Describes a community college's process of choosing good educational software. Elements include the college's own software catalog, statewide vocational curriculum laboratory, catalogs from established publishers, and the state software clearinghouse. The author then discusses software reviews and the questions that are asked concerning preview…

A guide to the use of microcomputer statistical analysis packages for loglinear analysis describes the application of one popular package to a straightforward problem and critically surveys features available in four of the leading packages. Survey findings and suggestions for further development are included. (Author/MSE)

This publication acquaints the user with microcomputer statistical packages and offers a method for evaluation based on a set of criteria that can be adapted to the needs of the user. Several popular packages, typical of those available, are reviewed in detail: (1) Abstat, an easy to use command driven package compatible with the IBM PC or the…

Advantages and disadvantages of word processing as a tool for teaching written self-expression to students with learning disabilities are discussed, research on its effectiveness is examined, available word-processing programs are reviewed, and guidelines for software selection are provided. (Author/MSE)

Examines how a high-tech service-support organization shifted from print to online documentation. Illustrates trade-offs critical to productivity and publications management that can be involved in moving to online documentation in both CD-ROM and Web media. Shows that planning, skepticism about tools, and usability assessment can be critical to…

A discussion of authoring system technology is based on a review of 80 products. Alternative authoring approaches are described; assumptions underlying development of authoring systems and their use are examined; selection procedures and criteria sensitive to varied needs are suggested; and trends in software development, evaluation, marketing,…

Examines and compares five available computer programs intended for self-instruction in Italian, focusing on their attention to learning strategies and personalized learning pace. Content, format, and other features of each are noted. General issues discussed include overall organization, cultural content, sequencing, exercise types, and ancillary…

The value and role of concordancers (simple computer programs that can quickly analyze electronic texts to find occurrences of a given word, part of a word, or phrase and display it within its immediate context) in secondary school English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) teaching are examined. First, their use in higher education is discussed,…

This manual contains evaluations of 196 instructional products listed in Virginia's Adult Basic Education Curricula Resource Catalog. It is intended as a convenient reference manual for making informed decisions concerning materials for adult learners in adult basic education, English-as-a-Second-Language instruction, and general educational…