home
***
CD-ROM
|
disk
|
FTP
|
other
***
search
/
Software Vault: The Sapphire Collection
/
Software Vault (Sapphire Collection) (Digital Impact).ISO
/
cdr16
/
cyberr01.zip
/
EXCITY
< prev
next >
Wrap
Text File
|
1994-09-08
|
5KB
|
78 lines
Exploring Ancient Cities
by Rob Wood
If you're one of those people who thinks history is a subject
best left to archaeologists and college professors, check out this
CD from SUMERIA. The SF-based multimedia publisher has joined
forces with Scientific American magazine to create an interactive
aural and visual feast for the mind.
With easy to access maps, slides, text and QuickTime movies, the
CD leads you on a journey of exploration of four ancient cities
(Crete, Petra, Pompeii and Teotihuacan) which shared a historical
parallel development from 700 BC to 750 AD The program is completely
interactive and is "interest specific" in that it allows the user to
access detailed information about particular aspects of these
cultures, from art to architecture, via the media of active slide
show, movie, map or sidebar buttons which correspond to underlined
"hot text" in the main body. This flexibility should make the CD
appealing to those with a professional interest in the subjects as
well as to those who only wish to be entertained. As an alternative
to reading the text, the user can opt for a full-screen slide show,
complete with audio narration by Academy Award winner Rob McKuen.
The graphical interface, while a bit slow in transitions, is
excellent; with near-video quality Quick Time movies and
color-saturated photos (accessed via the included Apple software).
When double-clicking the CD icon in the Windows Program Manager, I
found that all of the colors on the screen turned black before the
"Ancient Cities" opening screen came up. A call to customer support
alleviated my concern, as it was explained to me that the program
draws all available colors from the palette for color saturation.
The CD includes interactive maps, which allow the user to zoom from
a world relief map to a regional map to a close-up street map of the
ruins. Clicking on the "Labels" icon on the street map provides
text for each structure symbolized on the map, and clicking on
indicated structure symbols causes a corresponding full-screen,
captioned slide to appear on the screen. An interactive timeline is
also provided, which allows the user to trace historical parallel
developments in the period.
In addition to the historical context provided for each city,
current information is offered in the form of text, slides and
interviews about visitor access to the sites, restoration and
preservation efforts. Finally, the user is given the option of
copying text, slides, music and movies to other programs for
non-commercial use.
Whether you're a serious scholar or merely curious about ancient
civilizations, Exploring Ancient Cities is well worth the suggested
retail price of $59.95.
SUMERIA
329 Bryant Street, Suite 3D
San Francisco, California 94107
(415) 904-0800 Fax (415) 904-0888
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Advertising with CyberNews is Profitable! |
| Advertising with CyberNews is Easy! |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| | Your company needs a star performer |
| | when you choose an advertising |
| `. | .' outlet. We are the brightest! We get|
| `. .---. .' your message to millions of people |
| .~ ~. each month. Guaranteed! |
| / O O \ Not only do we let you advertise in |
| -- -- -- ( ) -- -- -- three different versions of |
| \ `-' / CyberNews for no extra charge, but |
| ~. .~ we also offer advertiser benefits |
| .' ~---~ `. including free download service, |
| .' | `. reader response forwarding and much |
| | more! Rates start at $15.00 for |
| | classifieds and $75.00 for display. |
| Contact Patrick Grote at either |
| Sunny says, "Brighter profits 314-984-9691 or Internet email at |
| await those who advertise . . ." patrick.grote@supportu.com! |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+