Microsoft Encarta came out in 1993 and was one of the first CD-ROMs I had. It stopped shipping in 2009 on DVD. I recently found a disk and was impressed that it installed just perfectly on my latest Window 10 machine and runs nicely.
Encarta existed in an interesting place between the rise of the internet and computer's ability to deal with (at the time) massive amounts of data. CD-ROMs could bring us 700 MEGABYTES which was unbelievable when compared to the 1.44MB (or even 120KB) floppy disks we were used to. The idea that Encarta was so large that it was 5 CD-ROMs (!) was staggering, even though that's just a few gigs today. Even a $5 USB stick could hold Encarta - twice!
Encarta Encyclopedia
My kids can't possibly intellectualize the scale that data exists in today. We could barely believe that a whole bookshelf of Encyclopedias was now in our pockets. I spent hours and hours just wandering around random articles in Encarta. The scope of knowledge was overwhelming, but accessible. But it was contained - it was bounded. Today, my kids just assume that the sum of all human knowledge is available with a single search or a 'hey Alexa' so the world's mysteries are less mysterious and they become bored by the Paradox of Choice.
Entrata's property management software connects all of your data & processes, allowing you to create better experiences for prospects, residents, & employees. Microsoft Encarta was a digital multimedia encyclopedia published by Microsoft Corporation from 1993 to 2009. Originally sold on CD-ROM or DVD, it was also available on the World Wide Web via an annual subscription, although later articles could also be viewed free online with advertisements.
In a world of 4k streaming video, global wireless, and high-speed everything, there's really no analog to the feeling we got watching the Moon Landing as a video in Encarta - short of watching it live on TV in 1969! For most of us, this was the first time we'd ever seen full-motion video on-demand on a computer in any sort of fidelity - and these are mostly 320x240 or smaller videos!
A generation of us grew up hearing MLK's 'I have a dream' speech inside Microsoft Encarta!
Remember the Encarta 'So, you wanna play some Basketball' Video?
Microsoft Encarta was a digital multimedia encyclopedia published by Microsoft from 1993 to 2009. As of 2008, the complete English version, Encarta Premium, consisted of more than 62,000 articles, numerous photos and illustrations, music clips, videos, interactivities, timelines, maps and atlas, and homework tools, and was available on the Internet by yearly subscription or by purchase on DVD. Aug 31, 2020 Microsoft Encarta (ENCARTA.EXE). Microsoft® Encarta® Premium 2008, the #1 best-selling encyclopedia software brand for the past 8 years., provides more up-to-date content and more engaging multimedia than ever before. 1 people chose this as the best definition of encarta: Microsoft's digital encyc. See the dictionary meaning, pronunciation, and sentence examples.
Amazed by Google Earth? You never saw the globe in Encarta.
You'll be perhaps surprised to hear that the Encarta Timeline works even today on across THREE 4k monitors at nearly 10,000 pixels across! This was a product that was written over 10 years ago and could never have conceived of that many pixels. It works great!
Encharta Is Sitting Outside
Most folks at Microsoft don't realize that Encarta exists and is used TODAY all over the developing world on disconnected or occasionally connected computers. (Perhaps Microsoft could make the final version of Encarta available for a free final download so that we might avoid downloading illegal or malware infested versions?)
What are your fond memories of Encarta? If you're not of the Encarta generation, what's your impression of it? Had you heard or thought of it?
Sponsor: Develop Xamarin applications without difficulty with the latest JetBrains Rider: Xcode integration, JetBrains Xamarin SDK, and manage the required SDKs for Android development, all right from the IDE. Get it today!
About Scott
Scott Hanselman is a former professor, former Chief Architect in finance, now speaker, consultant, father, diabetic, and Microsoft employee. He is a failed stand-up comic, a cornrower, and a book author.
Microsoft Encarta came out in 1993 and was one of the first CD-ROMs I had. It stopped shipping in 2009 on DVD. I recently found a disk and was impressed that it installed just perfectly on my latest Window 10 machine and runs nicely.
Encarta existed in an interesting place between the rise of the internet and computer's ability to deal with (at the time) massive amounts of data. CD-ROMs could bring us 700 MEGABYTES which was unbelievable when compared to the 1.44MB (or even 120KB) floppy disks we were used to. The idea that Encarta was so large that it was 5 CD-ROMs (!) was staggering, even though that's just a few gigs today. Even a $5 USB stick could hold Encarta - twice!
Encarta Encyclopedia
My kids can't possibly intellectualize the scale that data exists in today. We could barely believe that a whole bookshelf of Encyclopedias was now in our pockets. I spent hours and hours just wandering around random articles in Encarta. The scope of knowledge was overwhelming, but accessible. But it was contained - it was bounded. Today, my kids just assume that the sum of all human knowledge is available with a single search or a 'hey Alexa' so the world's mysteries are less mysterious and they become bored by the Paradox of Choice.
Entrata's property management software connects all of your data & processes, allowing you to create better experiences for prospects, residents, & employees. Microsoft Encarta was a digital multimedia encyclopedia published by Microsoft Corporation from 1993 to 2009. Originally sold on CD-ROM or DVD, it was also available on the World Wide Web via an annual subscription, although later articles could also be viewed free online with advertisements.
In a world of 4k streaming video, global wireless, and high-speed everything, there's really no analog to the feeling we got watching the Moon Landing as a video in Encarta - short of watching it live on TV in 1969! For most of us, this was the first time we'd ever seen full-motion video on-demand on a computer in any sort of fidelity - and these are mostly 320x240 or smaller videos!
A generation of us grew up hearing MLK's 'I have a dream' speech inside Microsoft Encarta!
Remember the Encarta 'So, you wanna play some Basketball' Video?
Microsoft Encarta was a digital multimedia encyclopedia published by Microsoft from 1993 to 2009. As of 2008, the complete English version, Encarta Premium, consisted of more than 62,000 articles, numerous photos and illustrations, music clips, videos, interactivities, timelines, maps and atlas, and homework tools, and was available on the Internet by yearly subscription or by purchase on DVD. Aug 31, 2020 Microsoft Encarta (ENCARTA.EXE). Microsoft® Encarta® Premium 2008, the #1 best-selling encyclopedia software brand for the past 8 years., provides more up-to-date content and more engaging multimedia than ever before. 1 people chose this as the best definition of encarta: Microsoft's digital encyc. See the dictionary meaning, pronunciation, and sentence examples.
Amazed by Google Earth? You never saw the globe in Encarta.
You'll be perhaps surprised to hear that the Encarta Timeline works even today on across THREE 4k monitors at nearly 10,000 pixels across! This was a product that was written over 10 years ago and could never have conceived of that many pixels. It works great!
Encharta Is Sitting Outside
Most folks at Microsoft don't realize that Encarta exists and is used TODAY all over the developing world on disconnected or occasionally connected computers. (Perhaps Microsoft could make the final version of Encarta available for a free final download so that we might avoid downloading illegal or malware infested versions?)
What are your fond memories of Encarta? If you're not of the Encarta generation, what's your impression of it? Had you heard or thought of it?
Sponsor: Develop Xamarin applications without difficulty with the latest JetBrains Rider: Xcode integration, JetBrains Xamarin SDK, and manage the required SDKs for Android development, all right from the IDE. Get it today!
About Scott
Scott Hanselman is a former professor, former Chief Architect in finance, now speaker, consultant, father, diabetic, and Microsoft employee. He is a failed stand-up comic, a cornrower, and a book author.
AboutNewsletter
