Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing Deluxe 16[OLD VERSION]

by Riverdeep

Product Features

• Customized training for improving typing speed and accuracy
• 150+ self-paced lessons; 10 fun arcade-style typing games
• Download to a Palm OS handheld device for practicing on the go
• Track progress with detailed feedback and performance analysis
• Bonus training CD with practical tips and hints within Microsoft Word included

Product Details

• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B0001GU7DI
• Item model number: 382166
• Date first available at Amazon.com: February 5, 2004
• Average Customer Review: 3.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,890 in Software (See Top 100 in Software)
  • #64 in Software > Education & Reference > Typing

Product Description

From the Manufacturer

Improving your typing skills doesn’t have to cut into your valuable time. In as little as 15 minutes of practice per day, Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing 16 Deluxe guarantees improvements in speed, accuracy, and rhythm in just two weeks. Featuring customized lessons and an upbeat, stimulating format, Mavis Beacon will get you typing better--and working faster--in no time. A smart investment with lasting rewards.

Features:

• NEW! 20 more custom lessons give you more options to practice with topics of interest and select each lessons settings to suit your needs.
• NEW! 20 new practice lessons, including new HTML documents, expand your options--and with over 150 lessons to choose from we’re confident you’ll find topics that will interest you.
• NEW! Test your speed with Ride the Wave and strive for pinpoint accuracy with Gumball Gambit--two entertaining new games.
• NEW! Enjoy a freshly updated user interface with improved resolution.
• NEW! Experience the improved sound quality of new voiceover text.
• NEW! Bonus CD! Discover countless practical tips and hints within Microsoft Word with this bonus training CD.
• Use the Custom Lesson Designer to create your own practice programs with content that interests you.
• Benefit from the wonders of Adaptive Response Technology, which dynamically adjusts your lesson plan to your age, skill-level, and progress

More Information:

• Trust Mavis Beacon for serious typing instruction designed to suit your professional routine.
• Take a break--but keep on improving!--with 10 fun arcade-style typing games, each designed to improve speed, accuracy, or rhythm.
• Track your progress over time with detailed feedback and performance analysis.
• Choose English or Spanish instruction.
• Customize your learning environment by selecting keyboard layout, music, and sound options, WPM goals, and more.
• Follow ergonomic videos and our interactive guide to ensure that your workspace habits keep you comfortable and healthy.
• Download the program to your Palm OS handheld device for convenient practice on the go (expandable keyboard required).

Don’t let clumsy typing hold you back! Get a competitive edge with razor-sharp typing skills that let you work faster and smarter. With guaranteed results in just 15 minutes per day, Mavis Beacon deserves a standing appointment in your busy schedule.

Product Description

Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing 16 Deluxe offers typing instruction that suits your professional routine. It features 20 new practice lessons, including new HTML documents. With over 150 new topics to choose from, you'll find the topics that interest you, and start boosting your typing skills. Type faster and reduce keyboarding errors in as little as 15 minutes a day! Download lessons to your Palm OS device, to practice on the go Choice of English or Spanish instructions

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

95 of 97 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Not XP compatiable, April 21, 2005

By 

Mike P "panther" (Irvine, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing Deluxe 16[OLD VERSION] (CD-ROM)

Software locked-up Windows XP. On the Broderbund support site the company explains that the software was written for an older version of Windows and is not XP compatiable. They list procedures that may allow the software to work if running under the compatability mode. However, the box says the software was written for XP. If Broderbund's packaging labels on this product are misleading then what about their other products.

If you are running XP use something else.

67 of 70 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Stay away from Broderbund software, July 7, 2005

By 

J11-10000 (WI, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing Deluxe 16[OLD VERSION] (CD-ROM)

I wish I could give them zero stars.

Broderbund pulled support for software I owned only 2 years after it was released.

I was unable to install it because it required internet registration which was no longer supported. To solve the problem, they offered to SELL me a different software title.

They must have thought I was stupid. They expected me to give them more money???

This company has second rate software and third rate customer service. Do not buy anything from them.

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Disappointing, but has some good points, January 25, 2005

By 

Tim - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing Deluxe 16[OLD VERSION] (CD-ROM)

I have never attempted to learn touch-typing before. At first this program was great. It gradually walked me through a few letters with the left hand, then a few on the right, then some untimed practice, a few new letters and so on. Then it stopped giving enough time to practice and I had to be fast at keys I was still trying to learn. It's been exceedingly frustrating.

There is some great stuff here. I'm able to type this review without looking at the keyboard, after only a few hours of training with this course. It looks like I'll be able to learn what I need from this tool, but it is a whole lot more painful than it needs to be. I have to believe that there are better tools out there. I'd recommend a little reasearch...

There are lots of lesson/practice options but navigating the UI and finding what you want is very unintuitive.

The UI is low res and profoundly frustrating. In most modes, most of the menus are greyed out and you can't select them. You often have to exit to the main screen to get where you want to go. In most cases there is no "back" button so exiting to the main screen is frequently required.

In nutshell: This software has some good content. You can definitely learn to type this way. But it is somewhat poorly implemented IMHO, and the UI is profoundly lame.