The Inverted File Information Retrieval System (INFIRS), is a document search system which offers a comprehensive range of search facilities. It has been developed at the United Kingdom Chemical Information Service (UKCIS) as a general purpose retrieval tool, suitable for handling a wide variety of data-bases (both free-text and controlled…

Describes three commercial, numeric databases that are available in microcomputer diskette format: Micro/Scan Disclosure; Wharton Econometric Forecasting Associates World Economic Service; and Trinet's Survey of Commercial Buying Power. Advantages and disadvantages of the diskette format, search strategies, and a selected list of eight suppliers…

Response time in large, inverted file document retrieval systems is determined by time required to access files of document identifiers on disk and process a Boolean search request. A specialized computer system has been devised that can perform a complicated sample search involving 70 terms and over 60,000 document references 12 to 60 times…

The Retrieval of information by means of freely-chosen descriptors may be handled efficiently by creating an inverted file organization in an adaptive manner, entries in this file being generated by sequential searching of the master file, when required. (Author)

InfoTrac is a laserdisc system that provides local computer-access to Information Access Company's periodical databases and offers libraries an extensive, self-contained reference system. The system, which employs an IBM PC microcomputer, a Hewlett-Packard Thinkjet printer, and a Pioneer videodisc player, provides advantages of online searching at…

Describes the "Toronto Globe and Mail" database-the first example of the entire text of a major daily newspaper online, and notes the file elements and possible search strategies. (RAA)

Discusses the basic principles of the application of microfilm (analog) and electronic (digital) technologies for data storage. Image quality is examined, searching and retrieval capabilities are considered, and hardcopy output resolution is described. It is concluded that microfilm is still the preferred archival medium. (5 references) (LRW)

Advantages of the Berkeley Mass Storage System (MSS) for information retrieval other than its size are: high serial-read rate, archival data storage; and random-access capability. By use of this device, the search cost in an SDI system based on the Nuclear Science Abstracts" data base was reduced by 20 percent. (6 references) (Author/NH)

WISE is an on-line interactive information retrieval system designed particularly for bibliographic data bases, but it is potentially useful for any keyword-oriented data base. The WISE user searches a data base by entering and combining keywords that are appropriate to the data base and the subject area of interest. The user can also enter…

Acquaints information professionals with Digital Equipment Corporation's compact optical disk read-only-memory (CDROM) search and retrieval software and growing library of CDROM database publications (COMPENDEX, Chemical Abstracts Services). Highlights include MicroBASIS, boolean operators, range operators, word and phrase searching, proximity…

Northwestern University's Remote Information Query System (RIQS), an information storage and retrieval system characterized by a mixture of data structures for the internal record organization, is discussed. On-line and batch mode search capabilities handle both textual and quantitative information. Other system characteristics, capabilities and…

This handbook examines sources of information useful to educators and educational consultants who wish to learn about innovative practices and/or solutions to educational problems in other schools. A discussion of information storage describes the access to information in reports, periodicals, unpublished reports, and other materials through such…

This collection of search formulations was assembled to assist in Dialog Searching of the ERIC data base. The formulations represent modular building blocks or concepts that occur frequently when searching this file. They have been formulated and described in such a way that they can be used as given, or they can be modified to suit specific…

The results of personal interviews with 18 of the more experienced online searchers in Washington State are presented. A profile of respondents determines the experience of each in searching in years, number of searches per month, vendors used, and most used data bases. This information is used to analyze the answers given to questions about the…

Modeled on public databases such as Lockheed and SDC, the information system described in this report was utilized in the creation of in-house databases in the Mobay Chemical Corporation's special library in Pittsburgh. Using IBM's Storage and Information Retrieval System (STAIRS), Mobay created two databases: one to hold product information, the…