| Encyclopaedia Britannica 2008 Ultimate Edition (PC DVD ROM) | 
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| From: Focus Multimedia Ltd
Category: Software
List Price: £39.99
Buy New: £19.97
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Avg. Customer Rating:   (5 reviews)
Sales Rank: 67
Platforms: Mac Os X, Windows 2000, Windows Xp, Windows Vista
Media: DVD-ROM
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 7.4 x 5.4 x 0.6
EAN: 5031366020987
ASIN: B000UNRNXO
Release Date: September 24, 2007
Shipping: Eligible for Super Saver Shipping
Availability: Usually dispatched within 24 hours
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Manufacturer's Description
One Research Resource for ALL ages
Ideal for homework, research or for swift access to information, the Encyclopaedia Britannica 2008 Ultimate Edition provides a safe learning environment that is suitable for the whole family, with three age-specific databases.
With more than 100,000 articles, atlases, vivid images, videos, Britannica BrainStormer, magazine articles, timelines, the Classics and much more, your answers are just a few clicks away. - Encyclopaedia Britannica Library - A vast array of detailed articles. Ideal for school and college students, and adults.
- Britannica Student Library - Intermediate level information and homework help tools designed to encourage confident learning. Ideal for students aged 10 to 14.
- Britannica Children's Library - Introductory level articles and fun and easy learning tools for primary school children. Suitable for young students aged 6 to 10.
FREE Britannica Online Subscription WORTH 39.99!- Access Britannica Online on the go
- Articles updated daily
- BBC and New York Times daily newsfeeds
- Additional audio and video
- Discounts to the Britannica shop
- And more!
Register through your software today and enjoy a FREE one year subscription to the award-winning Encyclopaedia Britannica Online. The most comprehensive and accurate reference suite - NEW! THE BRITANNICA WORKSPACE - for easy research organisation. Save articles, images, video and more in one convenient location.
- NEW! BRITANNICA BIOGRAPHIES - insightful biographies of 2,000 Great Minds: astronomers, mathematicians, scientists and others who shaped the world.
- EXCLUSIVE! The Britannica BrainStormer - an interactive way to understand relationships between ideas, subjects, and people.
- EXCLUSIVE! Britannica Classics - notable sources include Marie Curie, Sigmund Freud, Harry Houdini, and Albert Einstein.
- Merriam-Webster Collegiate and Student Dictionaries and Thesauruses provide access to 405,000 definitions, synonyms, and antonyms.
- Rich Multimedia - over 20,000 images and illustrations and over 900 audio and video clips.
- Historical Timelines - watch history unfold with timelines that show the people, events, and discoveries of the past.
- World Atlas - take a tour of the world through more than 2,500 maps and link to articles about countries, economies, cultures, and national statistics.
- Explore - take an exhilarating ride through Videos, World Statistics, Classical Music and more.
- Year in Review - explore notable events in 9,500 articles covering science, politics, sports, and more.
- Relevant content appears daily from "This Day in History", "Biography of the Day" and "Animal of the Day".
- Magazines & Related Websites - selected by Britannica editors for in-depth research.
- Free Monthly Content Updates - for one full year to ensure that you stay current. Internet access and registration required.
The Knowledge Experts
Encyclopaedia Britannicais the world's most famous, most accurate and most authoritative source of reliable reference information, a position it has proudly held since 1768. Through its highly acclaimed print, online and digital editions, Britannica continues to set the standard by which all other reference works are judged. The Encyclopaedia Britannica Library Feel completely confident with this powerful, trusted resource.
