The Antietam Staff Ride. An Interactive, Computer-Driven Guide to the Battle of Antietam

The Antietam Staff Ride is a computer-driven guide to the battle of Antietam. It provides the user with a comprehensive, graphical picture of the major battles fought on 17 September 1862 at Sharpsburg, Maryland. It uses a simple point-and-click interface and is completely interactive. The user views the movement of military units on a series of color maps in 30 second to one minute snapshots. The battles may be viewed one frame at a time or through continuous, animated movement. When viewed one frame at a time, the user is provided with text description of actions occurring at that moment. Additionally, short audio and visual cues such as gun fire and cannon fire are presented to aid in describing the current situation. The program contains an extensive database on unit locations, movements, order of battle, and casualties. It also contains scanned color photos of key leaders and battlefield terrain. A glossary of terms is included and contains graphic depictions of regimental formations and drill, weapons artillery gunnery, etc. The glossary is directly linked to words and terms shown as italicized text. The user simply points and clicks on the word or term to access the definition or graphic depiction. The Antietam Staff Ride was written using the hypermedia authoring application Aldus SuperCard.