Libraries of PC Reviews Save Time
Reviews of computer products abound in computer magazines, newspapers and newsletters. Trouble is, finding the information you want when you want it can be difficult and time-consuming.
Magazines on the news rack today aren’t likely to contain the reviews you need now, and even the best public and academic libraries have only a fraction of the hundreds of computer publications. Fortunately, there are two services, Computer Library and Computer Database Plus, that let you electronically sift through the contents of more than 130 of these publications.
There are two ways to get to these “libraries.” You can get the information through CompuServe, a dial-up, or on-line, information service. Or you can purchase the data on compact discs known as CD-ROMs.
To tap into CompuServe, your computer must be equipped with a modem and a communications program. The CD-ROM version requires an IBM PC or compatible computer equipped with a compact disc drive. A stereo store variety CD player won’t do--you need a drive designed specifically for a computer.
The computer libraries are provided by Foster City, Calif.-based Information Access Co., a subsidiary of Ziff Communications. Another Ziff unit, Ziff-Davis Publishing, publishes PC magazine, MacUser, PC Computing, PC Week, MacWeek, Government Computer News and several other computer publications.
CompuServe’s version of the library, Computer Database Plus, provides full-text articles from 50 publications, including all the Ziff-Davis publications, Lotus magazine, Computers in Banking and others. Abstracts are available from most other computer publications, as well as computer-related stories from the New York Times. In all, there are about 80,000 listings.
CD More Costly to Use
For most of the publications, articles are available back to the beginning of 1987. In general, articles become available a week after appearing in print.
To use the service, you must first subscribe to CompuServe. A $40 start-up kit is available from computer dealers or by calling CompuServe. When using Computer Database Plus, subscribers also pay a usage charge of 61 cents a minute, in most cases.
Subscribers search through the database for listings of articles. Once you know which articles you want, you can have the full text displayed on your screen at a cost of $1.50 per article. Abstracts cost $1 each.
The CD version, Computer Library, costs $695 for a one-year subscription. For that, you get a new disc each month that contains all the information from the past 12 months.
The CDs have full text from 10 Ziff-Davis publications and abstracts from all 130 periodicals. The January disc that I reviewed had about 45,000 listings.
Unless you or your organization do a lot of searching, the CD version probably is more costly to use. It’s aimed primarily at libraries, corporate information centers and computer professionals who have frequent need for information.
The CompuServe version is for anyone with an occasional need for information about computer equipment, software or computer companies. The service can be economical if you work efficiently and limit the number of articles you display in full.
I used the service to help a friend select a drawing program for the IBM PC. I started by searching for all articles with the word “draw,” but I was overwhelmed with information.
Fortunately, the service lets you narrow your search by 11 variables, including publication, article type, author and date of publication. You can even select a combination of words such as “Drawing” and “IBM PC.”
By progressively adding search criteria, I was able to get the list down to about 30 articles. After studying the list, I asked for the full text of two articles. The whole process took less than 10 minutes and cost about $6 for the search plus $3 for the two articles. That’s a reasonable investment, considering how long it would have taken to perform the same research by going to a library or bookstore.
I found the library very easy to use. All the information you need, including detailed instructions, is available on-line. You select all your options from a menu and you can press the “?” key when you need help.
The CD version comes with software that lets you search the entire disc for any word that appears in any article. You search the disc by looking for words that appear in the text, title or abstract--information is not broken into fields or categories. You can, however, search for authors, publications or dates of publication.
The search software was developed by Lotus Development Corp., the company that publishes the best-selling spreadsheet program, 1-2-3. Like 1-2-3, it features a menu across the top of the screen that branches into sub-menus.
It’s reasonably easy to use, but I found it to be a little more cumbersome than the CompuServe version. In some cases, it takes longer to locate citations, but once information is found, the articles are displayed immediately.
On CompuServe, you have to wait for the information to be transmitted over the phone line. How long you wait depends on the speed of your modem. Under almost any circumstances, though, Computer Database Plus and Computer Library are a lot faster than driving to the local public library.
Computer File welcomes readers’ comments but regrets that the authors cannot respond individually to letters. Write to Lawrence J. Magid, 1641 North First St., Suite 160, San Jose, Calif. 95112, or contact the L. Magid account on the MCI electronic mail system.
ON-LINE LIBRARIES
Computer Database Plus
Features: An on-line service with the full text of articles from 50 publications and more than 80,000 citations dating to 1987. You can search the library for a word or by categories including author, subject, company, publication and date.
Requirements: A personal computer equipped with communications software and a modem, plus access to a phone line and CompuServe--a database service based at 5000 Arlington Centre Blvd., Columbus, Ohio 43220. Phone: 800-848-8199
Price: $40 one-time fee to subscribe to CompuServe. Subscribers also pay a usage charge of up to 61 cents per minute. In addition, it costs $1.50 to display the full text of an article and $1 to display abstracts.
Computer Library
Features: Computer compact discs are supplied to subscribers every month. Each disc includes the full text from 10 publications and about 45,000 citations, going back 12 months.
Requirements: IBM or compatible personal computer equipped with a compact disc drive.
Publisher: Ziff Communications Co., 1 Park Ave., New York, NY 10016. Phone: 212-503-4400.
Price: $695 for a one-year (12 discs) subscription.