The Encyclopaedia Britannica Library is one of the most well-respected information sources in the world. Containing both short and book-length articles on a huge range of subjects. Britannica is ideal for use in schools, for undergraduate study and for all adults as the first source for general reference and home study. This Day in History
Learn about the important events of each day in history. NEW! Great Minds - insightful biographies of 2,000 Great Minds: astronomers, mathematicians, scientists, and intellectuals whose ideas shaped the world since the dawn of civilisation. EXCLUSIVE! Britannica Classics - expand your knowledge with Britannica's most notable and influential sources including Robert Louis Stephenson, Lawrence of Arabia, George Bernard Shaw, John Muir and Bertrand Russell. World Data - this resource features a unique collection of in-depth statistical information of over 200 countries in the world. Classical Music - a large assortment of over 500 classical music selections. Britannica Book of the Year Articles - Britannica annually publishes the Britannica Book of the Year, covering important events and people that changed our world forever. Browse through a year-by-year overview of the last 14 years, from the winners of the Nobel Peace Prize to the biggest box-office hits. Rich Multimedia - thousands of images, audio and video clips that bring subjects to life. Experience the Depth of Britannica - Enhance and personalise your quest for knowledge! Tables - some articles include tables which expand your knowledge of the subject.
Yearbooks - view related Britannica Book of the Year articles.
Index entry - index links are provided for easy cross-referencing.
Media - access videos, photographs and illustrations.
Online Search - find related web articles selected by Britannica editors for further research.
Brainstormer - explore and access Britannica's vast content by clicking on topics. Britannica Student Library
Suitable for students aged 10 to14, the Britannica Student Library is the ideal resource for homework, school projects and essays. Britannica's thorough articles and homework helpdesk support the school curriculum and enable students to develop confident research and learning skills. Explore - Browse over 15,000 articles, plus thousands of images and multimedia files on a variety of fun and interesting subjects. Homework Helpdesk
Access interactive lessons and helpful tools that are designed to make essay writing, and presentation preparation easier. - Spotlights: provides online access to Britannica's archive of spotlights, on a variety of topics ranging from Shakespeare to thunderstorms.
- Nations of the World: ideal for school projects, this informative tool lets you view both simple and in-depth profiles for each nation of the world. Each profile contains that nation's flag, a locator map to help identify its geographical region plus detailed statistics on each nation's demography and economy.
- GeoAnalyzer: create comparative charts and tables with a combination of detailed statistics and powerful analysis and display tools.
- How To Documents: step-by-step instructions for students on how to prepare for different types of written and oral reports. Links to editorially selected websites are also provided for further research.
BOXED OUT:
More Productive Research & Homework Projects
NEW Britannica Workspace stay organised at all times!- Save articles, images, video, and more in one convenient location.
- Create new research projects with your Bookmarks
- Save notes within each project on a virtual notecard.
- Printable notes make your research easier, more productive, and portable.
Parents can feel assured that their children are researching digital and online resources safely and securely without getting lost in cluttered internet search results. Britannica Children's Library
Help young minds aged 6 to 10 find the answers to their many questions by giving them fun and easy learning tools to develop and discover the world around them. The Children's Library is designed to build confidence, promote life-long learning and encourage children to establish vital research skills. Explore
Created for beginner to intermediate readers, this Library contains 2,500 shorter articles, images, and multimedia covering subjects for school and just for fun, from nations of the world to animals and sports. Games and Activities
Access learning activities, study guides, and exercises that will help children to understand concepts taught in the classroom, as well as learn new skills. Video Clips
Watch over 90 exciting videos organised by subject. Interactive Timelines
Trace the history of the people, events, and discoveries of the past. World Atlas
Children can discover more about the world by locating places of interest on Britannica's interactive maps. Homework Helpdesk
Browse through a collection of useful homework resources including a videos, online learning games and activities, and how-to documents that will help develop confident learning and assist school projects. 7 Great Reasons to buy Britannica!
CREDIBLE - articles are written by Nobel laureates, historians, and notable experts.
ACCURATE - information is fact-checked by the Encyclopaedia Britannica editorial staff.
TRUSTED - unlike the Web content is accurate, rational and unbiased.
EFFICIENT - time-saving search results are organised by relevancy, not popularity or paid placement.
CONVENIENT - no downloading or internet connections required.
SAFE - no pornography, pop-up ads, or questionable content.
