It’s been almost a year since we first announced that we were developing a native version of Accordance for Windows, and the response has been very encouraging. We appreciate all of the excitement from the community, and we wanted to take a moment now to answer some of the most common questions we've received about Accordance for Windows.

What is the current status of Accordance for Windows?

The Windows version is quite far along at this point. We recently launched a closed beta on June 6, 2013 and we currently have about 25 beta testers that are helping us test features and squash bugs.

Can I become a beta tester?

Possibly, we are planning to expand the beta in a week or two, so we do have some open spots for more testers. If you are interested in actively beta testing and bug reporting, you can post your request to the forums.

What does the Windows version look like?

The Windows version looks and works very similar to Accordance on Mac. All of the menus and dialog boxes use standard Windows interface elements and button placement, but apart from this we tried to maintain a unified interface where it made sense. There are several reasons we decided to pursue a unified interface, but the primary reason is that it is the best way for us to ensure that new features are added to both platforms in a timely manner. Here are two screenshots of the current Windows beta. Please note that the final release may look slightly different.

How well does Accordance run on Windows?

Very well. We are using native Windows code, which means that there are no translation layers or emulators to slow things down. Even in the current beta, Accordance for Windows runs quite smoothly. Most searches feel instantaneous, just like they do on the Mac. Speed has always been an important aspect of Accordance on Mac, so we made it a priority to optimize Accordance for speed on Windows as well.

When will the Windows version be released?

We will have a limited release in August 2013 for schools that are participating in our Academic Purchasing Program. A public release will follow shortly after that, but we do not have a specific date to announce at this point. Stay tuned for more updates.

Thanks for your interest in Accordance for Windows! Please pass on the word to your friends and family that a native Windows version of Accordance is coming soon. You can look forward to more information in the coming weeks, but in the meantime you can post comments and questions below.

It happens every week: Sunday rolls around and my main Accordance workspace is filled with tabs and zones related to my current work projects. But I have to teach Sunday school, and I want to present the passages and visual aids related to my lesson without closing—or showing—the other stuff I've been working on. Obviously, I'll want to open an additional workspace and do my lesson preparation in that, but how do I make sure my class doesn't see my main workspace?

The easiest thing to do is simply to hide my main workspace using the Hide command. You'll find that command in the Window menu, and choosing it does just what you would expect: it hides, or makes invisible, the front window without actually closing it.

When you hide a window, its name will still appear at the bottom of the Window menu. A diamond will appear next to the name to indicate that the window is hidden. To show the window again, simply select its name, or choose the Show All command.

It's that easy, and you can use the Hide command any time you want to reduce clutter without actually closing something.