It really would help if you explained which move order you are talking about.

Quote:


No, I was thinking of the Vienna version.  For example I was reminded of Keene and Goodman writing in the 1980s that 5...d6 6. Nf3 Bg4 "firmly refutes White's play."  Apparently some theory has revolved around a game Barle-Portisch 1975 which continued 7. Bxf4 O-O-O 8. Ke3 Qh5 9. Be2 g5 10. Nxg5 Nf6.  Here I see a book from a few years ago thinking 11. Rf1 is fine, but not mentioning 11...Rg8 (given years earlier by Nunn as leading to -/+).

I have usually seen that Steinitz line considered clearly better for Black.

Either way, it's a game of chess.  But g3 in the Vienna more obviously makes sense, to me anyway, than the Glek 4 Knights.   

Well, I've forgotten to mention the books that treat the so-called Glek system (4.g3...) in the Four Knights. Here they are:

1. John Nunn "New Ideas In The Four Knights" (Batsford, 1993)
2. Jan Pinski "The Four Knights" (Batsford, 2003)
3. Cyrus Lakdawala "The Four Knights: Move By Move" (Everyman, 2012)

In addition, I attach a file with all the Glek games (1990-2011) with 4.g3... Delete the .txt extension of the file and open the resulting .cbv file in a Chessbase program. 

I've been playing Vienna with g3 OTB for many years and therefore I'm biased, so I can't be objective about the right choice, I think..
Anyway, as for the book list, there you have it:

1. Alexander Konstantinopolsky & Vladimir Lepeshkin "The Tournament's Player Repertoire Of Openings: Vienna Game" (Batsford, 1986)
2. Mikhail Tseitlin & Igor Glazkov "The Complete Vienna" (Batsford, 1995)
3. Gary Lane "Vienna Game" (Everyman, 2000)

I never read a book from this list, though. The only book I've read about the Vienna game was:
Александр Константинопольский & Владимир Лепешкин "Венская Партия" (Москва "Физкультура и Спорт", 1989) in Russian language. A fantastic reading, by the way..