Better Search, New Features Highlight Britannica Software for 2002

New Line of CD-ROMs and DVDs Also Serves Mac, Including OS XOct. 3 /PRNewswire/ -- A host of new features, including a sleek new interface and improved searching, mark Encyclopaedia Britannica's new line of CD-ROMs and DVDs for 2002, which the company has just announced.

The award-winning multimedia product line also includes, for the first time in recent years, products for the Macintosh platform, which have been specially designed for the OS X, Macintosh's latest operating system.

Each Britannica CD-ROM and DVD is a comprehensive, all-in-one reference source that includes the full text of the 32-volume Encyclopaedia Britannica, additional encyclopedia articles, a world atlas, a Merriam-Webster dictionary, and recent editions of the Britannica yearbook. Britannica's products are comprehensive reference works with more than 80,000 articles. Deluxe CD-ROMs and DVDs feature a host of special multimedia enhancements, such as historical timelines, "visual tours" of selected topics, and rich video, audio, and animations.

"We've combined the most respected encyclopedia in the world with rich multimedia to make each of these products a feast for the mind and the senses," said Ilan Yeshua, chief executive officer of Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc. "This year, with improvements in searching and new features like KnowledgeNavigator, people will find the search for information even easier and more enjoyable."

Exceptional Search Results
Britannica's CD-ROMs and DVDs deliver exceptional searching performance thanks in part to a unique system of editorially selected linkages within the database that produces smart, relevant results which are hard for conventional search engines to match. The system gives users the information they need quickly and easily.

A redesigned search interface provides a more powerful and flexible way for users to find the information they need. They can search the entire database and pull up all content or sort by medium -- text articles, audio, video, still images, maps, or tables. Alternatively, they can browse an alphabetical list of all articles.

A new feature in this year's products is KnowledgeNavigator(TM), a unique, interactive graphical browser based on Britannica's subject outline that's ideal for creative brainstorming, finding topics to research, and exploring the relationships among different articles and topics in the encyclopedia. It provides another way to see the world of human knowledge, one designed for serendipity, discovery, and making new connections.

Britannica's editors have selected 44 popular topics from different fields of knowledge and created special visual presentations that make those subjects come alive. Topics include rock music, human anatomy, cathedrals, ecosystems and aviation. Visual tours stimulate learning and broaden users' interests by enticing them to explore new topics.

The new Encyclopaedia Britannica software comes in several editions, including:

• Deluxe Edition CD-ROM, for Windows. This edition provides a rich multimedia experience through special features and generous helpings of audio and visual material throughout. The suggested retail price is $59.95.
• Standard Edition CD-ROM, a cross-platform product that may be used on both Windows and Macintosh. This is a basic version of the full Encyclopaedia Britannica that includes all information on one disc, which eliminates disc swapping. It's ideal for people who want high-quality information without many multimedia enhancements, as well as laptop travelers who like to keep the encyclopedia loaded and at the ready. The suggested retail price is $39.95.
• Expanded Edition DVD, in separate Windows and Macintosh versions. The ultimate reference discs for people with DVD capability, both the Windows and Mac editions include more multimedia than any of the other CD-ROM editions, all of it on one DVD disc. Suggested retail price: $69.95.

Encyclopaedia Britannica's new CD-ROMs and DVDs are now available where software is sold, including Best Buy, CompUSA, Staples, Office Depot, Micro Center, Fry's Electronics, and WalMart. They're also available online at the Britannica Store (www.britannica.com), and customers may call 1-800-323-1229 to order.

About Encyclopaedia Britannica
Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc. creates and markets products of the highest quality for reference, education and learning. Many of those products feature content from the Encyclopaedia Britannica, which has been published continuously since 1768 and has long been the standard by which other reference works are judged. Britannica's products include the 32-volume Encyclopaedia Britannica, a revised printing of which will be published this fall; BritannicaSchool ( www.britannicaschool.com ), an integrated suite of teaching and learning tools for the classroom; Britannica.com ( www.britannica.com ), a powerful source of general reference information, available to consumers by subscription, with some features available free; Britannica Online ( www.eb.com ), an advertising-free reference and research service for universities, libraries, and other organizations; and Britannica's multimedia CD-ROMs and DVDs. Britannica makes its headquarters in Chicago and also maintains offices in London, New Delhi, Paris, Seoul, Sydney, Taipei, Tel Aviv, and Tokyo.

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SOURCE Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.