Government documents proved difficult to use in the past. Clumsy indexing, complicated classification systems, and irregular distribution prevented patrons and librarians from using these materials fully. The arrival of electronic formats partly alleviated these problems. An example of these new tools is the SIRS Government Reporter . This excellent CD‐ROM provides patrons and librarians easy access to a selective body of useful documents.
The fall 1996 release was evaluated for this review. Along with the disc, SIRS provides clear installation and user instructions, well‐designed point of use cards and a teacher’s guide. The system works on IBM compatible PCs using 286 and later processors. Five options for installation are available, including network installation. This reviewer needed to modify configuration and autoexec files on his PC to run the program, and SIRS technical support provided assistance in making these changes. Following the modifications, the program loaded with no further problems.
Government Reporter ‘s main menu lists four separate databases. Appearing first is the “US Government Documents” database containing 7801 selected full‐text documents. These materials are found through four basic methods. The “Subject Tree Search” provides hierarchical subject browsing that leads the user through four levels of headings, from broadest to the narrowest, to the documents. Users highlight the headings and press “Enter” to move forward through the headings, and use the “Esc” key to move backward through the screens.
Department/Agency Browse lists nearly 300 issuing departments and the documents issued by these agencies. A keyword search mode allows for text word searching for up to three separate words or phrases using Boolean connectors. Also included in this section are Country Profile Browse ‐ 165 US State Department Background Notes, arranged in alphabetical order by country or international organization.
The documents provide bibliographic information, including Superintendent of Documents numbers. Patrons use the cursor and page up/down keys to browse through the text. Links are provided to a document summary, document source, and issuing agency entry in SIRS’s Federal Agency Database. Function keys provide access to these links, and these commands appear at the bottom of the screen. Material can be printed or downloaded. Also, many documents contain graphics, maps, and charts along with the text. Indicated with a camera icon on the title listings, these materials can be displayed and printed.
SIRS Government Reporter ‘s “Almanac” section contains five databases. “US Supreme Court Decisions” contains 280 historically important and current Supreme Court decisions. Users reach the documents using the Subject Tree method, Library of Congress Subject Headings, keyword search, and Case listing (name of cases) browsing. Records for individual decisions contain a brief syllabus of the case. Links are available to majority and minority decisions. Complementing this file is a Justices’ Directory, listing the 108 men and women who served on the court along with biographical and term information.
The Historic Documents database contains selected full‐text documents and speeches of historic value. The final two databases are directories to the Congress and Federal Agencies. The Congressional Directory reflects the membership of the 104th Congress (in the version evaluated by the reviews). Patrons can locate members of Congress by state, office held, and last name. Member entries contain district or state, term of office, result of previous election, committee membership, staff, professional and educational background, and Washington and local offices. The Federal Agency Directory provides an alphabetical listing of departments and agencies. Entries contain directory information plus a brief description of the department activities.
Government Reporter stands as a model electronic tool for library research, and nicely complements print document collections. Well designed and easy to use, it contains an excellent selection of those documents most needed by patrons. Reference librarians should find the program valuable for answering a wide range of questions. This source is highly recommended for academic, public, and school libraries.
