(All listings excerpted with permission from The Frugal Youth Cybrarian, by Calvin Ross, published by ALA Editions. Copyright American Library Association 1997. To order, call 1-800-545-2433 and press 7. ISBN0-8389-0694-X)

File Extraction Tools

UnStuffIt
unstuffit3.07.sea.hqx
This self-extracting archive contains UnStuffIt 3.0.7. UnStuffIt joins segments and expands archives from StuffIt versions 1.5.1 to 3.0.7. It can also expand StuffIt SpaceSaver files without SpaceSaver being present. Can be used to extract most BinHex files such as .hqx files popular on the Internet. Requires any Mac. Requires 90k hard disk space. Freeware. Aladdin Systems.

Antiviral Programs

Disinfectant
disinfectant-37.hqx
This top-rated antiviral program is already in use on thousands of Macs throughout the world. With it, the user can scan and disinfect both floppy disks and hard disks. If a virus is discovered, the suspect disk can be repaired in most cases. The Disinfectant protection INIT file installed in the system or extensions folder will stay on the alert for viruses. As with any antiviral program, watch for and download the latest release or update in order to keep up with emerging viruses. Works on any Mac with System 6 or higher. Requires 345k hard disk space. Freeware. Northwestern University.

VirusScan
Click here to Visit McAfee download page
This program supports all Macintosh computers with an extensive array of features to keep your system immune from viruses. It offers easy initiation of background protection and automated scanning during system startup and automatically captures viruses as programs are executed for immediate virus elimination. VirusScan scans all system areas to provide extensive security including local and network drives, CD-ROMs, floppies, and any mounted storage device, as well as files and folders. In the vast majority of cases, it accurately cleans virus infections and restores systems to their virus-free states. It can discover viruses within driver-level compressed files such as StuffIt, Compact Pro, and DiskDoubler. As with any antiviral program, watch for and download the latest release or update in order to keep up with emerging viruses. Requires any Mac with System 6.0.5 or higher. Requires two megabytes hard disk space. $65. McAfee.

Computer Security

Abracadabra
abracadabra-15.hqx
This small program may save system administrators, lab coordinators, library media specialists, and teachers a lot of grief! Its simple task is to show/hide the system folder. With a single click, it’s hidden; with another, it’s back. A perfect remedy for clever students with prying eyes or mischievous intent. Requires any Mac. Requires 29k hard disk space. $7. Nightfall Software.

Library Cataloging

CS Library
cs-library-110.hqx
A program for the control of small libraries. It is a full-featured program, set up to print and use bar-coded patron ID cards and book bar-code labels for check-in/check-out of materials. There are listings for both patrons and books, and the book catalog entries have the ability to contain and display PICT files for each book. There are search functions, as well as a number of report functions. This seems to have a substantial number of the bells and whistles that a fully functioning library would need, including password requirements to control access to librarians’ operations. Requires any Mac System 7.0 or better. Requires 1.28 megabytes hard disk space. $49. CopperHead Software.

Teaching Aids

Eagle GradeBook
eagle-gradebook-31c.hqx
This program was written to help teachers track a class of students. It can record attendance, record assignments and grades, compute student grades, and produce reports. A spreadsheet is used as the primary method of entering and maintaining data. Grades may be entered using a letter grade, points, percents, pass/fail, or plus, check, and minus. You may also define your own letter grades. Calculation of grades may use a straight average, even average, or weighted average. The spreadsheet looks very much like a standard print-form teachers’ gradebook, making it an easier and more intuitive operation to enter the data. This program has been used by teachers around the world from kindergarten to college level. It can very successfully streamline the grading and class-tracking process. Requires any Mac with one megabyte of memory. Requires 575k hard disk space. Freeware, but the author would like a postcard sent to him. Rex Evans.

MathHomework 3.1
mathhomework-3.4.sit.hqx
This is one fabulous program. It allows students to enter and do their math homework with a program which takes them step-by-step through each operation, whether it be multidigit multiplication, division, addition, or subtraction of whole numbers, fractions, or mixed numerals. When a mistake is entered, the program takes the student back until the correct number is entered. The final product can be a neat, finished, printable assignment to hand in. Though it may be impractical for all students in a class or school to have this program at home, it can be made available in labs or right in the classroom for practice. The program is not a calculator; the student must perform the computations; but, by taking students step-by-step through each operation, it thoroughly teaches them how to do each kind of problem. Not only can students complete assignments or drills, but teachers can also use the program to create worksheets that can be printed and completed in longhand or solved with the program itself. This is one very complete program for assisting the teaching of almost all K–8 math skills. Valuable as a standard or remedial teaching tool. Requires any Mac. Requires 485k hard disk space. Operates for a two-week evaluation period. $24; site license $79. Steve Smith.

