Shorter Oxford English Dictionary [CD-ROM]

Oxford University Press (Creator)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 20, 2007 | ISBN-10: 0199231761 | ISBN-13: 978-0199231768 | Edition: 6

The Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on CD-ROM features the full text of the Sixth Edition of the Shorter Oxford English Dictionary, which is a complete update of this unique reference work. Based on the 20-volume Oxford English Dictionary, the "Shorter" contains an incredible one-third of the coverage of the Oxford English Dictionary , is just one-tenth of the size, and includes all words in current English from 1700 to the present day, with senses organized chronologically, plus the vocabulary of Shakespeare, the Bible and other major works in English from before 1700.

The CD-ROM is designed to run on both Windows and Apple Macintosh computers. With an elegant interface providing quick and intutitive searching, it also has advanced searching facilities for in-depth exploration, allowing searching of the definitions, eytmologies, subject, geographical region of use, register, and source language, as well as the ability to limit searches by the date of a word's first recorded usage. There is also an automatic look-up facility; by double-clicking on a word in a document or web page the user can view the entry for that word. Sound recordings enable you to listen to standard British pronunciations for over 100,000 words. In addition it features a crossword puzzle solver and anagram solver.

Supported operating systems: Windows: Intel� Pentium� III 1GHz or faster processor (or equivalent); 512MB of RAM; Microsoft� Windows� Vista, Windows XP, Windows Server 2003, or Widows 2000. Macintosh: PowerPC� G3 500MHz or faster processor, 512MB of RAM or Intel Core Duo 1.83 GHz or faster processor, 512MB of RAM; Mac OS x 10.3.9 or later (Power PC) or MacOS x 10.4 x or 10.5 x (Intel). All platforms: 300MB free hard disk space; monitor with 1024x768 pixels and high colour (16 bits per pixel, i.e. 65,536 colours); CD-ROM drive; 16-bit sound card.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

In hardcover it takes up two thick volumes, but on CD-ROM you get the same 7.5 million words of text (with half a million definitions and 83,000 quotations) on a thin compact disc. The computerized New SOED is a great pleasure. It readily accomplishes the simple task of looking up a word, providing definition, usage, and simple etymology. But the program also searches by anagram and by rhyme, by quotation and by etymology. Perusing the headword group is like flipping the pages. In this fashion, I ran across "nesh" (soft--in consistency, mind, or morals), "convell" (refute completely) and "xoanon" (primitive carved statue of a deity). My Scrabble game is getting less nesh all the time. --Stephanie Gold --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

The contents of this disc match that of its print counterpart of the same name (edited by Lesley Brown, 1997). Having said that, it's hard to believe this is a "shorter" dictionary: there are 7.5 million words on the disc, 500,000 definitions, and 83,000 quotations to illustrate meanings in context. You can approach these words in four ways: simple search (type in your word for a definition), index search (to look for headwords, derivatives, abbreviations, phrases and compound words, uses and references, and other word forms), full-text search (to search all text, etymological text, definitions, or quotations), and special search (to search for anagrams, rhymes, and phonetics). It may take a bit of hunting under those four groups to find a form-specific search that suits, but how remarkable that Oxford has made it possible within just two levels of looking. Nice features include two wildcards (* and ?) that work at the beginning, end, or middle of words, as well as a link feature that lets you use the dictionary within several word processors such as MS Word for Windows 6 and 7, WordPerfect 6.0 and 6.1, and Ami Pro 3.1. Bottom Line: What's extraordinary about this disc is how well it will serve all types of users, from those with the most casual reference question to the scholarly student of the English language. It is highly recommended for all types of libraries and personal collections.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• CD-ROM: 24 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA; 6 edition (September 20, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0199231761
• ISBN-13: 978-0199231768
• Product Dimensions: 5.4 x 0.7 x 7.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (62 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #635,601 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)