September 7, 1995
"Programs teach Hebrew, Jewish history"
Jewish Computing Review
Written by Scott Sidel
...Bringing Torah to the people is the aim of the Torah La-Am
Library. This CD-ROM make Torah learning and midrash accessible to any person,
regardless of age or skill. Written initially by Larry Hurwitz, a cancer
specialist in Milwaukee, who put his career on hold to battle his own cancer
and write the Torah La-Am collection.
The result, put onto CD-ROM, is a work that encompasses over 10,000
pieces of midrashic legend, stories, quotes, and more. This CD-ROM allows you
to grab a bite of Torah wisdom from literally dozens of angles. You can follow
the weekly portion linearly through the year or you can explore the Torah by
categories such as people, places, or values, and issues. If your learning
style is less linear you can instead explore the Torah by midrash and stories
related to the text. Or you may work better with concepts, such as exploring
the value of life, of education, or why we have enemies. However you choose to
learn, Torah La-Am lets you explore in the method that suits you
best.
Hurwitz freely updates many of the older rabbinic commentaries into
contemporary vernacular, which sometimes works and sometimes doesn't. The style
of writing can at times be a bit simplistic and the study questions seem to be
written mostly for the young. The easygoing language in no way takes away from
the firm foundation of Torah learning and values that are contained
within.
The program shoots for simplicity in its interface, retaining a
Macintosh hypercard look and feel for both its PC and Mac versions. Using the
program is as easy as clicking a mouse and flipping through a stack or index
cards. At $850, parents may lobby for their schools to purchase a copy first,
but if you have to come up with a dinner drush (a short
Torah-based speech) you might be glad to pay any price...!
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