Congratulations on your 25th Anniversary!
I think I first heard about the Gramcord and Accordance programs through an Apple Computer magazines (Macworld or MacUser). I had the previously-released MacBible program also. But Accordance captured my interest because of its claim to search grammatically-tagged Greek and Hebrew texts for precise inflected forms. That was far more powerful than a mere Strong’s Number root word search. When I saw the ad in the computer magazine, I ordered it.
Although I do not still have the old original 3.5 microfloppy disks to prove it (long since tossed), I do have an invoice from The Gramcord Institute, dated April 2, 1996, showing when I purchased Accordance 1.1 along with the Gramcord Greek New Testament, Hebrew Bible, and Septuagint. Evidently, I did not become an Accordance user until version 1.1, but from that time onward until now I have faithfully upgraded every year and added lots of modules.
My collection of texts and tools really began to expand after I attended my first Evangelical Theological Society meeting in Peabody, Massachusetts twenty years ago (1999). My ministry exhibit booth was right next to the Accordance and Gramcord booths. I probably spent as much time at Accordance booth, talking and reading brochures about the software, as I did working at my booth. That is when I first met Roy and Helen Brown, and our friendship has deepened every year when I see them at ETS. There are not very many Christian brethren whom I appreciate and admire more than them.
One of the things I like most about Accordance, in addition to its wonderful selection of grammatically tagged texts, is its incredible speed for searching my vast collection of texts and tools. There is no other Bible search program for the Mac (or Windows) that even comes close to the raw speed and power of the Accordance search engine. I regularly use the Research feature to globally search all of my texts and tools. I rarely have time to get a sip of coffee before the search is finished. Breathtaking speed! I am forever hooked on that.
Kudos to all of you wonderful folks there at Accordance. Hug Roy and Helen for me! Thanks for producing and supporting such a wonderful tool for my teaching and publishing work. I cannot imagine ministry without it!
Edward E. Stevens is the President of the International Preterist Association.
Want to tell your Accordance 25 Story? Email it to [email protected]. If we use your story, you could get a $25 credit for your next purchase.