Cute, Informative and, Best of All, Housebroken
Dogs and computers don’t seem to have much in common, except that they both can be a lot of trouble. But if cold silicon and warm canine are each an important part of your life, the urge to combine them a bit can prove irresistible.
Take the Microsoft CD-ROM “Dogs.” Just about everyone in my office has tried to, just so they could see if the contents of this disk come close to being as alluring as its achingly cute cover. The folks at Microsoft, who are not generally known as warm and fuzzy types, did work against stereotype to come up with a cover featuring the three cutest puppies you could imagine.
Indeed, this CD-ROM is chock-full of wonderful photos and videos of dogs in a variety of situations, from playfully tearing up a newspaper to being put through their paces by the doyenne of dog trainers, Barbara “No-Bad-Dogs” Woodhouse. Besides looking cute, “Dogs” is meant to be an informative guide to the choosing and care of a household canine.
It includes information on hundreds of breeds and features an interactive “Canine Consultant” segment hosted by two dogs spoofing the “car guys” of National Public Radio’s popular “Car Talk” show.
The hosts guide you through a question list on which you fill in such information as the approximate number of hours your dog will have to stay home alone daily, how much exercise you can give your pet and what size animal you prefer. Then, the CD-ROM will search its database to come up with a list of several breeds that might be appropriate for your home. It also suggests that unless you’re looking for show dogs, you will probably be quite happy with a nonpurebred.
“Dogs” also includes entertaining if somewhat slight sections on dogs in history, working dogs and dogs in show business. And it has a couple of built-in screen savers you can install on your computer.
All in all, it’s a nicely organized, attractive CD-ROM that would be a great gift for a dog lover who also has experience house training a computer. Available only in the Windows format, Microsoft’s “Dogs” sells for about $35.
The “Wizard of Dogs” CD-ROM from WildWood Interactive of Canada is a similar product. It offers an especially good section on training tips and its quiz feature forces you to learn several interesting facts about dogs. But this CD-ROM is not nearly as handsomely presented or as entertaining as “Dogs.”
“Wizard of Dogs” can be obtained in a Macintosh or Windows version directly from the company for $49.95 by calling (800) 955-0035.
Finally, coming to stores next month after a long delay because of a complicated distribution situation is “P.A.W.S.” a delightful CD-ROM that was one of the hits of trade shows about a year ago.
An English product based on the book “How Dogs Really Work,” the CD-ROM is an animated dog simulator that shows you life from the canine point of view. You spend the day chasing the neighborhood cat (which taunts you in a variety of ways), barking at the mail carrier and looking for bones around the yard.
Although certainly amusing for adults, P.A.W.S. (“Personal Automated Wagging System”) is aimed at kids, who will probably find it engaging for far longer stretches of time than you. Thoughtfully, the creators of the CD-ROM have provided a way for you to signal with a click that it’s time for the animated canine to return to its doghouse and go night-night.
“P.A.W.S.” is being distributed by Digital Garden (a division of Virgin Records) for a suggested retail price of $34.95 in both Macintosh and Windows formats.
* Cyburbia’s e-mail address is david.colker@latimes.com.
