JuniorNet 2.0
© 1999 JuniorNet
This subscription based CD-ROM/Internet combination pack is designed for children aged three to twelve and features ad-free interactive content from The Bear and the Big Blue House, Highlights for Children, Ranger Rick, Sports Illustrated for Kids, Weekly Reader, Zillions. There is also a Knowledge Center where children can search an atlas, dictionary, or world almanac by keyword. There is no direct access to the rest of the Internet, insuring that kids don't mistakenly end up at another web site. The bad news is that there is very little evidence that you're even on the Internet. Installation is easy; you can register up to three children, each with his or her own password, but be prepared to enter a credit card number, which will be automatically billed at $9.95 each month (special deals are available). In the setup screen, you can type in email addresses from which your child can receive email. So, for example, you can make it possible for your child to get and reply to mail from Grandma and Uncle Chris. But it is not possible for your child to get unsolicited messages from anyone not on the list. If your child gets a message, it shows up when he or she signs in. There are thirty six rather shallow activities, the best of which are a word search puzzle from Highlights, a food sorting game from Weekly Reader and a picture caption game from Sports Illustrated in which JuniorNet members contribute captions. Some of the activities seem very shallow like Zillions' toy testing lab, with comments from only two children and the Weekly Reader news room, where the same "hot" news story appears repeatedly. We tested the service with America Online using a both 33.6 and 56K modems during off peak hours, and found the transitions between activities to be SLOOOOOWWW, taking as long as two minutes! Needless to say, our testers opted for more interactive ways to spend their time. The good news is that once the activity is loaded, it runs at an acceptable speed. Another key strength is that the content is refreshingly ad free, and kids get the chance to participate in polls and to read the thoughts and ideas of other children. But then again, the content we find in better designed CD-ROMs is also ad free, and offers more depth and control in the activities. JuniorNet is a glimpse at the future of children's interactive media. Whether the content and features are worth $120 per year is another large question, especially considering the amount of software you can buy with the same money, and that fact that you tie up the families phone and Internet service. This service would be worth it if (a) you had a fast modem (b) it was about 1/2 the price and (c) there were more interactive components.
$9.95, Win 95, 98 (CD-ROM)
Teaches: reading, science, history, animals, music, language