WEBPOINTERS : FREE KIDS' WEB SITES REALLY PAY FOR PARENTS.Byline: Joe Kilsheimer The Orlando Sentinel The Orlando Sentinel is the primary newspaper of the Orlando, Florida region. It was founded in 1876 and is currently in its 131st year of publication. The Sentinel is owned by Tribune Company and is overseen by the Chicago Tribune. If you are like most parents I know, hardly a day goes by without your little cherubs doing something that separates you from your money. I haven't done a scientific study, but lately I've become convinced that the four most common words at my house are ``Dad, can I have . . . ?'' And now from cyberspace Coined by William Gibson in his 1984 novel "Neuromancer," it is a futuristic computer network that people use by plugging their minds into it! The term now refers to the Internet or to the online or digital world in general. See Internet and virtual reality. Contrast with meatspace. comes the next potential hole in the parental wallet: The Daily Blast, a new Web site from Walt Disney Noun 1. Walt Disney - United States film maker who pioneered animated cartoons and created such characters as Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck; founded Disneyland (1901-1966) Disney, Walter Elias Disney Co. Burbank-based Disney, which will launch the site later this month, plans to charge $4.95 a month, or $39.95 annually, for what it says will be 60 minutes of new content every day. There's little doubt that the site will be produced with Disney's customary wit, charm and attention to detail. And, at $39.95 a year, the site will cost about the same as a good CD-ROM CD-ROM: see compact disc. CD-ROM in full compact disc read-only memory Type of computer storage medium that is read optically (e.g., by a laser). game, which kids typically play for three months and then forget. The Daily Blast is meant to entertain them for much longer than that. Still - and I don't mean to sound like Mr. Scrooge - aren't there a lot of kid-oriented sites out there that children can surf for free? Why, yes there are, Ebenezer. Here is a sampling: Noodle Kidoodle: This site is run by a chain of educational-toy stores that operate mostly in the Northeast and Midwest. You can tell that this chain is different from other retailers, because its motto for store visitors is ``Please Touch.'' Address: http://www.noodlekidoodle.com PBS PBS in full Public Broadcasting Service Private, nonprofit U.S. corporation of public television stations. PBS provides its member stations, which are supported by public funds and private contributions rather than by commercials, with educational, cultural, for Kids: If your kids are still tickled by Sesame Street's Elmo, take them here. This site features an interactive story with Elmo visiting Old McDonald's Farm. Your kids get to decide things such as: Should Elmo visit the horse or the cow? And that, as you know, is heavy-duty decision-making for a 4-year-old. Address: http://www.pbs.org/kids Bonus.com: Here's a site that will entertain kids for hours. Produced by Appaloosa Interactive Appaloosa Interactive (formerly Novotrade International) is a corporation, founded in 1983 in Hungary, that produced numerous console games during the 1980's and 90's. , a company that produces educational software, this site contains more than 500 games, puzzles and educational activities for kids. Bonus.com site is among the Internet's most technologically advanced sites for kids. If you have the 3.0 versions of Netscape Navigator An earlier Web browser for Windows, Macintosh and X Windows from Netscape that provided secure transmission over the Internet. Soon after its introduction in 1994, Navigator, or just "Netscape," as it was commonly called, quickly became the leading browser on the Web. or Internet Explorer Microsoft's Web browser, which comes with Windows starting with Windows 98. Commonly called "IE," versions for Mac and Unix are also available. Internet Explorer is the most widely used Web browser on the market. It has also been the browser engine in AOL's Internet access software. , the site will automatically generate a new window as soon as you arrive at the site. Within that window, kids can go only where Bonus.com will let them. Address: http://www.bonus.com Kids.com: Packed with dozens of interactive computer games and mazes, this site also lets kids find e-mail pals through an electronic bulletin board. And in the best tradition of game arcades, Kids.com also lets kids build up ``KidsKash'' points that they can redeem for trinkets in a Loot Locker. Address: http://www.kids.com GusTown: If you have a high-speed modem and a Pentium computer, this site could be a lot of fun. It's full of Shockwave-animated puzzles and games with titles such as ``Create a Creature,'' ``Haunted Memory Mansion'' and ``Ice Going.'' Address: http://www.gustown.com The Yuckiest Site on the Internet: This is a site for the less-squeamish among your kids. When you call up this site on your screen, you get two choices: Worm World or Cockroach cockroach or roach, name applied to approximately 3,500 species of flat-bodied, oval insects forming the order Blattodea. Cockroaches have long antennae, long legs adapted to running, and a flat extension of the upper body wall that conceals the World. Both selections lead you to humorously written - but academically serious - pages covering all types of worms and cockroaches cockroaches insects which may carry Salmonella spp. in their gut and play a part in the spread of the disease. . Topics only kids could love. Address: http://www.nj.comyucky |
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