Microsoft Cinemania
Encyclopedia
Microsoft Cinemania. Interactive Movie Guide was a reference and educational application produced by Microsoft
and published annually beginning in 1992. The software was mainly a database of films, in a similar fashion to the Internet Movie Database
, and gave descriptions of the films and who starred in them. Most of this information was not readily accessible before broadband internet.
Cinemania contained professional material by:
The program also included over 2000 still images
for movies and actors, a large amount of sound clips, dialogs and soundtracks, and a smaller selection of full-motion video
clips. As the amount of material increased with each new edition, the quality of media tended to decrease, in order to fit everything on a single CD-ROM.
The last edition of Cinemania was released in 1997. This version was available for Microsoft Windows
PCs
running Windows 95
or Windows NT
with an Intel 80486
processor, or Apple Macintoshes running System 7
. Cinemania 97 also had guided tours from numerous celebrities and online features which made use of an associated MSN
website. It could be updated monthly over the Internet, which brought new movies, new material about older movies and new celebrity tours.
Microsoft
Microsoft Corporation is an American public multinational corporation headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA that develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of products and services predominantly related to computing through its various product divisions...
and published annually beginning in 1992. The software was mainly a database of films, in a similar fashion to the Internet Movie Database
Internet Movie Database
Internet Movie Database is an online database of information related to movies, television shows, actors, production crew personnel, video games and fictional characters featured in visual entertainment media. It is one of the most popular online entertainment destinations, with over 100 million...
, and gave descriptions of the films and who starred in them. Most of this information was not readily accessible before broadband internet.
Cinemania contained professional material by:
- Leonard MaltinLeonard MaltinLeonard Maltin is an American film and animated film critic and historian, author of several mainstream books on cinema, focusing on nostalgic, celebratory narratives.-Personal life:...
: 19,000 reviews from his Movie and Video Guide - Roger EbertRoger EbertRoger Joseph Ebert is an American film critic and screenwriter. He is the first film critic to win a Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.Ebert is known for his film review column and for the television programs Sneak Previews, At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, and Siskel and Ebert and The...
: over 1300 reviews from his Video Companion (starting from the 2nd edition, published as Cinemania '94) - Pauline KaelPauline KaelPauline Kael was an American film critic who wrote for The New Yorker magazine from 1968 to 1991. Earlier in her career, her work appeared in City Lights, McCall's and The New Republic....
: 2500 reviews from her 5001 Nights at the movies book (also starting with Cinemania '94) - BaselineBaselineA baseline is a line that is a base for measurement or for construction; see datum or point of reference .The word baseline may refer to:...
: The Motion Picture Guide and The Encyclopedia of Film - James MonacoJames MonacoJames Monaco is an American film critic, author, publisher, and educator.He has written seven books, including The New Wave : Truffaut, Godard, Chabrol, Rohmer, Rivette , How To Read A Film and American Film Now , and edited four others.He founded Baseline in 1982, an early online database about...
: How to Read a Film - Ephraim KatzEphraim KatzEphraim Katz was a writer, journalist, and filmmaker who devoted his life to gathering the information in his book, The Film Encyclopedia, first published in 1979....
: The Film Encyclopedia
The program also included over 2000 still images
Image
An image is an artifact, for example a two-dimensional picture, that has a similar appearance to some subject—usually a physical object or a person.-Characteristics:...
for movies and actors, a large amount of sound clips, dialogs and soundtracks, and a smaller selection of full-motion video
Video
Video is the technology of electronically capturing, recording, processing, storing, transmitting, and reconstructing a sequence of still images representing scenes in motion.- History :...
clips. As the amount of material increased with each new edition, the quality of media tended to decrease, in order to fit everything on a single CD-ROM.
The last edition of Cinemania was released in 1997. This version was available for Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
PCs
Personal computer
A personal computer is any general-purpose computer whose size, capabilities, and original sales price make it useful for individuals, and which is intended to be operated directly by an end-user with no intervening computer operator...
running Windows 95
Windows 95
Windows 95 is a consumer-oriented graphical user interface-based operating system. It was released on August 24, 1995 by Microsoft, and was a significant progression from the company's previous Windows products...
or Windows NT
Windows NT
Windows NT is a family of operating systems produced by Microsoft, the first version of which was released in July 1993. It was a powerful high-level-language-based, processor-independent, multiprocessing, multiuser operating system with features comparable to Unix. It was intended to complement...
with an Intel 80486
Intel 80486
The Intel 80486 microprocessor was a higher performance follow up on the Intel 80386. Introduced in 1989, it was the first tightly pipelined x86 design as well as the first x86 chip to use more than a million transistors, due to a large on-chip cache and an integrated floating point unit...
processor, or Apple Macintoshes running System 7
System 7 (Macintosh)
System 7 is a single-user graphical user interface-based operating system for Macintosh computers. It was introduced on May 13, 1991 by Apple Computer. It succeeded System 6, and was the main Macintosh operating system until it was succeeded by Mac OS 8 in 1997...
. Cinemania 97 also had guided tours from numerous celebrities and online features which made use of an associated MSN
MSN
MSN is a collection of Internet sites and services provided by Microsoft. The Microsoft Network debuted as an online service and Internet service provider on August 24, 1995, to coincide with the release of the Windows 95 operating system.The range of services offered by MSN has changed since its...
website. It could be updated monthly over the Internet, which brought new movies, new material about older movies and new celebrity tours.