Logos 5: the specialist packages and bundles
June 30, 2014
In our ongoing review of Logos 5, we have considered the underlying Logos 5 platform, and then considered the base packages available.
Today, we move on to the specialist packages and bundles. Here, my example is the Gold Reformed package. That's important, because Logos is a company that caters to a lot of tastes, and the undiscerning palate could end up with poison as well as tonic. Fortunately, this package is a tonic indeed! Linguists will salivate over the lexicons, grammars, interlinear Bibles and a few of the ancient texts. Historians will indulge in the oldest works and their translations, as well as enjoying a splendid collection of church histories and historical theologies, not to mention a great bundle of the church fathers. Confessional and creedal believers will find a wide range of material at their very fingertips. Preachers will enjoy the range of genuinely classic commentaries and the preaching and teaching resources. People like me will also luxuriate in the magnificent selection of theology, including some Puritan classics (such as Owen, Sibbes, Bunyan) and other gems (Witsius, Edwards, Shedd and Warfield, to mention but a few). And then there is a range of other helps and tools for Bible studies, including various reference works, maps, Scripture harmonies, data sets and the like. All of this, evidently, has been chosen to cater to the appetites of those who are more or less Reformed in their inclinations or convictions, and all the usual suspects are more or less in this bundle. Again, the great issue here is, "How will I use this?" Care will be needed to ensure that enthusiasm does not trample over wisdom, and eagerness swamp utility.
That said, if you do not have this material sitting on a shelf, and don't have the space on the shelf for it, and you could with legitimacy make this kind of financial investment and then make it a true spiritual investment, who would begrudge you the blessing of plunging into such an ocean of delights?
And then, as if that were not all enough, there are other bundles of themed material catering to your theological or denominational convictions, your scholarly predilections, your favourite publisher, or just about any other various you choose to mention. Some of the bigger bundles might strain older hard drives, so be aware of that.
Finally, on top of all that, there is a wealth of further material, authors Christian (from just about every tradition and of every stripe, from the über-orthodox to the horribly heterodox) and secular (from modern classics to ancient scholarship), allowing the reader with time, appetite and available funds to build a massive library, which - if well chosen - would prove a blessing to anyone. Really, to some of us, wandering through these pages risks turning us less into the kid in the candy store: "Ooh, I like that! Wow, I like those!" and more into Homer on the sugar pile: "Mmm, sugar!" There is a real danger, especially on the better deals, of simply buying all the books you intend to read, rather than the ones you need to read or actually will read. This is a temptation with the physical library as well, but electronic purchasing is often just that little bit easier, and the fact that the book does not lurk before your eye reminding you of your investment can too easily soothe the pang of conscience.
However, at this point, it is probably worth mentioning pre-publication special prices, community pricing on new material, and the generous pricing structures and helpful payment plans allowing the full cost of the more expensive products to be spread over a number of months. If you already have a product and it is part of a new bundle, Logos will usually pick that up and adjust prices accordingly. If there is a new product in the pipeline, early interest usually secures a significantly lower price, but you do have to be in it to win it. Because of the significant price for some of these products, it is worth keeping an eye on these.
And, to be honest, the greatest barrier will probably be the price. Look at the savings, and you are likely to go mad with glee. Consider the cost, and you will be rapidly sobered. This is not a cheap tool - those payment plans will be, for many, both a blessing and a necessity! Again, the judicious, prayerful selection of what will be of genuine use and profit is demanded in the light of so much (and so much that is good) on offer.
(Next time . . . a survey of the potential usefulness and likely users of the variety of resources available.)
Today, we move on to the specialist packages and bundles. Here, my example is the Gold Reformed package. That's important, because Logos is a company that caters to a lot of tastes, and the undiscerning palate could end up with poison as well as tonic. Fortunately, this package is a tonic indeed! Linguists will salivate over the lexicons, grammars, interlinear Bibles and a few of the ancient texts. Historians will indulge in the oldest works and their translations, as well as enjoying a splendid collection of church histories and historical theologies, not to mention a great bundle of the church fathers. Confessional and creedal believers will find a wide range of material at their very fingertips. Preachers will enjoy the range of genuinely classic commentaries and the preaching and teaching resources. People like me will also luxuriate in the magnificent selection of theology, including some Puritan classics (such as Owen, Sibbes, Bunyan) and other gems (Witsius, Edwards, Shedd and Warfield, to mention but a few). And then there is a range of other helps and tools for Bible studies, including various reference works, maps, Scripture harmonies, data sets and the like. All of this, evidently, has been chosen to cater to the appetites of those who are more or less Reformed in their inclinations or convictions, and all the usual suspects are more or less in this bundle. Again, the great issue here is, "How will I use this?" Care will be needed to ensure that enthusiasm does not trample over wisdom, and eagerness swamp utility.
That said, if you do not have this material sitting on a shelf, and don't have the space on the shelf for it, and you could with legitimacy make this kind of financial investment and then make it a true spiritual investment, who would begrudge you the blessing of plunging into such an ocean of delights?
And then, as if that were not all enough, there are other bundles of themed material catering to your theological or denominational convictions, your scholarly predilections, your favourite publisher, or just about any other various you choose to mention. Some of the bigger bundles might strain older hard drives, so be aware of that.
Finally, on top of all that, there is a wealth of further material, authors Christian (from just about every tradition and of every stripe, from the über-orthodox to the horribly heterodox) and secular (from modern classics to ancient scholarship), allowing the reader with time, appetite and available funds to build a massive library, which - if well chosen - would prove a blessing to anyone. Really, to some of us, wandering through these pages risks turning us less into the kid in the candy store: "Ooh, I like that! Wow, I like those!" and more into Homer on the sugar pile: "Mmm, sugar!" There is a real danger, especially on the better deals, of simply buying all the books you intend to read, rather than the ones you need to read or actually will read. This is a temptation with the physical library as well, but electronic purchasing is often just that little bit easier, and the fact that the book does not lurk before your eye reminding you of your investment can too easily soothe the pang of conscience.
However, at this point, it is probably worth mentioning pre-publication special prices, community pricing on new material, and the generous pricing structures and helpful payment plans allowing the full cost of the more expensive products to be spread over a number of months. If you already have a product and it is part of a new bundle, Logos will usually pick that up and adjust prices accordingly. If there is a new product in the pipeline, early interest usually secures a significantly lower price, but you do have to be in it to win it. Because of the significant price for some of these products, it is worth keeping an eye on these.
And, to be honest, the greatest barrier will probably be the price. Look at the savings, and you are likely to go mad with glee. Consider the cost, and you will be rapidly sobered. This is not a cheap tool - those payment plans will be, for many, both a blessing and a necessity! Again, the judicious, prayerful selection of what will be of genuine use and profit is demanded in the light of so much (and so much that is good) on offer.
(Next time . . . a survey of the potential usefulness and likely users of the variety of resources available.)
