The city of Cape Town libraries are leading the way in education by providing free online access to World Book Online's three encyclopaedic databases, for students from primary school to university level. A library card is all that is needed to access SmartCape - Public Access computers and, by extension, World Book Online.

World Book Online's three encyclopaedic databases contain, video and audio clips, facsimiles of primary source documents, access to several thousand 'classic' e-books, atlases and dictionaries and tools for students and teachers to name but a few features. Browse the links provided for more on the city of Cape Town or visit CBN for other business related articles.

City of Cape Town libraries gives free access to World online's three Encyclopaedic databases
SOURCE: City of Cape Town

The City of Cape Town's 100 libraries have become the first in Africa to give the public free access to World Book Online's three encyclopaedic databases which provide an outstanding learning facility to students from primary school to university level.

"The City's Library & Information Services Department has bought licences to World Book Online, the electronic version of a reference resource that has won international acclaim as an outstanding educational tool," says Naziem Hardy, Library Marketing & Research Officer. "This provides an unprecedented service in Africa, and reduces the digital divide that has such adverse impacts on economic and social development in this country."

World Book Online gives access to three encyclopaedic databases: 1. World Book Kids (for 4-9 year olds), World Book Student (for 9 - 18 year olds) and World Book Advanced (for students 14 years onwards). In addition to the outstanding articles and illustrations that users have become accustomed to in the print versions of these seminal reference works, the online version gives access to a variety of additional features. They include video and audio clips, facsimiles of primary source documents, access to several thousand 'classic' e-books, atlases and dictionaries, links to editor-selected web sites, the ability for users to set up their own research files, to save and print documents in various ways, and to get access to online activities and tools for students and teachers.

"Access to World Book Online will be made available to the citizens of Cape Town via the SmartCape Public Access computers in our libraries. A library card is all that is needed to access SmartCape and, by extension, World Book Online," Hardy said.

At present, the libraries will not be able to provide printing of information from World Book, but users will be able to download their information to a flash drive initially. When printing facilities become available again, the cost of printing information from World Book Online will be 30 cents per page.

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