Review #2 to be published in CARTOGRAPHICA

Return to Contents NARRATIVE OF A SECOND EXPEDITION TO THE SHORES OF THE POLAR SEA, IN THE YEARS 1825, 1826 AND 1827 by John Franklin. Dartmouth, N.S. : CD-Academia Book Co., c1999. 1 computer optical disc : ill., maps ; 4_ in., in container 25 x 19 cm + 1 user's manual : ill. ; 58 p. (Arctic discovery : vol. 2). Cover title: Franklin's second expedition to the shores of the Polar Sea. London : 1828. ISBN 1-894127-04-8 : $59.95. NARRATIVE OF THE ARCTIC LAND EXPEDITION TO THE MOUTH OF THE GREAT FISH RIVER AND ALONG THE SHORES OF THE ARCTIC OCEAN IN THE YEARS 1833, 1834 AND 1835 / by Captain Back. Dartmouth, N.S. : CD- Academia Book Co., c1999. 1 computer optical disc : ill., maps ; 4_ in., in container 25 x 19 cm + 1 user's manual : ill. ; 58 p. (Arctic discovery : vol. 3). Cover title: Back's narrative of the Arctic Land Expedition to the mouth of the Great Fish River. London, 1838. ISBN 1-894127-07-2 : $39.95. The function of early journals of Arctic exploration has changed significantly over the past century. Originally published as records of discovery, and as inspirational examples of national purpose, most readers now see them as important sources on the history and geography of northern Canadian peoples. Those who use the journals for this purpose make up the large majority of contemporary readers, while a smaller group turns to these accounts for the aesthetic pleasure of sharing an experience of discovery with the readers of an earlier generation. The CD publication format may not be favoured by such readers, but for the large majority of students of northern history this format provides a splendid improvement in the availability, convenience, and usefulness of the documents. My qualifications for reviewing the product rest on my distinctly average experience and expertise in using computers and CDs. Following an approach to software which I probably share with many readers, I did not consult the user's manual, yet had no difficulty in opening the publications, finding my way around, and discovering the usefulness of the various features. I found these features to work equally well on both PC and Mac-OS equipment, in both cases using models which are current but not the most recent or most powerful available (the publisher suggests as minimum requirements either a 486 PC or Mac 68020 processor running at 100 Mhz). On opening one of these books the reader is presented with a facsimile of the title- page, and a series of choices: one may select text contents, images, maps, or on-screen help. A choice of "Contents" takes one to the Table of Contents, which can be paged through using the arrow-buttons on the keyboard. A finger-pointing hand cursor allows one to select either a chapter heading or any of the small descriptive sub-headings with which authors of the time organized their work. A click on one of these headings takes the reader directly to the relevant page, from which one can leaf in either direction or return to the Table of Contents. Illustrations are keyed to their placement in the text, and a click on an illustration key rapidly opens a full-screen image which is as detailed as the original. The rapidity of display is obtained by using low-resolution scanning, but a set of images which have been scanned at a resolution which provides excellent reproduction when printed is also included. The original maps are divided into a series of appropriately-sized rectangles which allows them to be examined in detail. No longer does one need a magnifying glass when searching nineteenth century maps or illustrations, as all can be enlarged electronically to any useful scale. Maps, illustrations or text can be printed directly from the screen, and produce legible and attractive paper copies. Extracting a quotation involves simply selecting the text required, copying it, and pasting it to a word processing document. If the reader wishes to search for references to a person, place or phrase, simply typing it and requesting a search produces a list of occurrences, and takes the reader to each one selected. A "sounds-like" feature allows searches for items which we are not sure how to spell, and my tests show that it works well as long as one can guess the first and second letter correctly. As can be seen from the above description, I am extremely impressed by the effectiveness and ease of use of this product. CD-Academia should be congratulated for having produced such a fine contribution to scholarship at such an affordable price, and should be encouraged to make more exploration journals available in this extremely useful format. Readers may consult their web-site (http://www.cd-books.com/ ) for further information, and for recent publications in their series. Robert McGhee Curator of Arctic Archaeology Canadian Museum of Civilization Return to Top ...