Path: utzoo!utgpu!watmath!att!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!cs.utexas.edu!uunet!microsoft!t-jondu
From: t-jondu@microsoft.UUCP (Jonathan Dubman)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga
Subject: Re: Kids (Designasaurus)
Keywords: Personal opinion
Message-ID: <7366@microsoft.UUCP>
Date: 15 Aug 89 01:22:08 GMT
References: <21076@cup.portal.com> <89219.124243UH2@PSUVM>
Reply-To: t-jondu@microsoft.UUCP (Jonathan Dubman)
Organization: Microsoft Corp., Redmond WA
Lines: 50

In article <89219.124243UH2@PSUVM> UH2@PSUVM.BITNET (Lee Sailer) writes:
>I fooled with Designasaurus for a half hour or so.  It seems fairly
>well done.  You can assemble a dino from spare parts and print it out...

> Designasaurus seemed really dumb *to me*.  But I bet that
> little kids would like it.

Your concerns are correct.  Designasaurus is a piece of crap, IMHO.  Take it
from me, I was contracted to write the spec for the port from the IIgs.
I've taught kids for four years and I have a kid brother, so I think I'm
qualified to say that Designasaurus is a waste of money, a marketing sham
designed to cash in on a fad.

>The "game" involves leading a dino through 5 eras, eating appropriate food,
>avoiding being eaten, and trying not to starve.  It is a very simple minded
>simulation.  Ther "eras" are more or less populated with appropriate
>plants and terrain, and the educational part is that the kids learn what
>plants and terrain go together, I guess.

Very funny- I take it that was meant to be humorous.  Kids learn what plants
and terrain go together.  They learn that when they look out the window.
This product has zero educational value and a interest lifespan of about
ten minutes, which is only a little longer than it takes to boot on the
IIgs version.

If you want specific complaints, I'll tell you, but for now I won't bore you.

CONSTRUCTIVE PART: The best educational programs for real young kids are
arcade games and real simple hypercard-like programs that play music, show
pictures, etc., or allow you to doodle.  Teach some eye-hand coordination,
show that computers can be fun, teach cause and effect.  The software should
be engaging, interactive.  Adults often underestimate kids' ability.  Heck,
I was using UNIX at age 8, and my kid brother beat my all time score high
score on an arcade game at age two and a half.

I saw a posting in comp.sys.mac recently that claimed that MacWrite and
MacPaint are the two greatest educational programs for the Mac.  This
guy's kid is nine and writes little stories with illustrations.  I think
he knows where it's at, and a lot of unsuspecting parents are getting gyped
buying so-called educational software.

This is an old interest of mine- 
See January 1984 Softalk for my letter debunking Fraction Fever from Spinnaker.
Discusses actual kid who thought it was a piece of junk...

Disclaimer:  I have no gripes with Brittanica, they paid me.
             And of course this has nothing to do with Microsoft, my current
             employer.

Jonathan Dubman