Cheap Encyclopedia Britannica 2002 Expanded Edition (DVD-ROM) (Software) (Macintosh) Price

The core of the software is as one would expect: Britannica's vast storehouse of knowledge and information, with entries on practically everything in existence. The articles and entries themselves are authoritative and interesting, each littered with hyperlinks to other related topics of interest, and include articles by people as renowned and diverse as Einstein, Robert Louis Stevenson, and Harry Houdini. Layered on top of this impressive core are related multimedia clips, both audio and visual, including panoramas and tours.

Britannica is designed like a Web site, with a home page that's always easily accessible. From this, three main ways of accessing this treasure house of information are offered--Search, A-Z Britannica, or Knowledge Navigator. These are housed within the same pop-up window with tabs at the top, so users can search once and click between all three of these search results. Britannica has also indexed thousands of quality Web sites that are returned as part of each search, which adds a whole new depth of exploration.

Britannica software also shines with regard to helping you organize your own research. You can take a note about a particular item, delegate your personal bookmarks, or collate and layout your collections in an attractive, publishable format.

In addition to the vast repository of knowledge, Britannica's software also includes the Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary (10th edition), a world atlas with statistics and facts, and, a particular favorite of this reviewer, a visually pleasing Timelines feature. Chart the developments in a particular area dating back to 100,000 B.C. You can display each development alongside the others if you wish, or display a single topic, from art to architecture to medicine.

This is fascinating software, is rendered well using Java, and, unlike other CD encyclopedia offerings, has more substance than style. Although a little bit difficult to navigate at first, it's both easy and pleasurable once understood. Researchers, quiz fans, students, or people who simply enjoy reading and learning will find this software a joy. --Alison Jardine