Who Works at Home, Why, and How You Can Join Them How ...

HELP
YOURSELF
ReSume!
$49.95
IBM PC
North American InfoNet
P.O. Box 750008
Petaluma. CA 94975
(707) 765-1999
Romanceware
So you're not interested in becoming
smarter, eating better, or finding a
more fulfilling job. But your personal
life is stalled, and you find it difficult to
talk to anyone about it.
The sexual awareness of the 1980s
also extends to computer programs; in
fact, it's one of the fastest-growing seg
ments of helpware software. Despite
their increased popularity, however,
many romanceware programs are still
lightweight and offer only a little more
than a paperback book on the subject.
One exception is Heart-to-Heart,
an interesting and thought-provoking
program from IntcrActive Software,
that's designed to promote communica
tion in couples. You and your compan
ion each spend a few hours behind the
computer answering a battery of confi
dential questions. The program then
compares your answers and assembles a
suggested dialog for working out differ
ences in opinion and other problem
areas.
For example, let's say that you and
your partner differ in your assessment of
problems. You say problems are easily
solved, but your partner says they're dif
ficult to conquer. Heart-la-Hearl pre
pares questions on the subject for you
and your companion to discuss. Assum
ing you don't get into fistfights over the
questions, the end result should be one
of better communication.
Heart-lo-Hean is designed for inti
mate romantic relationships. It's not
really suited for improving communica
tion in other types of relationships, such
16 COMPUTE!
as one that exists between a father and a
troubled teenage son.
Intracorp's Interaction is designed
to "explore your love and relation
ships." Its approach is to ask you prob
ing questions about your sexual history
and habits, whereby you learn from
your answers. The program offers a
compatibility analysis of you and your
partner. Also included is a dictionary of
sexually oriented words, including
some of the four-letter ones you're not
supposed to use in public (or in print).
The dictionary is set up so that you
must already know the word to look it
up. Words are not cross-referenced.
Though the program box has a pic
ture of Dr. Joyce Brothers on it, she ap
parently had nothing to do with the
development of the software, apart
from writing a short foreword to the
manual. The authors of the program are
not listed, but the manual provides a
bibliography of references used during
the development oflnteraclion.
As with most self-help programs of
its kind, Interaction is listed as enter
tainment software, obviously to ward
off possible lawsuits in the event that
someone is harmed by its information
or suggestions. One program that bills
itself strictly as a game is Dr. Ruth's
Computer Game of Good Sex (Avalon
Hill Game Company). The program
was supervised by Dr. Ruth Westheimcr.
the famous television sex thera
pist known for her outrageous but
humane approach to intimate matters.
At its core, Dr. Ruth's Computer
Game of Good Sex is a type of sexual
Trivial Pursuit in which 1-7 people are
asked a battery of sexually oriented
questions. Some are funny, others are
thought-provoking; and if you re an av
erage person with an average knowledge
of sex, you 'II get most of the questions
wrong. Of course, it's all in good fun.
and the real object is to become more
sexually aware. After playing Dr. Ruth's
Computer Game of Good Sex, I now
know more about the subject than I ever
cared to know.
Dr. Ruth's Computer Game of
Good Sex is intended for adults. Birds
VBees, from Inlracorp, is designed for
teaching young people the facts of life.
An important aspect of the program is
that it monitors the age and gender of
the user and adjusts its answers accord
ingly. As a parent, you can choose any
age group to compensate for the sexual
awareness of your particular child. You
can also decide whether vou want the
program to proceed with the discus
sions on abortion, birth control, and
sexually transmitted diseases. Birds 'n'
Bees also provides a dictionary of sexu
al terms and self-help quizzes.
It's important to remember that
the effectiveness of the program de
pends entirely on the willingness and
support of the parent. Throwing your
kid alone in a room with a program like
Birds V Bees is a bad idea. But if you're
uncomfortable with the subject of sex
education and have difficulty explain
ing it to your children, this program can
help break the ice and open up mean
ingful communication.
Romanceware
Birds V Bees
$59.95 (Amiga, Apple II. Atari. IBM PC)
$49.95 (Commodore 64/128)
IntraCorp
I4I60S.W. 139th Ct.
Miami. FL 33186
{305)252-9040
Dr. Ruth's Computer Game
of Good Sex
$29.95
Apple II. Commodore 64/128, IBM PC
The Avalon Hill Game Company
4517HarfordRd.
Baltimore, MD 21214
(301)254-9200
(800)638-9292
Heart-to-Heart
$49.95
IBM
PC
InterActive Software
496 LaGuardia PI.
Suite 215
New York, NY 10012
(718) 768-1427
(800) 541-0900
Interaction
$49.95 (Analysis Module or
Compatibility Module)
$99.95 (Both Modules)
Amiga, Apple II, Atari ST,
Commodore 64/128, IBM PC
IntraCorp
14160 S.W. 139th O.
Miami. FL 33186
(305) 252-9040
Gordon McComb has been writing about
computers for longer than he'd like to re
member. The several computers in his home
help him write, among other things.