Describes compression methods for components of full-text systems such as text databases on CD-ROM. Topics discussed include storage media; structures for full-text retrieval, including indexes, inverted files, and bitmaps; compression tools; memory requirements during retrieval; and ranking and information retrieval. (Contains 53 references.)…

Outlines basic videodisc and optical disk technology describing both optical and capacitance videodisc technology. Optical disk technology is defined as a mass digital image and data storage device and briefly compared with other information storage media including magnetic tape and microforms. The future of videodisc and optical disk is…

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…

This article presents a brief history of the videodisc and describes three major current manifestations of this storage medium--read-only, write-once, erasable. The current status of write-once technology, major corporations involved in the field, potential uses for various types of storage media, and software and market trends are highlighted.…