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The hypertext markup language (HTML) used to develop pages for the world wide web also has potential for use in creating some types of multimedia instruction destined for CD-ROMs. After providing a brief overview of HTML, this document presents pros and cons relevant to CD-ROM production. HTML can offer compatibility to both Windows and Macintosh platforms, hypertext capabilities, a high degree of learner control over display characteristics, and a relatively small number of commands to master. On the other hand, HTML is not an authoring tool with the versatility of HyperCard and other similar aids; it is inflexible enough to limit control over interactivity and layout, and complicated enough to cause confusion at many stages in the process. Because HTML is a still-evolving standard, editing and conversion tools, reliable information, and even good advice are often hard to come by. Hardware and software requirements can be substantial, the UNIX-based environment is not always user-friendly, and special characters may not be readily incorporated into an HTML document. These drawbacks specific to HTML itself may be lessened with time, but even if they are surmounted, the designer must still be on guard against making poor design choices, such as making graphics too ambitious and fancy at the expense of informational content, using too many textured backgrounds, or choosing color combinations that hamper readability. (BEW)

1Boy Crusoe

By Allan Eric

Also published as" A Yankee Crusoe" . A 15 year old hard working and studious farm boy finds the lure of adventure on the seas as a merchant seaman more than he can resist. This is his story. " I was born in a little town in the State of Maine, near the close of the Civil War. My boyhood life did not differ materially from that of the average farmer's son in the remote country districts of New England--except, perhaps, that I read more and thought more. Hard work on the rugged soil, two terms each year in the little yellow country schoolhouse, a day's fishing now and then filled the early years of my life full to over-flowing. " What he gets is enough excitement and adventure to overflow his wildest dreams. How he experiences disaster and uses his wits and knowledge to overcome every problem makes for a great read. - Summary by Phil Chenevert