UP-TO-DATE - stay current with regular updates
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| Customer Reviews:
 Not the same as the printed edition! February 4, 2008
4 out of 6 found this review helpful
I bought this based on having had the print version as a child and the advertising saying that contained everything that is in the print version. If it is I cannot find it. Anything I have looked up has no more than a few paragraphs of information. Disappointed and would not bother with it much now as the few times I have referred to it, it has given little information and not the information I sought
 Why Choose Any Other? January 14, 2008
7 out of 9 found this review helpful
This is a fantastic knowledge-based tool; a permanent fixture of my own personal learning. It contains a children's library, a student's library and an adult's library. From the outset you get the opportunity to choose which one suits the level of your interests. All of the articles are accessible and concise, and with a free years subscription to Britannica encyclopedia, what else can you ask for? Knowing all this, why choose any other?
 Interesting but not much depth January 6, 2008
5 out of 6 found this review helpful
I like Britannica 2008 Ultimate Edition, I bought it for the full price elsewhere. I am a bit disappointed at that. I should have looked on Amazon first :-(
I also have the printed Britannica including Micropedia and Macropedia. Supposedly this contains all the articles from the printed edition, but the printed edition just seeeeeeeeems to have far more depth. I much prefer the printed edition. Most articles on the DVD seem very brief, being only a few paragraphs long at most.
On the other hand this DVD edition makes it very easy indeed to find information, and amazingly fast. I especially love the animated brainstorming tool.
There are "Further Reading" sections for some articles. I wish there were more: if every article listed at least one pointer to a more in depth source it would be so much more valuable to me.
Overall I think I am going to find it useful, if only to quickly identify relating topics to better plan my research.
And Vista Compatible December 31, 2007
13 out of 14 found this review helpful
I was not sure whether to get Britannica or Encarta and having looked at the reviews was hedging on the side of Encarta, however, one thing made the final choice for me. Britannica is the only one which works with Vista. Now that I have used it, I am glad I made this choice. Although Britannica has all the Bells and Whistles of the animations, it can also be used as a serious reference tool. The articles are informative and I have used them in my teaching and research. As the previous reviewer outlines there are a great many of them and I have found everything I have wanted or needed so far and in enough detail to be interesting. The lack of the child friendliness of encarta is not missed as there are no children in my household. I would recommend this to anyone who wants to do background research and I feel it would be excellent for teenagers to use as a starting point for their research or studies. Well worth every penny and Amazon appears to sell it for the best price.
This is a great reference encyclopaedia for adults - it still lacks Encarta's kid friendly approach though October 17, 2007
57 out of 60 found this review helpful
You have to live with an encyclopaedia for a year or two to really get a feel for it's worth, and as Britannica's got 100,000+ articles even then you just scratch the surface. Encyclopaedias were always traditionally bought when older kids were in the household, and kids are frequently still the main users. - provided it gives them what they want, and quickly. Encarta 2007 hasn't got anything like the depth in articles that Encyclopaedia Britannica Ultimate reference suite 2008 has, but I can't imagine many preteen school children wanting a scholarly detailed account of the action of CD4+ lymphocytes when looking up AIDS. Plus Britannica seems to throw up strange search results more often than Encarta, which can be rather off-putting to youngsters with the attention span of a gnat, but quite endearing to adults who don't mind the odd interesting but distracting diversion.
Overall Encarta 2007 is still a lot more kid friendly with fun as well as facts - it's simply far more entertaining than Britannica and ideal as a family reference, plus Britannica 2008's new interface is now more confusing than ever. The UK version of Encarta scores very highly for UK kids as it's geared toward the UK national curriculum and UK spelling - whereas Britannica 2008 ironically still has a strong irritating US bias. In fairness you get as much info about Cadbury as you do on Hershey chocolate [under the title 'The candy industry'] and the dictionary has both US and UK spellings. But search say 'tree' under Britannica's Elementary [children's] Library and you get a rather naff picture of the Kentucky Coffee Tree - which is apparently the state tree of Kentucky as if anyone cares. And you find the same tedious image under 'tree' in the main encyclopaedia. With Encarta 'tree' gives a lot of quality deciduous tree photos and informative text, with the oak, silver birch and lime trees listed first. Encarta still presents the information in a more fun way with better use of multi-media content such as instructional videos, games to aid learning and pretty twirling icon links. You need internet access as well though (Encarta & Britannica use it to update as well as web-link), although that's pretty essential for homework anyway. Encarta even goes as far as integrating itself into Internet Explorer (and I often search it by mistake). With both Encarta and Britannica you can also upgrade to Encarta Premium [on-line] & Britannica Online for free for the 'year' (2008 only).
