June 16, 1999

FREE SOFTWARE AND DOWNLOADS:
* Jigsaws Galore 3.0
* Mind Games: The MS Puzzle Collection
* Episode I: The Phantom Menace

LINKS FOR KIDS:
* StarChild: A Learning Center for Young Astronomers
* Africans in America
* You Can: Answers to everything kids want to know!

LINKS FOR PARENTS:
* SOAR: The Searchable Online Archive of Recipes
* Origami
* A Guide to Homemade Paper

LINKS FOR THE FAMILY:
* Cybersurfari Treasure Hunt!
* How to Love Your Dog: A Kid's Guide to Dog Care
* Sun Gun: A build-it-yourself family project

SECOND TIME AROUND:
* BUGS! The Screen Saver

FREE STUFF FOR YOUR COMPUTER...

* JIGSAWS GALORE 3.0
Create and put together your very own jigsaw puzzles.

* MIND GAMES: THE MS PUZZLE COLLECTION
Another great game package from the guys at Microsoft. The trial version contains the first two levels of Finty Flush™, five levels of Spring Weekend, and two levels of Rat Poker. There are also sneak previews of some of the higher levels. The collection features games created by Alexey Pajitnov, the creator of Tetris. The games come with a handy boss key if you suddenly need to look busy ;-)

* EPISODE I: THE PHANTOM MENACE
The moment you've been waiting for! The good folks at download.com have an exclusive game demo waiting for you. It's big (33.8 MB), and features a fully-functioning first level from the LucasArts release. (There are ten levels in all but you'll have to buy the game to explore the other nine.) Phantom Menace is more than a shoot 'em up game -- you've got to use your mind to solve the dozens of puzzles scattered about.

For more free software, visit the FEN Shareware Center.
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LINKS FOR KIDS...

* STARCHILD: A Learning Center for Young Astronomers
Life, the universe, and all that. Just about all a child will need to know about astronomy and space exploration can be found on NASA's StarChild.

* AFRICANS IN AMERICA: America's journey through slavery is presented in four parts. For each era, you'll find a historical
narrative, a resource bank of images, documents, stories, biographies, and commentaries.

* YOU CAN: Answers to your questions!
Get answers to all the stuff they don't teach you in school, including: Why do feet smell? Why is poop brown? Why do cats cough up hairballs? Why do I hear weird sounds at night?
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LINKS FOR PARENTS...

* SOAR: The Searchable Online Archive of Recipes
Win over the hearts and taste buds of picky eaters without ever buying another cookbook! Click on over to SOAR, where you'll find more than 56,000 online recipes for everything from homemade dog biscuits and pet treats (57 recipes) to potato salad (65 in all). Yum!

* ORIGAMI: It's pronounced or-i-GA-me and it's the Japanese art of paper folding. Here are tips and tricks to help you learn this craft -- then you can teach your kids!

* A GUIDE TO HOMEMADE PAPER: While we're on the subject of paper...
how about making your own? Give it a try -- it only takes about an hour to assemble and process the materials, and an afternoon (3+ hours) to dry. Making your own paper is fun, easy, and a delightful project for the weekends.
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LINKS FOR THE FAMILY...

* CYBERSURFARI TREASURE HUNT!
On your mark, get set, SURF! The summer version of this world-famous treasure hunt launches June 21st, 1999, at 3:00 PM Eastern. It's FREE to play, and can provide your family with hundreds of nifty destinations to explore and scads of prizes to win. Prizes include cash (yeah $$!!), cool t-shirts, mousepads, and certificates. Players read clues and explore these hand-picked safe sites in search of bits of knowledge and treasure codes. And since we're one of the sites mentioned, we admit to being a tad partial to this game ;-)

* HOW TO LOVE YOUR DOG: A Kid's Guide to Dog Care
Teaching kids to become responsible pet owners can be a challenge. Here's a site that can help. Some of the new tricks your kids can teach an old dog include: Shake hands, turn-around, crawl, speak, and  take a bow!

* SUN GUN: A build-it-yourself family project
Daytime astronomy? Here's how. Free plans and instructions to build a simple but very effective low-cost solarscope system. If you're halfway handy with basic tools, you can build it yourself using PVC piping, flower planter, vacuum-cleaner belts, and a few mail order parts. Parts list and suggested suppliers are included. The finished design is safe, highly portable, and ideal
for group sunspot viewing. Safe for children and adults of all ages.

SECOND TIME AROUND:

* BUGS! SCREEN SAVER: If real bugs give you the creeps, there's always the digital alternative. Watch "artificial life" life evolve on your screen saver as bugs and plants battle for survival (freeware).
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