Description:
The 2001 Grolier Multimedia Encyclopedia Deluxe Edition delivers the right mix of sound and sense; it's a lively and intelligent encyclopedia perfect for school or home use. Plenty of multimedia and Web links, and a fresh format make this two CD-ROM set an entertaining and flexible electronic research tool. The intelligent organization of this encyclopedia makes it a wise choice for home use. Users can search for any topic by keyword, but they can also access information in other useful ways. For effective browsing, we liked the topical hierarchy, which breaks material into basic categories such as geography, history, language and literature, and the performing arts, among others. Users can also browse through several hundred longer articles--on topics ranging from the Tenth Amendment to Russian Communist Gennady Zyguanov--that make for interesting reading. There's also an online atlas containing dozens of world maps. (Though there is no zooming functionality, we liked the range of historical maps presented, which show shifting political geography for every continent.) And a separate section for getting started with the often-dreaded research paper can help students find and organize sources. Boasting plenty of pictures and sound (including excerpts of actual recordings and MIDI files for musical excerpts), this title is truly a multimedia resource. With links to online versions of Grolier's Encyclopedia Americana and its Book of Knowledge, as well as numerous other online sources, this tool makes the most of the Internet. (Parents, rest assured; these links are all responsible sources of information.) Simple to use and filled with thousands of entries, Grolier's updated version of their electronic encyclopedia continues to set a high standard for online reference. Using both multimedia and Internet resources to good effect, it strikes a wonderful balance between entertainment and education. --Rich Dragan
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