3dGameMan …to the point news and reviews !

Got a girlfriend who’s not wired? Get Women’s Wire Web Directory, a comprehensive book and CD-ROM filled with tons of informative Web sites with women in mind. This book won’t sit on anyone’s coffee table for long!

The 486-page book is no lightweight, either! It includes 15 chapters: Getting Started (a quickie intro on the World Wide Web, including Net culture and safety issues); sites on Mind and Body; Careers and Networking; Entertainment and Leisure (fun stuff); News, Politics and the Law (a little heavy, but informative!); Family (The REVIEW ZONE was somehow missed…maybe next edition?); Relationships (cyber-dating 101); Fashion and Beauty; Education; Personal Finance and Business (for all of you pencil-pushers!); Habitat (look out Martha Stewart!); Technology and the Internet (my favorite chapter!); Shopping (virtual malls, anyone?); Community and Social Service; and Search and Reference. (continue reading…)

My 8-year-old devoured this massive book (over 700 pages long) in six days. That’s without giving up his daily doses of GameBoy, Nintendo and Pokemon cartoons! Tim was quick to point out that he found a mistake in the book. On page 685, Moody’s name is mentioned instead of Crouch. Very observant reader, wouldn’t you say?

It’s certainly a good week’s worth of reading and a “must have” in my favorite library of books. This book should also be a welcome addition at home and in the classroom. (continue reading…)

Despite this book’s title, which sounds like one of those ‘get rich quick’ schemes, Making Money in Technical Writing (”Turn your writing skills into $100,000 a year”) is a good reference book for writers (and prospective writers) who want the skinny on the do’s and don’ts of tech writing.

Written by Peter Kent, a tech writer turned computer guru, Making Money in Technical Writing contains 25 chapters–some more tedious than others. Although its editing leaves much to be desired (information is repeated in several places) and you’ll likely squint at the text’s tiny type, this 280 page book is loaded with trade tips from Kent, who’s obviously been in the trenches and is in the know on technical writing. (continue reading…)

If you’re an iMac or G3 user and you’re still using the original Apple USB round mouse, we need to talk. For less than 15 bucks, you can say adios to your iMac or G3’s hockey puck mouse, once and for all. You know, just do it!Enter Contour Design’s UniTrap, a three-piece snap-on shell which will transform a round mouse into a more ergonomic creature.

Amazingly, the $14.99 budget-minded package includes all five yummy iMac flavors, which are actually interchangeable buttons which fit nicely into a translucent shell.You can go a little wild and experiment with all of the flavors– mix and match, if you’d like. (continue reading…)

Say goodbye to Carpel Tunnel Syndrome when you meet up with Wacom’s 4″ x 5″ electronic graphics tablet. Drawing, shading, tracing and coloring have never been easier on your wrists. The ArtPad  also mimics a traditional mouse and mousepad, so if you haven’t parted company with your mouse, here’s your chance!

The ArtPad  has a feather-light Erasing UltraPen which weighs in at a mere 0.36 ounce! Since the cordless UltraPen requires no batteries, the pressure sensitive pen is lighter than its competitors’ pens. The erasing action works like the eraser on a pencil — just turn the pen upside down (with compatible software) and you’re ready to erase. Even the eraser is pressure-sensitive!! (continue reading…)

Aimed at young cowboys and cowgirls ages 5 through 9, this multi-level educational CD-ROM scores big stars for quality, educational content. With over 1,000 randomly generated questions, it also rates high in my book for replayability.

When it comes to teaching kids practical sense in how to easily identify coins, this software is unique! Excellent animation and sharp, clear images help kindergarteners recognize coins by sizes, colors, edges and by their pictures. There are entertaining matching and counting games, as well. (continue reading…)

Peppermint Forest is a seek and find game where kids search for hidden animals terrified by Lord Licorice’s thunderstorm. The kids spent only a minute or two playing this activity.

The Gingerbread Orchard is a counting and sorting game where children move plums into the correct baskets before the gummy worm eats the plums. Kids sort between small, medium and large sizes. Again, four-year-old Timmy wanted out of this game! (continue reading…)

Looking for a “low tech” way to build an effective web site? Would a web site be beneficial or detrimental to your small business? Do you really need Java to have a “cool” web site? Enter Peter Kent and his no-nonsense book, Poor Richard’s Web Site. Here, you’ll get answers to many questions about building web sites. You’ll also get a reality check as Kent dishes out the plain and simple facts.

After you estabilish whether you really need a web site, you’ll learn where to put it (your web site, that is); how to find a web host; and practically everything you’ve ever wanted to know about domain names.From there, you’ll explore web site design; a quickie intro to html; and how to create effective web sites including interaction (creating discussion or chat groups, installing CGI scripts, etc.), on-line orders, autoresponding and distributing information by e-mail. (continue reading…)