Travel
into Australias past
Come on a journey with
Captain James Cook on his extraordinary voyage of discovery around the
world
on board the Endeavour. A digital facsimile of the full text of
James
Cooks Endeavour journal is accompanied by J.C.
Beagleholes
complete, indexed transcript. Supplementary text chronicles the
historical
context of the voyage, the people who sailed and those that were met, the
discoveries made, life on board and the ship itself.
Fully interactive, the
CD-ROM
features video footage, an evocative soundtrack and 3-D panoramas to take
you on a virtual tour of the Endeavour replica. Over
1000 images appear including hundreds of artworks and items from the
National
Library's collections. Original botanical and zoological images and
specimens,
charts and maps appear courtesy of the British Library and Natural
History
Museum, Londom.
All in all the
Endeavour
CD-ROM is an exploration of the Endeavour voyage itself. Filled
with
historical facts and accurate scholarship it complements and adds further
value to one of Australias most precious historical documents.
For everyone from armchair
travellers
to secondary school students to researchers, this is an important
reference
tool and a rollicking good story! |
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Reviews
of the Endeavour CD-ROM
Owen
Jeffries, Australian Macworld
(Five star rating ) *
* * * *
I dont think I have seen a better piece of multimedia in all
my years of reviewing software
This CD-ROM shines in its sheer
volume of information and the way in which its creators have made it available
I was absolutely enthralled by the visual and aural splendour of
this CD-ROM and cannot recommend it too highly. Its proof positive
that we can produce multimedia thats as good as or better than anything
available from overseas.
Mark
Butler, Computers, The Australian (Five star rating
) * * * * *
This magnificent example of Australian digital technology
É
is a triumph for the small NLA team that laboured for four years to
produce
it, at every step of the way incorporating new or improved technologies
as they arose, thereby cramming more context around the dic's central
focus: Cooks handwritten journal of his first and most famous
journey
of discovery
The disc represents a perfect way to provide access
to this seminal document in our history, which while it has been in our
possession for 50 years or so, is in such delicate condition it can be
displayed or examined only rarely.
Tony
Kleu, Infotainment, The Sydney Morning Herald
(Five star rating) * * * * *
Endeavour is far more than just a handy facsimile and transcript
of Cooks journalit is a wonderful history lesson that gives
new insight into the hardships of the old explorers and the tragic
misunderstandings
that set the pattern for dispossession and suppression of aboriginal people
in so many lands
CD-ROM treatment brings it to life, with richly
illustrated features about the history of the journal, the purpose of
the voyage, the political background to 18th century expeditions, the
people involved and the consequences of the voyage.
Richard
Gorrell, Hawker College, ACT
I think I can safely recommend this CD as the best of its kind
that I have recently reviewed. It is immaculately presented, eminently
useable, and entirely devoid of those irritating and time consuming
indulgences
that afflict many a self promotional CD
For history teachers or students
perhaps this CDs greatest virtue its provision of both facsimile
and transcribed versions of the journal, but the supplementary material
is also of the highest quality, and it is packaged both conveniently and
logically
The designers have provided easy
access to glossaries and explanatory notes that are also interesting,
never disrupting engagement with the text, and only rarely overlapping
with information provided elsewhere
Here then is a challenge for teachers:
to create dynamic, experiential classroom roles for Endeavour,
and thus make creative use of a rich compendium.
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