QuizMaster – a new educational program from ArchieSoft

How much wood would a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood? Please select Eh?, b, iii or 4.

Leeds-based Jon Robinson, operating under the name ArchieSoft, has released a new educational program called QuizMaster. Priced at £20, the software is currently available via eBay, and will be sent to customers by email, with the option of a CD version for an additional £2 (UK) or £4 (airmail) fee. At the time of the announcement, Jon was hoping the software would also be available via R-Comp’s !Store – so that may very well be the case by now.

QuizMaster presents a series of multiple-choice questions, much like can be found in parts of GCSE-type examinations, but with the bonus that the results are returned immediately, and Jon says that it’s “not only a way of testing a user’s existing knowledge, but also of stimulating interest in new subjects, and providing keywords for use in internet searches” and is “ideal for activity centres, Sunday Schools, home educators and also general entertainment.”

The program was the last educational title produced for RISC OS by Xavier Educational Software, which was originally formed in the late 1980s and developed software for the BBC Micro, with a particular focus on titles that would complement the Bangor Dyslexia Unit (now Miles Dyslexia Centre) syllabus. Xavier’s core software was eventually adapted from the BBC versions to run on RISC OS machines but, over time, RISC OS was left behind and the software was rewritten for Windows computers.

The software has been updated from the version provided by Xavier, with various improvements including better quality graphics, using iconised directories for quizzes, and presenting the results on the final screen. The software supports Drawfile, Sprite and JPEG graphics, and ARMadeus sound files.

Five quizzes are supplied, covering British Steam, Nature, British Birds, Ancient Egyptians and World Foodstuffs, and further quizzes are planned which will be provided free of charge to existing customers.

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