At the AETT Conference
at Plymouth in 1988, Jacquetta Megarry in a keynote address postulated that
the combination of Hypertext and CD-ROM (then both very new) would provide a
powerful learning tool. The Employment Department funded this project to
test this thesis. Such combination is now commonplace.
Europe in the Round was
an information resource for anyone interested in European education and
training or in working in Europe. As a self-contained reference library it
was designed for easy operation by users ranging from primary school
children to adults.
The Employment
Department funded the development of the resource specifically to support
students studying SCOTVEC modules leading to a qualification in European
Studies. Initially written in Hypercard, the system was also implemented in
Toolbook and the Employment Department also funded the development of a full
colour version.
A total of 75 users
participated in two rounds of structured field testing completing a two page
feedback form and supplying extensive comments. The project reports provide
excellent guidelines for the human computer interface design.
The software was greeted
with great enthusiasm among users ranging fro 6 to 86 years of age, most
with little of no computer experience. It was therefore launched in 1991 as
a commercial product for the Apple Macintosh and later that year for IBM
PCs.
