Vicarious Announces Our Times Multimedia Encyclopedia of the 20th Century

Live and Relive the 20th Century with new CD-ROM from Vicarious

REDWOOD CITY, Calif., October 23, 1995 - Vicarious, Inc. today announced
the release of Our Times Multimedia Encyclopedia of the 20th Century. This
comprehensive, single source encyclopedia brings the 20th century to life
through captivating essays and articles, dramatic images and engaging
narration by James Earl Jones. With more than 52,000 articles; 2,500
images, charts, maps and graphs; 8 million words; 120 minutes of
narration; 65,000 hypertext links and video documentaries, Our Times is an
ideal reference resource for students, teachers, history buffs and
families with a thirst for knowledge.

"In today's climate of information overload people desire to go beyond just
facts and figures," says Greg Gretsch, president of Vicarious. "We created
Our Times to provide the framework for a richer understanding of
information through breadth and depth of content in addition to an
intuitive interface and compelling multimedia features."

Based on the best selling book Our Times from Turner Publishing, the Our
Times Multimedia Encyclopedia of the 20th Century CD-ROM draws on the
expertise of an acclaimed editorial staff to deliver 20th century life in
captivating articles, essays, images and video documentaries. Contributing
writers include Sir Arthur C. Clarke, Stephen Jay Gould, Sir Stephen
Spender and Mary Gordon. Dramatic paintings and photographs by renowned
visual artists such as Ansel Adams, Pablo Picasso, Henry Matisse, Andy
Warhol and Annie Liebowitz help tell the story of the remarkable 20th
century. For added breadth, and for information on topics within and
beyond the 20th century, the Our Times CD-ROM also includes the complete
Columbia Encyclopedia, Fifth Edition, on the same disc.

"Our Times is a powerful reference tool that could easily revolutionize how
we think and learn about history," commented Marion Reich, 6th grade
social studies teacher and parent of two teenage boys from Salt Lake City,
Utah. "Finally, a product that makes learning about history fun. My job as
both a parent and teacher has gotten a lot easier!"

Personalized Journey

Users can control their "walk through the 20th century" using the
intuitive, visually interactive timeline, which allows users to access
information chronologically by century, decade and year. From each decade
screen users can peruse original essays on the ideas, trends and events
that had the greatest impact on our world and our lives; view a graphic
portrayal of the state of the world at the start of each decade; listen to
three narrative tours by James Earl Jones; watch the video documentary;
and see dramatic images representing each year of the decade.

From each year screen the user can access over 2000 cross-referenced
entries detailing the most important events of that year and "A Moment
From" article that provides a cultural excerpt about that year. The
original essays and chronological entries, dramatic images and multitude
of 20th century facts are presented in a highly approachable and
captivating format.

The depth of 20th century content is supported by the breadth of
information found in the complete Columbia Encyclopedia, Fifth Edition.
"We included the Columbia Encyclopedia in addition to the Our Times
Encyclopedia in response to parents' resounding request for a rich
reference tool with a multitude of cross-references," commented Greg
Gretsch on his decision to include both encyclopedias on the same CD-ROM.

Users can search for information using Boolean search by source (Our Times
Encyclopedia or The Columbia Encyclopedia), by category - Science &
Technology, Arts and Literature, Economics and Business, etc. - by
timeframe (decade or year) and by key words or phrases. A special Bookmark
feature enables users to mark articles, images, video and other pieces of
information for later reference. The Bookmark feature greatly simplifies
research, report writing and collaborative work, as do copy, paste, print
and export capabilities.

Lest anyone still fear that history might be weighty or boring, Our Times
also includes entertaining and informative "Fast Facts," that include
yearly highlights of births, deaths, art, culture, Nobel prize winners,
politics, business and other events and accomplishments from around the
world.

Our Times was voted Teacher's Choice by a panel of teachers at the
Children's Multimedia Expo, and was also a finalist for the Children's
Choice "Would Most Like To Have AT My School" at the same conference.

Our Times Multimedia Encyclopedia of the 20th Century is an essential
reference tool for the student, an adventure for the history buff and a
family experience that spans generations. Everyone will enjoy this
beautifully crafted and highly readable multimedia encyclopedia.

Price, Availability and System Requirements

The Our Times Multimedia Encyclopedia of the 20th Century will be available
October 23, 1995 at a suggested retail price of $69.95. Customers can
purchase the CD-ROM through retail software chains, bookstores and
computer superstores or by calling Vicarious at (800) 465-6543 x 900.

Our Times works on both Macintosh and Windows/MPC hardware. Macintosh users
must have System 7.1 or later, a 13" display with 256 colors and a minimum
of 8 MB RAM. PC users need a 486 CPU, Microsoft Windows 3.1 (also
compatible with Windows 95), 8 MB RAM and a SoundBlaster-compatible sound
card.

Vicarious, Inc., of Redwood City, Calif., develops and publishes
interactive reference and information products for distribution via CD-ROM
and the Internet. In business since 1993, Vicarious has also designed,
developed and published the CNN Time Capsule 1993 and 1994, multimedia
yearbooks with more than 90 minutes of video documentaries on the top
stories of each year; The New York Time Capsule, a multimedia yearbook
covering 1994 in New York including fashion, finance and entertainment;
and NFL's Greatest Plays, a definitive guide to the top plays in NFL
history.

The company's award winning consumer products are the result of its
expertise in multimedia product development and its partnerships with
content providers such as CNN, The New York Times, U.S. News & World
Report and Turner Publishing.

Vicarious, Inc.
Three Lagoon Drive, Suite 300
Redwood City, CA 94065
(415) 610-8300 phone
(415) 610-8302 fax
http://www.vicarious.com
 
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