Field Guide. Select a Field Guide to open. There are six major areas of this software you will want to explore. These are represented by blue buttons in the Toolbar.
Field Guide. Select a Field Guide to open.
ID Wizard. Identify any bird by selecting color, size, etc.
Quizzes. Four different types of quizzes and hundreds of quiz titles.
Sightings. Keep a "Life List" of your birds.
Custom Lists. Group birds together for quizzes, screen savers and study
Handbook. The BirderÆs Handbook - a 700+ page book in electronic format.
Here is a more detailed explanation for each:
Field Guide
This is the heart of the program. Click to see a list of the Field Guides installed on your computer. Select one and click the Open button. The Field Guide then appears. Come here to look at a specific species. When using the Field Guide you can see photos, watch a video clip, hear the bird sing, read identification tips, and look at the range map as well as abundance maps.
To see a different bird, type the name of the bird or click the arrow to the right of the birdÆs name to scroll down the list. Use the Name box and the Alphabetic/Taxonomic box to sort bird names eight different ways.
When you select Field Guide, you will see yellow and purple buttons:
The yellow buttons let you:
zoom in on a photo
compare two images side-by-side
see more information about the bird from The BirderÆs Handbook 
print the information.
The purple buttons let you select one of the three views at a time:
view the bird 
view the five most similar species 
view birds from the same Family
ID Wizard
Find a species, even if you do not know its name! Use the tabs at the top of the Identification Wizard to select the location, size, habitat, color, field marks, bird group and/or sound. Names of species that match appear to the right. Click "Photo Gallery" to see photos of the species that match your specifications. Take a quiz by clicking "Take a quiz on these birds". Or "Save as Custom List" to make a new category in Custom Lists.
Quizzes
You can take almost 2,800 different quizzes using this software. If that is not enough, you can make your own quizzes! There are four quiz sources (featuring almost 700 quizzes): Quizzes, Locations, Groups and Custom Quiz. The Quizzes section includes hundreds of fun quizzes on a variety of topics. Click the plus sign in front of a quiz group (such as "A Quiz for New Birders") to expand the list and see all the quizzes you can take. The Locations Quizzes let you select any state or province (excluding Hawaii). The Groups Quizzes show the bird orders and families. The Custom Quizzes show the quizzes you created yourself as well as a few custom quizzes we created to get you started.
Once you select a specific quiz, there are four different quiz types you may select. A Multiple Choice quiz lets you see or hear a bird and select from among five names. A Fill-in-the-blank quiz lets you type in the correct name of the bird. A Flash Card quiz displays an image (and/or plays a song) and lets you guess the birdÆs name before showing you the answer. A Pick One quiz shows you four images and one bird name û then you pick the right answer by clicking on the correct image.
Sightings
Here observers can enter bird sightings for any state or province. Enter the date you saw the bird plus any comments you would like to make. Use the Reports to list the birds you saw in chronological order or group them by species.
For a more advanced listing and record keeping program, we recommend Birder's Diary. BirderÆs Diary allows multiple observers, includes all birds and all countries, lets you create your own locations and sub-locations, lets you make your own splits and lumps plus a LOT more.
If you have sightings in a previous version of this software, you can import them at any time by clicking File in the Menu Bar and then clicking "Import from Previous Version." You do not need the previous version installed, just the database file. This feature will import sightings from versions 3.0, 3.1 and 3.5. The import process includes the transfer of custom lists, sightings, observers, notes and Hall of Fame entries.
Custom Lists
Use this custom list manager to create a variety of lists. Click the name of a list to see the birds already on the list. You may add or delete birds from any of your lists at any time û or make a new custom list. (You cannot add or delete birds on custom lists made by others.) You may swap Custom Lists with others.
Use these custom lists to take a quiz, create a screen saver, export songs to your iPod, view a Photo Gallery of these birds or use the Field Guide to look at just the birds on your custom list. A list called Colorful Birds is already included in the Guide to Birds of North America program and is set as the default Thayer Birding Software screen saver. Consult your Windows manual to learn how to change your screen saver.
The BirderÆs Handbook
The electronic version of The BirderÆs Handbook by Ehrlich, Dobkin, and Wheye is included with this software. You can read all about the 650 breeding birds of North America. Also read the 249 essays on different aspects of birds, bird behavior, and ornithologists. You can also reach The BirderÆs Handbook when viewing a species in the Field Guide View by clicking a toolbar button or scrolling to Other References halfway down the page.
There is a green button that you will probably use less often:
Petey Parrot will activate Petey. Petey will pronounce a birdÆs common and scientific name for you. Petey will tell you a joke û a really bad joke. Petey can also tell you a number of great birding tips. Use PeteyÆs Sandbox and Petey will read whatever words are in his Sandbox. Type in your own words or paste your emails into the Sandbox. You can even copy and paste articles from The BirderÆs Handbook into PeteyÆs Sandbox. Here is what Petey looks like... what a handsome bird!
There are also a number of links in the menu bar along the top of the screen. File lets you open or close a Field Guide, print and exit the program. Edit lets you cut, copy and paste. Web Links will show you some very interesting web sites you may enjoy. Tools lets you select the major parts of this program. By clicking Options you can adjust many settings within the program, including the language to display common names. Window lets you open a new Window containing a copy of the Field Guide. Help shows you the Contents of the Help file, lets you check for free updates to this program and shows which version of the program you are running.
Be sure to watch the Video Tutorials as well. And finally, donÆt be afraid to click on anything just to see what happens!
More Information on Birds: To learn more about birds, please visit these great web sites:
http://Birds.Cornell.edu
http://www.WildBirds.com