If you think you might prefer Encarta for your kids you should really have a look at Microsoft Student 2008 that includes the full Encarta reference library. The Student 2008 package adds much more for schoolchildren though (homework templates/ideas, languages, maths and literature guides), so check it out - but you need MS Office as well.
We now have Britannica Reference Suite 2008 as well as Microsoft Student 2007 - Britannica's s greater depth suites well read adults and it has good advice on homework as well, useful if you are helping your kids but still a bit too dry (dull even) for many UK under 16s to use on their own - Britannica is just too worthy for it's own good, and I hope it remains that way as two Encarta's aren't much use. Britannica's better value for adults though, particularly when compared to the 1,500 printed versions (and imagine buying them every year) - although many of Britannica's DVD articles do seem shorter than expected for a massive volumed set. Possibly they are fragmented via links and there is more offered than Encarta. This Britannica 2008 DVD looks quite similar to the 2007 version on first glance, so it's not really a major upgrade to the basic feel of older Britannica Ultimate Editions - but it now needs 2Gb more of your hard drive (which mostly seems to be taken up by slightly naff videos). Encarta and Britannica take 2 Gb and 4Gb of disk space respectively, and both then run without the disk in the CD/DVD drive - pretty essential for most kids who probably couldn't be bothered to look for the DVD case otherwise, plus it speeds up searches and allows a second copy for the laptop.
With both encyclopaedias you really need to sit down with kids under 14 and explain what is being said - and I have to say at these times we vote with the mouse and choose Student 2007 [Encarta] every time. Don't forget checking Children's Encarta in tandem though, as it puts things more simply which is ideal as an extra study aid for KS2 and KS3 (age 9 to 12). Why Encarta for schoolkids?: well search 'evaporation' in Encarta and you get the classic school science text book description with links to 'boiling point', 'condensation' and the visual browser, whereas under Britannica you get a detailed treatise on 'refrigeration'. Elementary Britannica still simply edits down adult information, making little effort to repitch it at the intended primary school level (e.g. under 'Greenhouse effect', images of 'The Mossbauer effect: use in a spectrometer' appear). Plus Encarta looks far far prettier as well.
Unlike some of the internet, Encarta and Britannica are very reliable sources of information. Granted we do all do tend to prefer to search the internet rather than use these encyclopaedias, as there's many great sites out there for kids and adults. However both these encyclopaedias aren't that expensive at all compared to the cost of raising and educating kids, plus they only need updating every few years. Other than teachers/parents, most adults will probably be content with internet searches or require specialist text books instead, although both encyclopaedias are fine for fun reading and the atlases are quite useful. When it comes to DVD encyclopaedias 'There can be only two' - fortunately really as when Britannica was the first to come out on CD/DVD around 1996 my dad paid 250 for it [whereas this vastly superior 2008 edition has cost me just 25].
So along with web searches and adult help, Encarta/Student and Britannica are a useful aid to any kid's education, although only [Children's] Encarta really suites UK preteens. If you have XP and aren't fussed about the latest news and technology though you could pick up the rather similar looking Britannica Ultimate Reference 2006 DVD for a few quid from Amazon resellers or ebay, after all even the original 1768 Britannica gives a reasonable account of the reign of Elizabeth I [and is a fascinating glimpse of the world as seen at that time]. And finally, although using the Britannica 2008 Ultimate Reference suite DVD is nowhere near as satisfying as flicking casually through the pages of an old leather bound encyclopaedia set, it certainly takes up a lot less storage space.
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