Jacaranda Software
| Industry | Video games |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | Brisbane, Australia |
Key people | John Collins |
| Products | Video games |
Jacaranda Software was an Australian developer and publisher of educational computer games for children. It was based in Brisbane, Australia and published under the "inspirational" leadership of John Collins. The team worked as a department of Jacaranda-Wiley; the Australian imprint of American publishing company, Wiley. While it was considered initially as an experimental venture, it proved to be profitable from its first year through to its closure in the early 1990s.[1] Jacaranda Software released titles for a range of computer systems, including the Apple II, Commodore 64, Macintosh, Microbee and BBC Micro. After the department closed, former employees David Smith, Bruce Mitchell, and Steve Luckett continued to write software for schools, under the name Greygum Software. They bought remaining stock, rights, and equipment from Jacaranda. As of 2015, several popular former Jacaranda titles are still available in Windows and Macintosh versions from Greygum Software, including Goldfields, Kraken: a deep sea quest, Desert Quest and Crossing the Mountains.
Releases
| Title | Year | Known Versions | References |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bush Rescue | 1987 | Apple, BBC | [2] |
| Cardsharp | 1988 | Apple II, BBC | [2] |
| Cave Surveyor | 1985 | [2] | |
| Clockwise: Time activities for the whole primary school | 1992 | Apple, BBC | [2] |
| Crossing the Mountains | 1989 | Apple, BBC | [2] |
| Cunning Running | 1984 | Apple II, C64, Microbee | [2][3] |
| Desert Quest | 1984 | Apple, BBC | [2] |
| Dinosaur Discovery | 1985 | Apple II, BBC | [2][4] |
| Gold-Dust Island | 1984 | Apple, BBC, C64, Microbee | [2][5] |
| Goldfields | 1986 | Apple II, BBC, C64, DOS, Macintosh, Windows | [2][6] |
| Jacaranda Maths 10 Software | 1989 | [2] | |
| Kraken: A deep-sea quest | 1989 | Apple, BBC, C64, Macintosh | [2][7] |
| Maths Bingo | 1991 | Apple, BBC | [2] |
| Paws | 1986 | [2] | |
| Pieces of Eight | 1986 | [2] | |
| Quick-Cartage Company | 1984 | Apple, BBC, C64, Microbee | [2][8] |
| Raft-Away River | 1984 | Apple, BBC, C64, Microbee | [2][9][10] |
| Scavenger Hunt | 1984 | Apple, BBC, Microbee | [2] |
| Sheep-Dog Trial | 1984 | C64, Microbee | [2][11] |
| Terra Australis: Voyages of trade and discovery | 1988 | Apple, BBC | [2] |
| Transformations | 1986 | BBC | [2] |
| The Tycoon Itch | 1986 | BBC, C64 | [2][12] |
| Vegetable Patch | 1987 | [2] | |
| Vote 1 | 1986 | Apple, BBC | [2] |
| Wordsmith | 1985 | BBC | [2] |
| Wordswork | 1985 | Apple, BBC | [2] |
| Zoopak | 1987 | Apple, BBC | [2] |
External links
- Greygum Software - stockists of several former Jacaranda Software titles
References
- ^ "Jacaranda Software". Play it again... Retrieved 2015-01-26.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa "Australian Games List" (PDF). Flinders University. 2014-02-01. Retrieved 2015-01-26.
- ^ "Cunning running programmed by David L. Smith". Trove. National Library of Australia. Retrieved 2015-01-26.
- ^ "Dinosaur Discovery". Moby Games. Retrieved 2015-01-26.
- ^ "Gold-dust Island". Gamespot GameFAQs. Retrieved 2015-01-26.
- ^ "Goldfields". Gamebase 64. Retrieved 2015-01-26.
- ^ "Kraken : a deep-sea quest". OCLC World Cat. Retrieved 2015-01-26.
- ^ "Quick-Cartage Company". Gamebase 64. Retrieved 2015-01-26.
- ^ "Raft-Away river a simulation for use with the BBC Microcomputer / programmed by David L. Smith". Trove. National Library of Australia. Retrieved 2015-01-26.
- ^ "Raft-Away River". Gamebase 64. Retrieved 2015-01-26.
- ^ "Sheep-Dog Trial". Gamebase 64. Retrieved 2015-01-26.
- ^ "The Tycoon Itch". Gamebase 64. Retrieved 2015-01-26.