of Alamo PC and the reviews are located on our web page www:alamopc.org if you would like to check them out. 

 I felt it important to introduce the company before I began this review of their premier Bible software product since the quality of their other products can help you decide whether to try a current one - word of mouth is the best advertising possible. 

 Now that that is out of the way, let's begin with the review. 

 First of all, this is not a program for someone that is not interested in the Bible and the thinking of many of the most renown scholars. This is a serious program for serious users. 

 I am not a trained Bible scholar but I have taken many classes at church plus a couple in college. I found the program most helpful and both my wife and I had to be careful not to get distracted from what we were looking for as we tested out the program. It is much like web surfing - you start looking up one verse or word and, before you know it, you have been looking for an hour and are enthralled by the power of the search engines, the maps, the comparisons of verses and other items contained on the CD. 

 The price can scare off many people - list is $379 but I'll explain how you can get if for less later in the article. 

This IS the program to buy for your preacher or priest, especially since Easter is closing in on us. Your Sunday School class, a Bible study group or a group of one sort or another could present this software as a most welcome gift. If you have a seminary student or beginning minister in the family, this would be a welcome gift. 

 The CD/ROM installed easily and - since I'm using Windows 3.x, I did not get the full use of some of the special features contained within the CD. What I did get blew me away. 

 The program includes 12 different translations of the Bible and you have the capability to simultaneously compare the same verse in one, some or all of them. There are interesting differences in how certain verses are translated - something that can occupy many a sermon if need be. 

 There are topical resources available through use of the indexing feature plus the superb Nave's Topical Bible which is a basic, much used reference by serious scholars. 

How is your Greek, Hebrew and Aramaic? This program allows you to view the English text of the Bible in one window while you can compare the Greek and Hebrew AND English definitions in another window. Once again, the scholar and the student will be able to make the most of this feature. 

 The program has a unique Rainbow Study Bible in which you can specify certain colors be used for the 12 major themes and the words of Jesus can be colored also which greatly simplifies study. Use caution here - you can get carried away with the colors and wind up with a jumbled mess that confuses rather than helps. 

 The Bible maps contained in PC Bible Atlas for Windows (included on the CD) are detailed and accurate. Marion and I are going on a Holy Land tour in February/March and we found our hotel site on the Mount of Olives. The map shows the contour lines so we now understand, quite clearly, that we're going to be going up and down a lot of hills. There are dozens of maps showing the most important events in the Bible and how the world was perceived by the authors of the various books. The maps print out easily and are ideal for use in Sunday School or other Bible study groups. 

 The QuickVerse Library contains many texts of commentaries all cross-referenced for ease of use. There are about 30 other books available for an additional charge - they are locked on the CD and you simply call Parsons, arrange to pay a modest fee (list of $29 but don't be afraid to ask for a discount) and they furnish you a number to input thereby unlocking the book. The program allows you to do this for one book of your choice free but it requires Windows 95 or NT so I can't vouch for the ease of use. However, based on the rest of the program, this should be a very easy procedure. 

 I can't quite adequately express my pleasure with this program and I expect that my wife and I will spend many hours researching items for our Sunday School class. This is THE best Bible program I've encountered and I can't recommend it highly enough. 

 If you want it, you can go to places like the Shepard Shop or other Christian bookstores and see what their price is. However, if you call Parsons at 1-800-779-6000 and see if there is a special on it. The list is $379. 

 Now, if that is too much money, Parsons offers the Deluxe Bible Reference Collection for $249. This program contains much of what the Teachers Edition does but leave out many of the Commentaries and also 5 of the lesser used Bible translations. 

 The New Bible Reference Collection for $129 contains 3 Bibles, one Concordance, some Study Notes as well as the Holman Bible Dictionary. 

If you are seriously interested in a program like this, send me an e-mail (jbarth@connecti.com) and I'll try and arrange for you to try it out at my home. 

If there is a need for Bible Reference material, Parsons has it and the product is of a superior quality. This Easter is a nice time to give this specialized program to someone that can benefit from it. Go for it.