BIB is quite flexible, being able to create files readable by the five most common word processors, as well as to produce a customized format and an ASCII version readable by almost any other software. BIB is clearly targeted at anthropologists. The output can be formatted in the matter required for seven of the big-name anthropological journal reference styles. You can also print a "quick list" -- author's surname, date, and the first part of the title -- providing a handy quick reference to its contents. BIB can take direct keyboard entry, but, even better, it can read entries from a text file, for example, a manuscript bibliography. However, to read a text-file, it is first necessary to make some minor changes; for example, a letter must be appended to each item, indicating to BIB whether it is a Book, Article, book Chapter, or Other type of entry. (I would suggest that a future version have the option of handling a "book review" entry type, although at present the Article category can be used.)
BIB automatically sorts entries, whether they are input by keyboard or from a text-file. It also indicates when a new author and date entry exactly matches an existing reference so that accidental duplication can be avoided. Entering references is fast and easy, unlike other software I have tried. Once entered, items can be browsed, edited, deleted, and then output to text files. However, I would suggest that the next version have an option added, possibly to the "write" (outfile) menu that would allow items to be sorted by source (i.e. book title, journal title). Such an addition would aid when locating references in the library. A very useful feature is the author search; also, boolean keyword searches are possible - two excellent features.
One oddity showed up in long entries, especially titles, which wrap around onto the next line. This is really more of a distraction than anything else, as the outfiles are of course formatted by the established parameters of your word processor. I spoke with the authors about this. They thought it was not worth rewriting the program and I agree.
Two bugs which showed up in earlier versions have now been cured. The first appeared in "browse" mode. When particular keywords are selected, only entries marked by those keywords are supposed to be seen. In practice, sometimes other entries were still accessible, being listed after the key group. The second bug occurred with the duplicate entry warning. On my original version, 2.1, this was dormant. If either of these subroutines does not function properly in your version, I suggest you contact the authors for an update. They are very quick to correct problems and send out revised versions -- the advantage of buying from a home-grown industry?
The software is designed to work in tandem with your wordprocessor, thus it does not reproduce some of the functions of your wordprocessor. This is advantageous, presumably, in making the software simpler and cheaper to design and thus sell.
BIB can be installed with full colour, each menu and highlighted section customized to your heart's desire. 500 entry data-files can be stored on a 360K floppy disk, while up to 5000 entries are possible on a hard drive. BIB must be run on an IBM compatible PC, XT, AT, or PS/2 with a minimum of 256 k of RAM. It also requires DOS version 2.0 or later, an 80 column mono- or full colour monitor and at least one disk drive. By this day and age, however, these are not big requirements. The price is quite low, being $75 ($50 to students), with an additional $5 charge to orders from outside the United States. BIB was produced by produced by Glenn Stone and Linda Brown. The software is available on 5.25 or 3.5 inch disk and distributed by BIB, Box 7904, Missoula, Montana, U.S.A. 59807.