Encarta Africana 2001 Third Edition

• Platform:   Windows 95 / 98 / NT / 2000
• Media: CD-ROM
• Item Quantity: 1

The program's introduction reflects the ambitious scope of Encarta Africana. The rich harmonies of Zulu choral music swell as a montage flashes across the screen: Nelson Mandela, art from 4000 B.C. and a raised fist are among the images. These pictures are superimposed over a patterned background that, upon closer inspection, is actually a diagram of a slave ship, jam-packed with human cargo.

The program itself is divided into various sections: a history and music timeline; a Civil Rights chronology; a section entitled "Africana on Camera", in which famous blacks discuss different issues; historic sites; an interactive map; a section called "Africa to Americas" that tracks how Africans were dispersed throughout the Americas; virtual tours; and "Topic Treks", a feature that allows users to explore various topics in greater depth. Each of these sections is vast, easy to explore, and filled with articles, photos, sounds, dates and facts. Though the library doesn't serve up pictures or sounds, it does include the complete texts of 160 poems, essays and novels about the experience of being of African descent.

Sound weaves itself throughout this multifaceted program. Progress along a historical timeline, and the soundtrack transitions from spirituals to ragtime to hip-hop as the people and achievements grow closer to present day. Visual vignettes are present throughout as well: the familiar forms of the pyramids, a small swatch of Asante kente cloth, a short film of Whoopi Goldberg discussing race. Encarta's developers adeptly exploit this medium, seamlessly blending sound, visuals and written information to superbly capture the powerful story of African culture. --Anne Erickson

From Children's Software Revue
Now in its second edition, this two CD encyclopedia of African history and culture is rich with text, pictures, audio clips and videos. The format has changed somewhat since last year- you'll notice a smoother, faster opening menu, and many more similarities to the Microsoft Encarta Encyclopedia.

New content includes a video by Colin Powell on the history of African-American service in the US military, slave narratives, poetry and other works written between 1773 and 1918. You also find a fascinating civil rights chronology, footage of six historic sites in Africa from the PBS/BBC television series featuring Henry Louis Gates, Jr.., and (our favorite) a music timeline with an excellent sampling of music.

This version offers closed captioning and text to speech, so that any highlighted text can be read back. While we were impressed with the content, we were able to find a few key holes. We found only a written transcript of Martin Luther King's "I have a dream" speech. We have also heard from European reviewers that the collection of information is biased toward the experience and history of African Americans. Nevertheless, this is a brilliant example of how technology can make historical content jump to life.
Teaches: social studies: African-American history, geography, reference
Age Range: 10-up Copyright © 2000 Children's Software Revue

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