Encyclopaedias

For more than two centuries, Encyclopaedia Britannica was the standard-bearer collection of knowledge in the English-speaking world, sold only through its own sales force at a premium price. But now the publication is on the verge of becoming the buggy-whip manufacturer of the Information Age. A shell of its former self, Britannica is taking the risky step--starting today--of posting the entire contents of its 32-volume set on the Internet for free.

If you haven't heard of Baroness Barbe-Julie von Krudener, you've missed a good yarn. She was a child of wealth and privilege in the 19th century Governorate of Livonia. A life of social climbing, dalliance, literary ambition and finally religious conversion led to a Rasputin-like influence over Alexander I, czar of Russia. And that was not all. I discovered the now obscure story of the baroness while paging through the "Jerez-Libe" volume of my 1950 edition of the Encyclopaedia Britannica.

By Robert Channick There have been more than 7 million sets of Encyclopaedia Britannica printed and sold over the years, an indispensable home reference library lining bookshelves, fueling dreams and salvaging homework assignments everywhere. You can look it up. Online. That's because after 244 years, the Chicago-based company is shelving its venerable printed edition in favor of its Web-based version, completing a digital transition and marking the end of one of longest chapters in publishing history.

By Robert Channick There have been more than 7 million sets of Encyclopaedia Britannica printed and sold over the years, an indispensable home reference library lining bookshelves, fueling dreams and salvaging homework assignments everywhere. You can look it up. Online. That's because after 244 years, the Chicago-based company is shelving its venerable printed edition in favor of its Web-based version, completing a digital transition and marking the end of one of longest chapters in publishing history.

Warren E. Preece, 85, a former editor of the Encyclopaedia Britannica who revamped the design of the reference work in the 1970s, died Wednesday in Philadelphia of heart failure, according to the New York Times. According to a 1974 Time magazine article, the editors at Britannica decided that "an alphabetical collection of unrelated articles -- the traditional Britannica format since the first edition in 1771 -- was no longer adequate in an era of explosive growth in human knowledge."

It took six years, 500 translators, 150 scholars and a round table to settle disputes, but the Encyclopaedia Britannica has made its wordy way to China. A 10-volume edition of a concise version of the reference work is rolling off the printing presses in China to become the first non-Marxist reference work allowed in that country. On Tuesday, the feat was hailed in a formal unveiling ceremony at the Library of Congress, where Librarian Daniel J.

Blue Chip Software, which is based in Canoga Park, makes software that teaches business skills. It is the third educational software company acquired by the Chicago encyclopedia publisher. Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.

In 1971, Jerry Seinfeld was still in high school and Shawn Green was not even born. Ehud Olmert was a law student and Israel had not signed a peace treaty with Egypt. No American woman had been ordained as a rabbi and West Hollywood had few Russian Jewish immigrants.

Assuming you're eating regularly and have a place to live, few things are more useful than an encyclopedia. And few encyclopedias can match the authority or scope of the Encyclopaedia Britannica. Now, after extensive Internet testing, Britannica is officially open for business on-line.

If you haven't heard of Baroness Barbe-Julie von Krudener, you've missed a good yarn. She was a child of wealth and privilege in the 19th century Governorate of Livonia. A life of social climbing, dalliance, literary ambition and finally religious conversion led to a Rasputin-like influence over Alexander I, czar of Russia. And that was not all. I discovered the now obscure story of the baroness while paging through the "Jerez-Libe" volume of my 1950 edition of the Encyclopaedia Britannica.

Warren E. Preece, 85, a former editor of the Encyclopaedia Britannica who revamped the design of the reference work in the 1970s, died Wednesday in Philadelphia of heart failure, according to the New York Times. According to a 1974 Time magazine article, the editors at Britannica decided that "an alphabetical collection of unrelated articles -- the traditional Britannica format since the first edition in 1771 -- was no longer adequate in an era of explosive growth in human knowledge."

In 1971, Jerry Seinfeld was still in high school and Shawn Green was not even born. Ehud Olmert was a law student and Israel had not signed a peace treaty with Egypt. No American woman had been ordained as a rabbi and West Hollywood had few Russian Jewish immigrants.

For more than two centuries, Encyclopaedia Britannica was the standard-bearer collection of knowledge in the English-speaking world, sold only through its own sales force at a premium price. But now the publication is on the verge of becoming the buggy-whip manufacturer of the Information Age. A shell of its former self, Britannica is taking the risky step--starting today--of posting the entire contents of its 32-volume set on the Internet for free.

Assuming you're eating regularly and have a place to live, few things are more useful than an encyclopedia. And few encyclopedias can match the authority or scope of the Encyclopaedia Britannica. Now, after extensive Internet testing, Britannica is officially open for business on-line.

It took six years, 500 translators, 150 scholars and a round table to settle disputes, but the Encyclopaedia Britannica has made its wordy way to China. A 10-volume edition of a concise version of the reference work is rolling off the printing presses in China to become the first non-Marxist reference work allowed in that country. On Tuesday, the feat was hailed in a formal unveiling ceremony at the Library of Congress, where Librarian Daniel J.

Blue Chip Software, which is based in Canoga Park, makes software that teaches business skills. It is the third educational software company acquired by the Chicago encyclopedia publisher. Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.