Word Find
wordfind1.41.sit.hqx
A program which easily generates and prints word-search game sheets. Grid size, word direction, and fonts are easily selected and configured. Hot tip: Set keyboard to caps lock in order to enter word list. This is a useful tool for generating custom word-search sheets for rainy day activities or spelling reinforcement. Effective for grades 1–6. Requires any Mac with System 7.0 and at least a twelve-inch monitor. Requires 149k hard disk space. Freeware. Brett C. Helbig.

Writing Tools and Resources

Online English Handbook
onlineenglishhandbook1.21.cpt.hqx
This is a marvelous resource tool. OEH is a concise, menu-driven grammar handbook. Click on the appropriate topic and concerns are answered in clear, concise language. Students could have this program open while they are writing compositions in computer labs; when a grammatical problem arises they could have instant access to a solution. Teachers could use the handbook as a resource for developing units on different areas of grammar and compositional skills. Librarians might find it a useful resource for answering questions concerning grammar. Foreign students will find it helpful in understanding English grammatical structure and rules. Recommended for fifth grade through college. Requires any Mac with at least a twelve-inch screen. Requires 185k hard disk space. $10. Tom Haglund.

Typing

Al Bunny’s Typing Class
al-bunnys-typing-class-14c.hqx
A colorful, graphics-based, game-style typing tutor. It may have special value in that children not ordinarily drawn to enhancing their keyboard skills would find this game friendly and inviting. Multileveled and fully configurable. Grades 4–8 (older kids might be turned off by the bunny theme). Requires any Mac with a large color monitor. Requires 790k hard disk space. $10. SUNMOON USA.

Mathematics

Dinosaur Rock Math
d.r.math-1.3.sit.hqx
A well-designed suite of math games which teach number order and the four arithmetic operations. Of special interest is a game called “Eliminator,” in which the child must construct equations that will eliminate numbers from the screen. Great for developing math reasoning skills. This program is very intuitive and has excellent graphics. K–4. Requires 2.34 megabytes hard disk space. Requires color Mac with System 7.0 or better. $15; site license $25. Saratoga Software.

Alphabet, Phonics, Spelling, and Reading

Alphabet Pro 2.0
alphabet-pro-2.0.sit.hqx
A very useful tool for teaching the alphabet, phonics, and spelling. The user can record words and letters in his or her own voice, then the program quizzes the student on location of letters in words and spells them aloud. The user interface is well designed, intuitive, and encouraging as it uses animation to drive the point home. Due to its user-input format, the program can be suited to a teacher’s exact needs and lesson plans. Because sounds are instructor-created, this program can be used with foreign languages. Ideal for K–2, but useful for remedial and learning disability programs. The demo program allows only four-word lists. Requires Sound Manager, Mac System 6.7 to 7.5, two to three megabytes of memory, and recording capabilities. Requires 600k hard disk space to start, but this will grow fast as sound database files are created by the user. $20. David Bagno.

Letter Land
letter_land.sea.hqx
A colorful and entertaining program to teach the alphabet and numbers to preschoolers and kindergartners. The program has wonderful graphics and sound, and is easy to use. It asks “What picture begins with the letter…” and successful answers are rewarded with a game in which children learn their numbers while trying to snare varying numbers of graphics of the last presented word in a butterfly net. It’s loads of fun and very effective. Most any Mac should be able to run it. Requires 1.56 megabytes of hard disk space. $8. Keith Productions.

Geography

GeoGenius U.S.A.
geogenius-usa.sit.hqx
Like its worldly sister program, this one provides a colorful and friendly interface for learning about the United States. It has four modes: name the states, capitals, time zones, and regions. Each offers a quiz mode. In addition, “Fast Facts” allows the student to click on a state to learn its nickname, motto, flower, and song, and view a thumbnail sketch of its history. This program is an excellent resource for any purpose where the U.S.A. is concerned. Grades 3–12. Requires a Mac with at least a fourteen-inch monitor and three free megabytes of memory. Requires 978k hard disk space. $15. LittleFingers Software.

