Holiday Gift Guide : Calendar’s little helpers offer suggestions in pop, jazz, holiday, family and classical music, plus videos, computer games and books. (Good news: They’re easy to wrap.) : SOFTWARE : From Babe to Hexen: They’re Sure to Click
Kids who have computers generally spend more time in front of them than watching TV, according to a recent study. This is not surprising--I know adults who devote more time to computers than to meaningful conversation.
For those whose gift list includes one of us computer geeks (no longer strictly a pejorative), here’s a rundown of gift possibilities among recent software releases:
ARTSCREENS, Trident ($27). If you’re tired of screen savers that are swirling blobs of color or jokes that have long ago grown old, this Windows floppy disk offers up a continually changing selection of masterpieces of the Impressionist period.
BABE: A LITTLE PIG GOES A LONG WAY, Sound Source ($29.95). The movie that oinked its way into moviegoers’ hearts becomes an affectionate CD-ROM, with a storybook that includes scenes from the movie, plus games and activities.
HEXEN, id ($44.98). Enough of the arty stuff. If you know someone into action, you can do no better than this most recent DOS CD-ROM from the team that produced the ultimate shoot-’em-up game, Doom.
THE MANHOLE: CD-ROM MASTERPIECE EDITION, Cyan ($29.95). Although not strictly a new product, this charming reworking of the “Alice in Wonderland” story by the genius Miller brothers of Myst fame is available for the first time for Windows users. Two years after it came out as a Mac CD-ROM, it’s still one of the most magical of all digital releases.
POETRY IN MOTION: VOLUME 2, Voyager ($29.95). Documentary filmmaker Ron Mann’s sequel CD-ROM for Mac and Windows presents 24 contemporary poets--including Charles Bukowski, Jim Carroll and Anne Waldman--reading their works, with texts on screen.
STONEKEEP, Interplay ($49.98). Aimed at sword-and-sorcery fans, this effects-laden CD-ROM, which reportedly cost $5 million to produce, provides puzzles to the DOS gamer who sets out to save a medieval kingdom from evil forces.
TOTAL DISTORTION, Pop Rocket ($79.98). This satirical, visually dazzling CD-ROM game for Mac and Windows plunges you into a futuristic music video world, where your goal is to travel to different dimensions on a search for unique sounds and visuals.
THE ULTIMATE FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT, Microsoft ($54.95). Not only does this handsomely designed Mac and Windows CD-ROM give you biographical information about America’s most famous architect, but it also takes you on a digital walking tour through a few of his creations, including the innovative Larkin Building, demolished in 1950.
