The 2003 Encyclopedia of Boating Tips

At three and a half hours, this DVD certainly is encyclopedic, featuring chapters on safety, basic skills, maintenance, navigation, electronics, yachts, and water sports, each with its own subchapters, such as “history of yachting” or “galvanic corrosion.” Backed by an extensive array of illustrations (from computer-generated graphics to charts and diagrams) and good cinematography (with underwater segments adding perspective), the best aspects of The 2003 Encyclopedia of Boating Tips consist of interviews with a wide variety of experts in their fields (an instructor from the American Sailing Academy, for example), as opposed to the less-stellar segments featuring a telegenic narrator reading from the teleprompter (whose stagey gestures and occasional mispronunciation--it's “STAR-berd,” not “star-BOARD”--are somewhat distracting). Too, the decision to group items thematically rather than alphabetically presents some access problems (in order for viewers to find anything out about sailing, for instance, they must wade through the first three chapters before stumbling on sailing in a subchapter under “basic skills”). Still, this is an overall enjoyable, very comprehensive, and affordable presentation that is likely to circulate well in public libraries. Recommended. Aud: P. (R. Reagan)