Rating: 
Summary: Best content / Interesting interface
Review: While I agree with some of the comments regarding the interface - it seems clear to me (having seen most of the past versions) that Britannica finally decided to depart from the flashy, but ineffective and time wasting interface that has been driven by Microsoft and poorly copied by everyone else for years.It is very easy to get to whatever you are looking for in Britannica and more importantly the information is comprehensive and trusted. There are different age levels and libraries that allow this to work for a much wider age group than others. I agree with the reviewer that says - If you want flash without substance than Encarta or others will do - if you want trusted, comprehensive content in a good (if not flashy) interface than Britannica is the one - without question - to go with. I am looking forward to the second version (2004) of this new interface nad direction Britannica has taken and anticipate great improvments in all areas.
Rating: 
Summary: Horrible Interface/Great content
Review: While the content may be great, the interface is a joke. The whole application is done 100% in Java. This has some very negative side effects. The worst problem is that the Java makes the entire interface extremely sluggish, even on a high end machine. Additionally, standard Windows interface features don't exist, like the ability to scroll text with the mouse wheel. Also, there are no configuration options whatsoever, except the ability to change the text size to one of three sizes. The font used is blurry. All fonts are my computer are crystal clear, but this one is blurry. Therefore, the only way to read the articles is to set the text size to medium. Also, the pictures tend to be too small. The interface itself is horrid comared to even MS Encarta 1995 edition, which is sad. That's too bad, because the content is head and shoulders above Encarta, and there is an article on just about everything you can imagine.
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