The Dream Wide Web is the environment in which you find yourself: it's a virtual World Wide Web where the Webmaster has their homepage, and it's the game's starting point. One point of note-getting started was somewhat marred by the game's insistence that your computer run in 256 colour mode, a unpromisingly low specification. Despite this the graphics are rather good with something of a "Blade Runner" atmosphere with piles of discarded monitors hiding in the murk, writhing cables and gloomy tunes. Your task is to vanquish the evil Hacker who has subjugated the inhabitants-now to be found living underground as Subterraneans, who can be called upon to help if you post messages on the Newsgroup boards. The Hacker's hench-entities are Getties, a sneaky and vicious bunch who will do anything for a chocolate caramel. Pushing these through the door of your CD-ROM drive is unlikely to help, however. Instead, you must find cards and the card combinations that let you breach the four firewalls (other combinations are antidotes for the viruses that come from the swamp) using the search engine and information centre that are all part of the game. To move around you use a white glove-shaped cursor that lets you push, pull, pick things up and generally navigate. It's a tiny bit like wearing a virtual reality glove, an innovative idea that's easy to learn, helped by on-screen prompts. This is a novel and potentially absorbing game, and if you crack all the firewalls and your telephone bill can stand it, you can choose to play a final online round against the Hacker. [+]

Gentle jungle murmurings overlaid with Robert Guillaume's gleeful voice give the solid, well-conceived typing program, Adventures in Typing with Timon & Pumbaa, an unusual degree of appeal and staying power. While the program will have your child smacking bugs, catching grubs and scampering away from dangerous enemies, children are actually practising the same fundamental skill-based keyboard activities as covered by such adult titles as Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing. Some terrific components of this program include shadows that display which finger should be used to hit each key, a timer that counts the seconds in each two-minute game and the blissful fact that hitting the space bar will fast-forward you past the opening and closing credits. The mysterious, leafy jungle setting is delightfully alive, yet you'll probably need to turn the brightness on your monitor way up to see all the vital buttons hidden in the dark corners of the scene. Be forewarned: to truly conquer touch-typing, you need to drive those keyboard strokes deep into the body's muscular memory. Endless repetition is the only proven method for this. That means that while this program boasts five unique activities (for example, Rafiki gives "lessons" while Timon and Pumbaa play "games"), it is all keyboard practice, again and again. Kids receive encouragement with an enticing visual environment, progress reports, certificates and frequent enthusiastic comments from Guillaume but it is ultimately going to fall upon the parents to see that their children continue with this when the going gets, well, boring. Don't expect your child to see this through without your support. Stay involved and they will. [+]

There was a time when owning an encyclopaedia required not only a fat wallet, but also fat bookshelves to prop up the thick leather-bound volumes. Software programs such as the Encylopaedia Britannica 2003: Student Edition have changed all that while also expanding the range to take account of different levels. This package is designed specifically for the 7-18 age group, and is geared around the sorts of things that children and young adults might learn in their educational programmes-from physics through to historical timelines. It encompasses two complete encyclopaedias: one that is "elementary"-and aimed at the junior age group-and a "student" level which targets the upper end of the age range. Other features include a world atlas that allows you to focus in on an area of particular interest-giving you statistical information about your chosen country-a thesaurus and many Web links. The articles are clear and well written, and perhaps not as dense as those in the (otherwise excellent) companion package, Brittanica 2003: Ultimate Reference Suite DVD and CD. This combination is the standard apparel of the modern electronic encyclopaedia. However, what is most important with the package is that it takes into account current learning methods. The graphics and photo images are absorbing, and there are good video and audio clips. In this age of multimedia learning and low boredom thresholds, these features are surely essential if encyclopaedias are to retain their significance. [+]

This up-to-the-minute Disney software package allows you to create, personalise and print documents using characters from the spectacular film Lilo and Stitch. Children can produce their own placemats, labels for drinking straws, wrapping paper, party bags, photo frames, mobiles, banners, see-through window posters, envelopes, postcards, invitations, playing cards, hats, crowns, calendars, timetables, badges, bookmarks and many more craft projects-30 in total. Children will have lots of fun, with plenty of opportunity to be creative, imaginative and artistic. The images used are high-resolution (130 dpi), and they can be increased or decreased in size, rotated and moved about. Designers can insert and move text, and change the size and colour. Backgrounds can be varied. Designers can also choose from characters from the film, or use their own photographs. The actions and movements are easy to control, via on-screen icons (which make fun noises when clicked on) and though it is a highly graphical package, extensive testing revealed no pixellation or "sticking" between screens. The help pages can be accessed at any point; these are simple, clear and well laid-out, and cover all the important aspects of a project, from where to select images and text, to which paper is suitable when you print it out. The CD-ROM is attractively boxed, and is accompanied by 30 sheets of special craft paper in different shapes, patterns and colours-all you need for your printing. [+]