Microsoft Encarta 2006 Reference Library review

Like Britannica, Microsoft's Encarta installs three different encyclopedias - one for adults, one for older school pupils and one for younger kids.

All three encyclopedias are flawlessly presented. They look like well-designed Web sites: easy on the eye and simple to use. Resources such as videos, audio clicks and excerpts from original texts are built seamlessly into the articles. This is done far better in Encarta than in Britannica. As a result, Encarta isn't just a more pleasant application to use, it's easier to use too. This much snappier, design-lead presentation is good for everyone, but particularly for younger readers who often need an accessible way into a subject.

As well as successfully integrating lots of different types of content, Encarta also works impressively well with the Web. Every time that you search for something on Google, or in any search toolbar, Encarta will automatically look your search string up at the same time. If it has information that's relevant it will ask you if you want to see it. Encarta will also refer you to vetted sites on the World Wide Web that have information that could be useful to you.

In previous editions, Encarta's articles have tended to be shorter than Britannica's. In general, this is still the case. Encarta, for instance, only devotes a mere 307 words to the Germanic languages, whereas Britannica manages over 3,000 - going into far greater detail, even on the dead Visigothic language.

Encarta is, however, catching up. Its article on genetics was impressively detailed, at almost 8,000 words. This is far longer than the equivalent entry in Britannica. Even when Encarta isn't as detailed as Britannica, it still gets to the core of the subject.

For the most part, however, Britannica's articles are still noticeably longer, presented in more detail and better suited to serious adult research. Encarta will get your research started; Britannica, in many if not all subjects, will help you finish it.

So why on earth are we recommending Encarta over Britannica? Well, firstly it's a qualified recommendation. If you're buying for yourself or for an older school pupil who you know can get to grips with long, complicated chunks of text, then Britannica is the better package. If, however, you want a quick and easy reference program that uses your PC's multimedia capabilities to the full, get Encarta. Its articles are easy to read and navigate, and integration of audio, video and animated media into the main entry makes Encarta easier and more fun to use. This makes it much more useful for younger pupils and anyone who doesn't have time to plough through screeds of text just to get to the point. Senior school pupils, students and anyone doing serious research will benefit from Britannic, everyone else should buy Encarta.