November 1995 1

STI A publication for users of the NASA scientific and technical information program

National Aeronautics and

Space Administration

Scientific and Technical 


Information Office


BULLETIN

November 1995 Issue

Electronic Edition of STI Bulletin Now Available

An alternative delivery method is available to readers of the STI Bulletin.

You can access the Bulletin via the STI Homepage at the following address:

http://www.sti.nasa.gov/sti-pubs.html. This issue and the Bulletin issues

published this year are all available for viewing.

The files were prepared using Adobe’s Portable Document Format

(PDF). This format allows you to download the Bulletin and view it in

the same format as the printed version. Moreover, the PDF version has a

feature that the printed version lacks—full-text search capability. Better

yet, the electronic publication is available two to three weeks earlier than

the print product. So, why wait for snail-mail when the electronic

version is just sitting there waiting for you to call it up? We are applying

this exciting new technology to other publications. In the future, publications will be available in two ways—traditional hard copy, for a price,

and electronically, at no charge.

The STI program is very interested in your reaction to the electronic

availability of the STI Bulletin. To record your comments, send an

e-mail to the NASA Access Help Desk at help@sti.nasa.gov. And while

you’re at it, here’s an idea that could save us and you (Mr. or Ms. Taxpayer) some time and money: If you no longer require that a paper copy

be sent to you, please let us know.

In This Issue

New Books at CASI

ADDS and SOS Subscription

Renewal

The CBI is based on an interface

developed by the Department of

Energy’s Office of Scientific and

Technical Information for remote

access to its Energy Database. This

system was extended by both

CASI designers and the developers

at Technology Concepts and

Design, Inc. to meet the requirements of the NASA community,

both end users and professional

searchers. The CBI has three access modes. The first is the Quick

Search Mode that allows access to

the four most commonly searched

fields: the author, topic/subject

words or phrases, numbers (including report numbers), and publication date. Using this screen, a

searcher can quickly enter terms

into one or more of these fields

and get very specific results. The

second search mode is the Full

Search Mode; it provides access in

a guided fashion to all 60+ indexes

available in the RECONplus system. It allows searches to be narrowed and combined. Finally, the

Command Line search allows

Continued on page 2

RECONplus Interfaces

Enter New Test Phases

In the halls of CASI it is not enough

to talk about the RECONplus interface: you have to ask which interface

are you talking about. Currently,

the CASI development staff and

volunteer testers are testing both

the Character-Based and Graphical

User Interfaces to RECONplus,

the system scheduled to replace the

RECON text retrieval system in

early 1996. Multiple interfaces are

provided to allow the user to choose

the access method with which he or

she is most comfortable.

The Character-Based Interface

(CBI) allows access to the

RECONplus database by any

computer or terminal with VT100

emulation and telnet access.

While CASI recommends 486 or

equivalent processors, this serverbased system can be accessed from a

3270 terminal as well as from a

UNIX workstation. The most

common modes of access in the

alpha and beta testing have been

PCs with 486 processors and

PowerMacs. The interface is a DOS

menu system that uses control key

combinations and keys common

to all keyboards.
2 STI Bulletin

New Books at CASI

X-Ray and Gamma-Ray Astronomy

Detectors, NASA SP-517, by

Rudolf Decher, Brian D. Ramsey,

and Robert Austin

Aimed at scientists, engineers and

technical personnel, this introduction to x-ray and gamma-ray

astronomy instruments provides

an overview of detector design and

technology. The discussion is limited to basic principles and design

concepts and provides examples of

applications in past, present and

future space missions.

Vertical Flight Training, NASA

RP-1373, Edited by William E.

Larsen, Robert J. Randle, Jr. and

Lloyd N. Popish

A broad overview is given of the

technology that is relevant to the

the design of the display/print

formats. Multiple formats are

available, as well as the ability

under the CBI to develop, store

and reuse a user-selected format.

The NASA Center for AeroSpace

Information would like to thank

the testers who have contributed so

many hours to the improvement of

a system that will benefit the entire

NASA community. We owe them

all our thanks for a job well done!

RECONplus Interfaces Enter New

Test Phases

Continued from page 1

The alpha testing is progressing in

a phased approach with new functions being added each week, along

with the appropriate documentation. The phased release provides the

developer with more immediate feedback from the testers. The GUI

testing will continue through the fall.

Access to NASA data has been

improved by increasing the number

of access points (indexes) over the

current RECON system. There are

62 indexes in the RECONplus

database structure, each of which

can be searched, sorted, and displayed. The most notable additions

are the language, document type,

publication date, and NASA subject category indexes. Some fields,

such as organization source, financial sponsor, and journal title, are

indexed both as word and phrased

indexes. The phrased index allows

the user to select the full phrased

term from a display of the index

for the field. The word index

allows the user to search the same

field using Boolean operators and

adjacency. High-level indexes

provide access to multiple fields

with the same search. For example,

the basic index encompasses the

title, abstract, control terms, and

subject category fields. These

fields are also indexed in their

own specific indexes. The number index provides access to all

the numbers connected to a

document, such as the report

number or contract number.

In addition to the interfaces, the

testers are reviewing the documentation, training, and database structure of the RECONplus system.

