 The original versions of WORDsearch used the STEP (rtf) format.WORDsearch acquired Epiphany Software in 2003 and changed to Epiphany's CROSS (Christian Reference Open Software Standard) format which supports XML starting with Wordsearch 7.WORDsearch was founded in 1987 by Dr. Jim Sneeringer and Dr. Cheryl Sneeringer, making it one of the earliest commercial examples of digital publishing in any domain.