Microsoft Student 2006

Microsoft Student 2006 with Encarta is a comprehensive, subject-specific resource designed to help middle-and high-school students complete high-quality homework assignments and projects in less time. With curriculum-based templates and tutorials, a fully functional graphing calculator with 2-D and 3-D four-color graphing capabilities, trusted content, and tools for cutting through online clutter, Microsoft Student 2006 with Encarta provides students with the tools and information they need to achieve academic success.

At first glance, you could be forgiven for thinking that Student 2006 with Encarta marks an express act of generosity on the part of Microsoft. After all, for just shy of £60 it does initially seem that you get everything a student could need on their computer. The sting quickly becomes apparent, though. To use many of the features of this package you need a copy of Office 2003 or Office XP, and if you have neither then that's at least £100 to add to the bill. That said, this is still a strong package.

It's aimed more towards secondary school and higher education students, and on the program's DVD (there's no CD version) comes a wide selection of tools. First, and this is as good a way to get started as any, is a full version of Encarta 2006. Whilst every year Encarta loses a little vitality due to the amazingly comprehensive resources that can be found online (which Microsoft seems to concede, given how seamlessly the program works with the Web), Encarta is nonetheless a superbly-crafted reference tool that is wisely moving with the times.On top of that, there's a bountiful selection of templates and tutorials to help out with coursework and homework. At times it's alarmingly comprehensive, with subject-specific help and advice. The language section is particularly worthy of note, with tools on-board to help draft text in German, Spanish and French without having to fight any software in the process. Likewise, mathematicians will immediately appreciate the graphing tools and the substantially improved Windows Calculator that comes with the package.

Clearly the content isn't designed to do the work for you, instead attempting to give a kick-start when you're stuck and support and guidance when you require it. So in theory assignments will look better, presentations will be smoother and technical hurdles will be removed. In fact, where Student 2006 performs particularly well is in helping you to get more out of the key Microsoft Office applications; Word, Excel and particularly PowerPoint.

We liked Student 2006 a lot, and it certainly surprised us. There's an argument that a chunk of the features - certainly some of the ways it interacts with Office - can be achieved without this program's intervention. But that does miss part of the point. Good software works best when it lets you get on with the job and doesn't require technical knowledge and help files to get the results you want. Student 2006 achieves this, and that's no small feat, although there's an argument that some of the foibles of Office are exposed as a result!

A worthwhile purchase, then? Yes. For helping with homework it works well, and the inclusion of Encarta is a serious bonus that shouldn't be sniffed at. On the downside, we'd certainly like to see that price come down. But for parents looking to keep their offspring focused - not least through the controlled Web search module - this might be just the ticket.