Astronomy

MPjAstro
mpj-astro-15.hqx
MPjAstro is a very handy planetarium program which can show you the day or night sky at any hour at any location from 2000 B.C. to 6000 A.D. It is very easily configurable and allows star and planet location, as well as labeling of many important celestial objects without obscuring the view. It includes various charts to help you locate objects and even lists the major meteor showers with peak dates and rates per hour. This program can be a very good introduction to the science of astronomy. It comes with very good documentation. K–12. Requires any Mac (color better). Requires 2.1 megabytes hard disk space. $25. Microprojects.

Desktop Publishing

DOCMaker
DOCMaker v4.8.1.sit
This application creates stand-alone, self-running documents. It features scrollable and resizable windows, graphics, varied text styles and fonts, and full printing capability. You may create up to sixty separate 32k chapters within each document, with a table of contents and a “find” feature. Full-color graphics can be added. Pages and fonts can be in various colors. “Hot pictures” act like buttons within the documents for playing sounds, showing Quick Time movies, sending Apple Events, and jumping to other applications. These stand-alone documents are self-executing and can be distributed to other computers which do not have DOCMaker loaded. This is a full-featured electronic book creator, presentation creator, or highly versatile word processor plus. It can be used by students (fifth grade and up), teachers, librarians, and administrators. The program is available in many languages, including Japanese. Requires any color Mac with System 7.0 and four megabytes of memory. Requires 1.15 megabytes of hard disk space. $25. Green Mountain Software.

ImageViewer
www.imageviewer.com
The graphic arts world is full of image cataloging systems, ranging in price up to hundreds of dollars. ImageViewer is an excellent image browser that comes in under the price bar and offers most functions that casual users need. Indeed, the only significant thing missing from ImageViewer is a wider range of file types: it only reads PICT, GIF, JPEG and TIFF images. Other than that, however, it's remarkably feature-complete. Images can appear in four formats: one at a time in full size; as small or large thumbnails in a gallery; and as a text list of file names. Additional palettes display information such as color tables, file size, and user-created comments and search keywords. Requires any Macintosh compatible computer, System 7.1 or greater, QuickTime, QuickTime PowerPlug (PPC Only), and eight megabytes of free RAM. $19.95. Plato Grande Software.

MattPaint
mattpaint-1.9.4.sit.hqx
A full-functioned color paint program. You’ll find all the bells and whistles of a standard paint program with easily accessible tools and palette. It has a built-in icon editor. Can read and produce PICT documents. Requires a color Mac with Color Quick Draw. Requires 211k hard disk space. $20. Matt Battey.

Resumés

Resumé
Resume.hqx
Resumé is a suite of "smart" Word documents that generate multiple copies of a resume for job applications including a covering letter addressed to the organization you are responding to. It uses the form letters feature (print merge option on the File menu) of Word to produce multiple resumes which can be different for each response. Optimized for StyleWriters, so you may have to change margins for other printers. Requires Microsoft Word. $20.

Word Processing

Scorpio
scorpio-101p.hqx
Scorpio is a full-featured word-processing program with an easy-to-use, powerful tool bar. It features background paper color, color text, color pictures, and color printing. Registered version comes with full spell-checker. All formatting tools are very intuitive. This is one of the easiest and best shareware word processors. Requires any Mac (color needed for color work). Requires 353k hard disk space. Promotional version is free; full-featured version is $19.95. Abbot Systems.

Spreadsheet Applications

Mariner
mariner-2.06.sit.hqx
A spreadsheet program with the following features: split-window interface, variable row and column size, individual cell formatting (size, font, style), command bar menu shortcuts, tear-off tool and pattern menus, multiple undo, values calculated using extended precision, data hot-linked to charts, importable/exportable work-sheets (ASCII text), basic chart types able to be combined in layers, and MultiFinder support (large worksheets can be recalculated in the background). This is a fully functional spreadsheet program that may be used by teachers, librarians, or administrators who require spreadsheet capabilities, or it may be used by students from grades 5 to 12. Requires any Mac. Requires 298k hard disk space. $40. William Paar.