The videodisc in health sciences education: a perspective on a powerful medium.

In the nine years since the introduction of the videodisc, biomedical communicators have created landmark applications of the technology. However, for a variety of reasons, the videodisc has not had the impact on health sciences instruction and communications that was initially projected. A sharp increase in numbers of microcomputers available in instructional settings and publicity regarding videodiscs has brought forth a burst of new interest in the medium and its relationship to information storage and retrieval. Although a number of newer technologies have been introduced, the videodisc remains the most cost-effective and proven technology for providing interactive visual information.