The World (Almanac) in the Palm of Your Hands Town Compass Puts The World Almanac and Book of Facts on the Palm OS

The details of Town Compass' creation of the 2002 World Almanac databases for Palm OS handhelds... For the first time in its extensive history of publishing, The World Almanac has published much of its 1,000 page reference source for viewing on handhelds.

The World (PRWEB) September 11, 2002
Town Compass Puts The World Almanac and Book of Facts on the Palm OS

             SEATTLE, Washington-September 9, 2002-For the first time in its extensive history of publishing, The World Almanac has published much of its 1,000-page reference source for viewing on handhelds. Town Compass, LLC has created the 2002 World Almanac databases for Palm OS handhelds to help keep mobile information consumers informed about important facts and data.

            We've accomplished what nobody else can do, what everyone in the industry thought was impossible," said Eric Makus, President and co-founder of Town Compass. Our DataViewer technology electronically delivers the most popular reference book in the world to a 3" by 3" screen. Weve compressed most of The World Almanac and Book of Facts into this tiny electronic device and still offer an extremely positive user experience. Weve provided full text and color graphics - long lists, charts, graphs, pictures, footnotes-complex reference content that you can quickly navigate and access in 3 taps."

            We've empowered millions of handheld computer users around the globe by delivering ready access to The World Almanac and it's a tangible contribution to the information revolution," said Robert Usibelli, Town Compass Chairman and co-founder. We're proud of our people and our technology for being able to make it happen, but we're especially proud to partner with the universally recognized industry leader, The World Almanac and Book of Facts, and take them to the next level of reference content delivery. An educated world is a better place. I'd like to think that Town Compass and The World Almanac are helping make a better world."

Makus said that The World Almanac was able to develop a mobile solution without devoting significant internal resources to the process. World Almanac licensed existing Town Compass DataViewer technology to quickly transform the Book of Facts from a large, static, printed reference publication, into a dynamic handheld information directory, easily referenced by users around the globe.

With close to one million copies sold annually, The World Almanac has been on The New York Times bestseller list for years" said Rajeev Puri, Chief Technology Officer of World Almanac's parent company, WRC Media. "We partnered with Town Compass to deliver The World Almanac on the Palm devices to extend the reach of this product. We looked at many possible partners for delivering The World Almanac on handheld devices. Town Compass provided the most flexibility and speed to market for a product as extensive as The World Almanac on the Palm devices. We were impressed with the product and the dedication of the team we worked with."

The World Almanac is a perennial bestseller on every national list and is found in homes, libraries, schools, businesses, and media outlets throughout the world. In print since 1868, The World Almanac is completely updated with more information than ever before and remains one of the most-popular sources for people to turn to when they need comprehensive and reliable information on just about any subject imaginable.

The 2002 World Almanac databases for Palm OS reference directories include World Data (The Year in Review; World Geography & Exploration; World History; and Nations of the World); US Data (Consumer Info -- Health & Travel; US Cities & States; US History; and US Government & Defense); and Noted Personalities. The databases are currently available for download in bundles or individually and Town Compass plans on making the directories available on SD Cards in the fourth quarter.

Want to know how old a celebrity is, find out where to get information on a health problem, learn about a city youre visiting, read up on and see a photo of any U.S. president or understand more about any foreign country? All that information is in your pocket with the 2002 World Almanac databases for Palm OS handhelds.

People on the go can now be armed with The World Almanacs extensive information on most topics. The databases are available for download from www.PocketDirectory.com. Users can also download the products at major handheld distribution web sites like www.Handango.com, www.CyberRead.com, and others.

About Town Compass, LLC
Town Compass is a leading software development and content management services company that enables business and organizations to publish content for delivery to handheld devices. The companys content management solutions concisely structure, convert, and package large volumes of information in small file sizes for hierarchical display on handheld screens. Town Compass has successfully developed a set of information, conversion, management, and distribution tools that have created a new channel for distributing, selling, and marketing information to mobile audiences utilizing the patent-pending DataViewer application. The company has published customized content and database resources since 1999. Pocket Directory database files and the DataViewer are distributed via the Internet at PocketDirectory.com.

About World Almanac
The World Almanac Education Group is a division of WRC Media Inc., a leading publishing and media company. WRC Media creates and distributes innovative supplementary educational materials for the school, library, and home markets. WRC Medias product suite includes some of the best-known brands in education, recognized for their consistent high quality and proven effectiveness. WRC Media Inc. has two principal operating units:

The Reference and Periodicals Group comprises The World Almanac Education Group, Weekly Reader Corporation and Lifetime Learning Systems.

World Almanac Education Group, Inc. publishes The World Almanac®, The World Almanac for Kids®, Facts On File® news periodicals and Internet services, Gareth Stevens books, and the Funk & Wagnalls® encyclopedia. The company distributes high quality books to schools and libraries.

Weekly Reader Corporation publishes Weekly Reader® periodicals serving over 7 million school children. It also publishes other branded periodicals and instructional materials, including Teen Newsweekä, published for middle and high school students.

Lifetime Learning Systems® is the recognized leader in developing customized educational programs. Lifetimes programs are customized for sponsors, including corporations, nonprofit associations and government agencies that have the need to cost effectively convey important public relations and marketing messages to targeted audiences.

The Assessment, Curriculum and Electronic Group is comprised of AGS®, CompassLearning, Inc. and ChildU, Inc.

AGS® is a leader in producing highly reliable and valid behavior, ability, achievement, and speech-language assessments for all ages. The company also publishes a variety of high-interest, low-reading-level textbooks for middle and high school students, as well as curriculum-based assessment software and test preparation programs.

CompassLearning is the leader in research-driven, standards-based digital-learning solutions that provide choices to help teachers manage student performance, personalize learning, and connect communities of learners. With over 7,000 hours of curriculum and instruction, more than 20,000 schools use CompassLearning solutions.

ChildU is a leading developer and provider of Internet-delivered curriculum and management tools. The Learning Odysseyä, the primary product line, provides highly engaging and standards-based student activities that make extending the school to the home an anytime, anyplace learning reality.

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Information in this press release contains forward-looking statements, including statements regarding our expectations, beliefs, intentions or strategies that involve a number of risks, uncertainties, and assumptions. Should any of the risks or uncertainties develop into actual events, or our assumptions prove to be inaccurate, actual outcomes and results could differ materially from what is expressed in such forward-looking statements and these developments or inaccuracies could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. Risks and uncertainties relating to WRC Media's and its subsidiaries' businesses are set forth in the documents and reports filed from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

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