Publishers of software have become as frustrating as book publishers in as much as they advertise their wares months before they're ready for the market. Teachers who have used that very successful program, Fletcher's Castle, have been itching to get their children in front of this suite of programs from the same software house for many months. I feel sure they will consider the wait worthwhile when they see what has been produced, and the publishers forgiven as they've revised parts of the programs and documentation as a result of advice offered by the Jorvik Viking Centre in York.

In the first program in the suite, The Raiders, the Thin (Council) decides to send another raiding party to England. The User Group is the leader of that expedition which prepares for the voyage, crosses the North Sea, chooses the landing site, sets up camp and goes on raids. Important decisions have to be made right from the start - how the space available on each of the boats is to be allocated for food, equipment required for the camp and horses.

The handbook introduces the group to runic stones, on which are drawn maps of the possible routes and known coastal areas. Using this information the route is selected and they head for a landing area chosen from four previous visits. The route is shown on a well-drawn map, and the journey depicted by a small boat moving along the selected route. The screen also displays information on weather conditions and any "happenings" on the journey. While the children were able to follow the screen display without any difficulty, if they are to make a "log" of their journey - to help with the writing of later sagas, perhaps - it would be helpful if they were in greater control of the journey, e.g. press "C", the "control key", to go on to the next day's journey.

When land is sighted a larger scale map of the coastline and settlements is shown. If the chosen coastal area is not shown the group can sail north or south by scrolling the map. The camp is established - more decisions to be made on order of priority for tasks to be undertaken, which can have considerable effect on the party's success - and scouting parties are sent out to find suitable sites to attack and plunder. the number of raids permitted depends on resources and time available.

On returning home, the success of the party is assessed by the Thing, and judgement is passed on the group's leadership qualities. Poor decisions can result in banishment - guess who managed to achieve this first!

Journey's End allows the children to take on the role of the chief of a group of Vikings who land to settle in England. They have to decide whether to select the site or type of settlement to build first and justify their choice. A map of the area is displayed which builds up slowly to emphasise particular features, and a house symbol is moved around the map using the cursor keys until the site selected is reached. Options on a temporary shelter for the winter or a permanent village are offered followed by what jobs need to be done. Decisions and more decisions to be made and justified!

Other people arrive in the estuary - who are they; why did they choose different sites? Raiders approach and their success or otherwise depends on the groups choice of position and the defences already built. Finally, a decision has to be made on whether to remain independent or join with another Viking group.

The Move is set in the summer of AD 861. A group of Vikings have set up a temporary settlement and now have to decide whether to develop their present site or to move inland away from the windy coast and poor land which is upsetting the farmers in the community. The group of three or four are required to take different roles in the move, and state their reasons for wishing to move or not. If the group decide to move, a scouting party is sent out, relations are built up with the Saxons and others. After a few years they have to develop the wealth of the village by building a bridge, a small port or a water mill, but where, and which one first? The group are left with two problems: what to call the town, and how to get boats up the river beyond the weir.

In the last program in the sequence, the raiders have moved inland, and it looks at the whole community through the eyes of The Jarl - the king's man, the most important person in the town who must lead and care for it and its people. The group have to take on this role for a day. Their duties will depend on the season selected. They might include the court - cases of theft, fraud and assault, the farm - the pros and cons of setting up a vineyard, or setting dock tolls for the year.

The introduction to the programs' handbook states, "These programs use an historical context to develop empathy children playing the roles of people involved in such experiences will have a greater understanding of other people's lives in different times, different places and different cultures. They will also become more aware of their own identity and come to terms with their own responses to a variety of situations. Through such activities children will come to understand that there is more than one interpretation of the evidence." This is a far cry from the history lessons - reading a book around the class - that I remember as a boy! Those who see decision making as an important part of the education process will welcome these programs.

I particularly liked the way decisions were made after the children were asked to order their priorities, which often affected the outcome of any action and the "lives" of others. The programs promoted considerable discussion within the group and between groups when they talked over their particular decisions and reasons for taking them. The aims of each program were clearly stated and the children made to realise the consequences of their actions in a realistic way. The last two programs required quite a sophisticated level of reasoning and social maturity, which makes the suite suitable for children over a range of ages and ability.

The screen displays were pleasing, with good use of coloured text and graphics - more colour in the maps as used in Fletcher's Castle would have been a bonus! The documentation was somewhat repetitive - one has to remember that these programs are available individually - but included some useful background information and recording sheets. Information on material available from the Jorvik Centre would have been helpful.

I have only one gripe about these programs, which is one I've made in these columns before. How can software houses justify asking an additional £3.00 for the disc version of an individual program?

If we're going to develop the "thinking" children that society needs, programs of this quality will be of considerable benefit. More please - and don't forget the young age groups!