Action for Libraries
New Public Library Edition Added
to BCR's Britannica Online Offerings
By Laura Chittivej
Britannica Online has released a new edition of its popular encyclopedia: Britannica Online Public Library Edition (www.library.eb.com/).
The publisher also has renamed and updated its award-winning Britannica Online edition to Britannica Online Academic Edition
(www.search.eb.com/) and has updated both its Britannica Online School Edition (www.school.eb.com/) and Enciclopedia Universal en
Español (www.spanish.eb.com/).
The new and revised offerings have been released just in time for BCR's annual renewal/enrollment period. The renewal deadline is May 31. (Current BCR pricing will be maintained. For details, see page 3.)
Renewing and enrolling subscribers are not required to sign up for the edition of the encyclopedia targeted toward their category of library, but may subscribe to whichever edition of Britannica they desire.
Some features included in the new and revised editions are provided below:
- Britannica Online Public Library Edition — Designed for the needs of public libraries, this new edition includes two unique home pages, one for children and another for adults. Three full encyclopedias are provided: Encyclopædia Britannica, Compton's by Britannica and Britannica Elementary Encyclopedia.
- Britannica Online Academic Edition — Updated with new content and a more user-friendly interface, this edition addresses the needs of college and university libraries. The site includes World Data Analyst, Gateway to the Classics and Merriam- Webster's Dictionary of Quotations.
- Britannica Online School Edition — Learning Material activities are correlated to each state's curriculum standards. Expanded offerings of full-text magazine articles, current news headlines from Student News Net and a biography browse have been added.
- Encyclopedia Universal en Español — This Spanish-language encyclopedia has been expanded with a new Quick-Click Dictionary that brings up not only the word's definition but also translates the word into English. It will soon be complemented by a special Spanish-language "kids" section for lower reading levels.
Britannica, BCR Hold Prices for 2006-2007
BCR, with the cooperation of Britannica, will maintain pricing for the 2006-2007 year at the current levels for all of Britannica's add-
on databases. The only price increases will be the minimum prices for Britannica Online and Britannica Online School Edition, which will
rise to $295 from $250.
BCR's Britannica group subscription year is June 1 through May 31. Current BCR Britannica group subscribing libraries should plan to renew their subscriptions before the May 31 deadline. Timely renewal of orders will ensure uninterrupted access for users. The online renewal form will be available the first week of April.
A free trial is available through May 31. Try all Britannica online products by submitting BCR's online trial request form. To renew your current Britannica subscription, obtain a trial or purchase Britannica print titles, please go to www.bcr.org/. Choose Reference Databases and then Britannica.
For questions, contact BCR's Laura Chittivej (lchittiv@bcr.org).