A symposium with four major presentations centering on the topic of computer-based information retrieval. Also highlighted are several features of the Wisconsin Information System for Education (WISE-ONE) and the Educational Resources Information Center (ERIC) system. The first paper in the series discusses the development, current capabilities and future directions of the WISE-ONE system and the second analyzes the history and present status of ERIC. The third paper focuses on file search strategies for the WISE-ONE information retrieval system, comparing various search algorithms used in information retrieval programs and leading to an in-depth consideration of the hash coding scheme used in WISE-ONE. The final paper treats the development of search strategies for effective computerized literature searches of the ERIC data base. The use of the ERIC thesaurus and of the logical operators AND, OR, and NAND is stressed and details are provided relating to a demonstration search supported by a UNIVAC 1108 computer. (PB)