The purposes of Mosby's CD-Atlas of Ophthalmology are to serve as a general ophthalmology atlas, to provide easy access to images and information about ocular disorders through keywords and searching, and to create customized image collections for lectures and self-assessment. CD-Atlas of Ophthalmology is a CD-ROM-based program compatible with Windows and Macintosh platforms. The software contains a database of approximately 4,000 sixteen-bit, high-quality images in compressed QuickTime format. Details of patient history, examination, investigations, and diagnosis accompany the images. The material contained on this CD-ROM is based on more than 4,000 photographs collected by Ford and Marsh over a twenty-year period at the Western Eye Hospital, London. Ford is chief medical photographer at St. Mary's Hospital, London, and Marsh is a fellow of the Royal College of Ophthalmologists and consultant in Ophthalmology at St. Mary's Hospital and Moorfields Eye Hospital, London.
The images in the CD-Atlas of Ophthalmology are fully indexed using a system of keywords and can be accessed in several ways. The graphic user interface (GUI) software is easy to learn and requires no prior knowledge of Mosby software. Users only need to know how to scroll, point, click, and drag using a mouse in order to use the software. The key image navigation tool is appropriately called the Navigator. With Navigator, users can access images by browsing by disorder or by anatomical site; browsing by keyword is also possible. Images can be displayed using the Browser or Slide Show functions. The Browser function allows users to browse one image at a time; the Slide Show displays a series of related images with or without captions.
In the Browser mode, images can be enlarged and information related to each image can be displayed, including summary information, history and examination information, and diagnosis. The Self Test mode allows users to formulate a diagnosis on a random image and compare it with the authors' diagnosis. Another useful feature of the CD-Atlas of Ophthalmology is the Gallery function. With Gallery, users can create sets of up to twelve images for study or display. Images are moved from the Browser to the Gallery through a simple drag and drop process. The Custom Collection feature allows users to save larger groups of images.
The CD-Atlas of Ophthalmology includes an easy-to-use Find feature. With Find, users locate images by index browsing or through keyword searching. All or part of the retrieved images in a search set can be saved as a Gallery set or as a Custom Collection. Users can save, print, and copy images or text to the clipboard, gallery, or notepad by right-clicking on images or captions. A pop-up menu allows users to choose the destination of the selected image or text. A Notepad feature makes it possible to save general and section-specific notes. There is also a context-sensitive help feature built into the software. Previously browsed images can be bookmarked for quick retrieval. At the end of a session, users have the option of exiting with or without saving a user profile. If the user profile is saved, then search history, bookmarks, and Custom Collections are retained for future use.
The major advantage of the CD-Atlas of Ophthalmology over other formats is that images from the database can be quickly and easily grouped and saved for presentation or teaching purposes. The compact and portable nature of the CD-ROM medium is another major attraction. To have such an extensive collection of high-quality, digitized images on a single CD-ROM disc offers tremendous advantages over Kodachrome slides.
The CD-Atlas of Ophthalmology software is easily installed in a Windows or Macintosh environment. This software was tested on a 233 MHz Pentium Pro with 64 MB RAM, running Windows NT 4.0, Service Pack 5. Mosby makes no statement about compatibility with Windows NT 4.0. A simple install.exe file launches the installation program for Windows users. Mac users need only drag and drop the CD-Atlas of Ophthalmology folder from the CD-ROM to the desktop to install the software. Both Mac and Windows users require QuickTime. A QuickTime installer is included on the CD-ROM. The installer checks for a correct version of QuickTime and can install the version supplied with the program if no version or an older version of QuickTime is detected. It is necessary to keep the CD-Atlas of Ophthalmology disc in the CD-ROM drive while using the software.
One deficiency of the software is that, in Slide Show mode, the captions display directly on top of the image. When the caption window is dragged out of the way, it leaves a trailing series of copies of itself behind. Whether this problem is specific to installations on workstations running Windows NT 4.0 has not been confirmed.
Mosby's CD-Atlas of Ophthalmology is a potentially useful diagnostic resource and teaching tool for ophthalmic professionals, faculty, and residents. It contains an impressive collection of ocular images in an easily navigable format on one CD-ROM, at a reasonable price. The strengths of this software are its portability and compact size, the self-assessment feature, and the ease with which presentations can be created using the software. Its compatibility with Windows and Macintosh platforms make it attractive to both PC and Mac users.