Peoples Archive launches DVD-ROMs

Peoples Archive launches DVD-ROMs

Peoples Archive launches its collection of DVD-ROMs today at the 2004 Frankfurt Book Fair. In-depth, detailed, filmed autobiographies offer an extraordinary opportunity to delve into the minds of some of the greatest creators and thinkers of our time. Over 20 titles have already been filmed, from Nobel Prize winning Biologist Sydney Brenner, to Academy award winning cinematographer Billy Williams, with many more being edited and commissioned.

Peoples Archive, launched in May 2004, is the first international online collection that captures autobiographical video of leading figures. The Peoples Archive DVD-ROMs offer all the functionality and high quality of the website, in a highly portable format that can be viewed on a plane, in a classroom, or wherever an internet connection is not readily available. They will become a personal treasure, to be returned to again and again to watch a favourite story, read a transcript, or simply to enjoy the unprecedented chance to see one of the great minds of our time speak as if they were in the room with you.

Delivering this incredible footage on DVD-ROM allows the speaker to take as long as they need to tell, in their own time and their own words, their life story. With running times from 144 minutes to 813 minutes there is a wealth of material to view, ranging from the most personal stories to in-depth analysis of working practices. Quality has not been sacrificed to provide the running time needed to deal with the breadth of material, with the footage delivered in crisp MPEG4 video.

Three main modes of viewing make sifting and searching simple. Sit back and watch the story unfold using the fullscreen playback, pausing the movie when required and setting a bookmark to make it easy to return to the same point in future. Alternatively, browse chronologically - each story is titled and assembled into easily browsable parts. Finally, the fulltext search allows keyword searching through the complete transcripts, with movies matching the search terms readily viewed.

The DVD-ROMs are compatible with both Personal Computers running Windows and with the Apple Macintosh running OSX. Running times vary from disc to disc. The discs will be available to purchase from mid-October and will be priced at £39.95 in the UK, $69.95 in the USA or ?59.95 in the European Union. The software on the disc has simple key commands for viewing and is compatible with PC and Mac-compatible remote controls such as the Keyspan Digital Media Remote. The discs use Apple QuickTime for media playback which is installable from the disc.

The DVD-ROMs can be used in isolation from the subscription-only online Peoples Archive website (http://www.peoplesarchive.com/), or the two can be used together to unlock additional features. Favourites stored on the DVD-ROM can be synchronised with those on the website and vice versa to create a seamless environment for learning or recreation.

Called "utterly enthralling" by a recent Sunday Times article, Peoples Archive "seizes on the new possibilities afforded by high-speed internet access to line up a dream team of dazzling scientific minds, all filmed in pin-sharp video, talking about their lives and work..." (The Sunday Times, August 29 2004).


For more information and to register interest:

Please see Rosalind Arrowsmith-Brown on the Current Science Group stand at Frankfurt Bookfair, hall 4.2, space K421

Or click here to ask us a question.

Press Contacts:

Peoples Archive content enquiries: Tamara Tracz, Director/Producer (tel: +44 (0) 20 7631 9988)

Peoples Archive technical enquiries: Dr Christopher Thorpe, Information Architect (tel: +44(0)20 7631 9184)

Grace Baynes, PR Manager (tel: +44 (0) 20 7631 9988)

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