In building this database, one thing became clear to me. These old CD-ROMs were to a lot of kids more than just entertainment. Looking at the comment section on youtube of the diverse software that I checked out, I read many stories from adults who credit them with inspiring lifelong passions, pursuing careers in engineering, science, or technology because of what they experienced through these programs.

Today’s kids growing up on tablets don’t have as many diverse choices as we had in the ’90s. The apps are often poorly made, most are packed with ads or are just quick cash grabs, aimed at busy parents who don’t have much time but still want the best for their kids. I doubt that any of the kids growing up today will search for the apps they use now on YouTube in 20 years just for a dose of nostalgia. I doubt they’ll even remember them.

When I started to research this topic I was surprised that no one had created something like this earlier. It was basically impossible to get a clear overview of published CD-ROMs. You could browse the “Education” category at various abandonware sites but those are just too broad, filled with junk or packed with games from the 80s which aren't particularly interesting. I eventually found some old books and magazines which specialized in reviewing children's software back in the day, which gave me a starting point for tracking down specific titles. At first, I tried bookmarking links and saving titles in text files, but that quickly became too disorganized. So I created a spreadsheet to keep everything structured. After a while, I thought, why not put it online so others can benefit from a better overview too?

Exploring old CD-ROMs, even for adults, could be more fun than just mindlessly surfing the internet in this age where most of the content is AI generated slop. The Multimedia CDs offer an interesting window into a design that wasn't limited with rigid standardized UI. The budgets behind many of these projects were often far larger than those of today’s apps, and they were typically created by multidisciplinary teams of designers, educators, artists, and developers rather than a single college kid working alone in his bedroom. As a result, they are rich in artistic experimentation, interactivity, and educational seriousness.

So go ahead, explore the database, find something interesting for yourself or your child, and enjoy discovering it with a good cup of tea.