lsys Computers Limited 8 Upper Glenburn Road Glasgow G61 4BW Tel: 0141 943 1533 News Release THE MUNROS THROUGH WINDOWS A new Dunbartonshire-based software developer today launched a new Multimedia package which revolutionises the way we look at hills. All the information you need - to identify a hill, to climb and record it - is here. It is not often that a completely new technology is applied to a traditional pursuit. Here the power of a computer is harnessed to give immense pleasure and help to hill walkers. Speaking at the Glasgow launch, Dr White explained: "The Munros through Windows" is used before the walk to learn how to pronounce the Gaelic hill name, to decide the route, to discover which maps cover the area and to look at photographs of the hills. Printouts of the routes help on the way up and the panorama from the summit helps to identify the hills round about. A log records the date and personal notes. The Map can show the climbed hills in a different colour. You can even print a certificate showing the number of hills climbed. The Program The main Map shows Scotland (or the British Isles) with the Munros and Tops, Roads, Railways and Youth Hostels. You can zoom in to a local area, click on a hill, then read and print the route taken from Irvine Butterfield's best-selling book 'The High Mountains of Britain and Ireland'. Allan Campbell, Chief Executive of the national Gaelic development agency CNAG, welcomed the initiative. He said: "The authentic Gaelic pronunciation of every Munro and Top is spoken by Seonachan MacLeod, a native Gaelic speaker and a member of the Skye Mountain Rescue Team. The basic information on the hill includes its height in metres (and historical height in feet), its ranking in the height charts, SMC Section and the translation of the hill name. This package will quite literally open a window on Gaelic to the many thousands of climbers who are enthusiastic supporters of the language but who couldn't until now pronounce the names in the landscape they cherish. Dr White continued: "The panoramic view from the summit can be drawn on screen or paper. The table of directions of all Munros, Tops and hills furth of Scotland visible from the summit can be printed and used to identify distant hills. There are over 126 colour photographs of the hills. The panoramas are particularly impressive. Often there is additional information about the hill: discussion on the name, its association with history, its part in science or a poem. Your route can be recorded in the Log under Route, Narrative and, optionally, your own heading, Weather, Companions, Fauna, Flora, Time Taken, Distance Travelled and Height Climbed. You can record dates for yourself and up to ten friends. Once the dates are logged, the map can show which hills have been climbed and the total - not only for you but for any friend or for the combination of any two persons. This is a comprehensive program with over 100 features including a Quiz, 3,000ft hills furth of Scotland and diagrammatic views of Scotland from the edge of space ...... .. He concluded: "This is a reference program which will give you enjoyment and it will last for years; because the hills will always be there. This program is comprehensive and impressive as the following quotations show: " For the 'couch potato' to the irrepressible 'bagger' there's megabytes of info.. It may not make that last blue mountain' less steep, but you'll know a hell of a lot about it. - Hamish Maclnnes Innovative, instructive - a truly new dimension on Scotland's mountains. - Robert Jeffrey, The Herald and Evening Times As the complete non-technician I found this package a revelation: both a practical tool and a pleasing toy. Computer-owning Munroists will find it irresistible - buy it! Me, having Windows, I'm going to buy a computer. It's that good. - Hamish Brown Dr White also welcomed the support of CNAG, The Gaelic Books Council and Dunbartonshire Enterprise in developing the package. "This is an outstanding example of culture and business in partnership", he said. A word about the author, Dr Iain R White Having graduated in Natural Philosophy in 1967 at Glasgow University, he went on to complete a PhD in Fundamental Particle Physics. He is now a computer consultant, a Fellow of the British Computer Society, a member of Mensa, a Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society, a Member of the Institute of Physics and a Chartered Engineer. He has always been a keen skier and hill walker but has only recently started to record hills climbed. To quote Dr White "In the old days, we just walked up a hill and enjoyed it!" Further information: Dr White - Isys Computers Limited, 8 Upper Glenburn Road, Glasgow G61 4BW, Scotland. Telephone: +44 (0) 141-943-1533 The Munros through Windows® ISBN 0 9528586 0 6 Trade Distribution: Cordee, 3 De Montford Street, Leicester, LEI 7HD, UK Telephone: +44 (0) 116 254 3579.