Significant effort has been put into

advanced searchers to key the commands directly onto a command

line. Using a straightforward syntax of the index code and search

term (or terms) connected by a

Boolean operator, the user can do

rather complex searching. All three

modes allow the searcher to build

a search by selecting search terms

from expanded displays of the

indexes, reducing the need for

typing. Post-search functions such

as review, print, download, store,

and retrieve searches and results are

handled by shared functions available to all three modes through the

tool bar or the control key combinations. The CBI was beta tested

by over 150 participants, including

professional searchers, scientists,

engineers, and library school students. Beta testing is scheduled for

completion in October.

The Graphical User Interface (GUI)

under Windows takes advantage of

all the benefits of a Windows interface—drop-down boxes; point,

click and drag navigation; full use

of the clipboard; mouse navigation

with keyboard equivalents where

possible; and the comfort of a

Windows environment. The GUI

will also have Quick Search,

Guided Search and Command

Line modes, and post-processing

functions equivalent to those in the

CBI. In addition, it has the advantage of field-specific help through

the Windows Help function.

The RECONplus GUI is currently

being alpha tested by participants

from the NASA center libraries

and several additional end users.

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The STI Bulletin, published every other

month, informs NASA STI users about

the products, services, and news of the

NASA Scientific and Technical Information Office.

For additional information, contact

Roland Ridgeway

NASA Headquarters, Code JT

Washington, DC 20546-0001,

e-mail rridgeway@sti.nasa.gov.

Continued on page 3
November 1995 3

The Standing Order Service (SOS) automatically

distributes NASA scientific and technical unlimited

reports in paper and/or microfiche and invoices the

user monthly for only those reports received. With

few exceptions, all NASA scientific and technical

reports are available on microfiche, representing

approximately 3,500 titles per year. The more

significant reports, about 400 per year, are distributed in both paper and microfiche. Classified/limited

reports are available to registered U.S. government

agencies and their contractors, subject to specific

document limitation, security classification, and

current NASA CASI registration.

Three SOS report distribution options are available.

• Option A distributes all available NASA reports

by any of the STAR subject divisions.

• Option B distributes paper copies by designated

NASA report series.

• Option C distributes paper copies of reports by

any of the 75 NASA subject categories.

If you are a subscriber to ADDS or SOS, a subscription renewal form was sent to you. Please fill it out

and return it to us. If you need assistance or if you

would like to sign up for ADDS or SOS, call the

NASA Access Help Desk at (301) 621-0390 or

e-mail at help@sti.nasa.gov.

* The CASI TRS is accessible from the NASA STI

Homepage at http://www.sti.nasa.gov.

New Books at CASI

Continued from page 2

design of aviation training systems

and the techniques applicable to

the development, use, and evaluation of those systems.

Readings in Program Control,

NASA SP-6103, Edited by Francis

T. Hoban, William M. Lawbaugh

This book is aimed at the next

generation of project managers.

As part of the corporate memory

of the NASA Program and Project

Management Initiative, this

volume collects, preserves and

transmits the lessons learned on

program control for better

management of the future.

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You can contact the NASA Access

Help Desk at (301) 621-0390, fax

(301) 621-0134, e-mail at

help@sti.nasa.gov, or write NASA

Access Help Desk, NASA Center

for AeroSpace Information, 800

Elkridge Landing Road, Linthicum

Heights, MD 21090-2934.

ADDS and SOS Subscription

Renewal

Now is the time to renew your Automatic Document

Distribution (ADDS) and Standing Order Service

(SOS) subscriptions for 1996.

As researchers become more aware of NASA scientific and technical information (STI) resources

through electronic tools such as the NASA Center

for AeroSpace Information Technical Report Server*

(CASI TRS), demand for full-text technical reports

will increase. NASA’s ADDS and SOS subscription

services ensure that the relevant NASA documents

are available to you as soon as possible.

The Automatic Document Distribution Service

(ADDS) allows formal reports to be ordered by

subject division, series, and subject category.

Documents are automatically distributed and

invoiced at a pre-paid flat rate that varies

according to the option chosen.

• The Formal Reports by Subject Division option

groups reports into 10 broad subject divisions that

are available in both paper and/or microfiche.

• The Formal Reports by Series option allows

selection of reports by formal report series: Special

Publications (SP), Conference Publications (CP),

or Reference Publications (RP). Available in

paper only.

• The Formal Reports by Subject Categories option

offers paper copies of narrower, targeted subject

selections based on a more specific subject

classification scheme. All reports are unclassified/

unlimited. Available in paper only.
4 STI Bulletin

FIRST-CLASS PRESORT

POSTAGE & FEES PAID

NASA

Permit No. G-27

National Aeronautics and

Space Administration

Code JT

Washington, DC 20546-0001

OFFICIAL BUSINESS

Penalty for Private Use, $300

STAR Moving to Online Access Only

Budget constraints have forced the NASA STI Office to find alternative methods of

delivering STAR. Starting with the 1996 issues, STAR will be available only in electronic

form. The advent of the World Wide Web and the Internet mean that the announcement

of new citations can be made faster and more economically using these tools. The NASA STI

Office currently has a number of publications which can be reviewed online. Current issues

of Aerospace Medicine and Biology and Aeronautical Engineering are loaded on the STI

Homepage for your review. Access is available via the NASA STI Homepage at

http://www.sti.nasa.gov.

Please examine the offerings currently available and send any comments to the NASA Access Help Desk via e-mail to help@sti.nasa.gov, or call (301) 621-0390.