OVERVIEW:
The NTIS (National Technical Information Service) Order Now Catalog identifies government research reports in areas such as science and technology, the environment, health and safety, or domestic and international business which are available for purchase. The NTIS Order Now CD-ROM which indexes material dated 1995 and on, replaces the paper indes GRA&I (Government Reports Announcements and Index). The GRA&I covered NTIS sales publications from 1971-1996, call no. Z 7916 .B471x. The CD-ROM, covering 1995-1998 is available in the UWM Libraries, Multi-Media Library at (CD) ZA 4150 .U55. NTIS provides bibliographic access to their publications, from 1990, at http://www.ntis.gov/search/.

INSTRUCTIONS:
At the home screen, choose a search mode by using the spacebar to switch between novice, advanced, and expert search modes. Press [Enter] twice to enter the search screen.

Novice/Basic Search
The novice search permits three ways to search the database: a Basic Search (which includes Title, Abstract, and Keywords); an Author Search; and/or Performing Organizations Search. Search terms can be entered in one, two, or three fields. Entering more search terms will generally reduce the number of reports retrieved.

1. Type a word or words which describe(s) the subject of the search, OR, press [F2] to search a word/key phrase index of terms used in the database. When the desired term appears, press [Enter] to choose/select the term.
2. Press [Enter] to perform the search.
3. The screen will display the total number of matches found.
4. Press [F3] to view the results.
5. The records display in descending order by year of publication and title of the report. Highlight a title using the arrow up and down keys and press [Enter] to see the full record. The display provides the title, author, source, key terms, abstract, language, price, and ordering information.
6. Press [Page Down] to move to the next record. Use the arrow keys to move up and down within one record.
7. Press [F1] for text-sensitive help at any point while searching NTIS OrderNow.

Advanced Search
The advanced search allows the user to search fields separately or together in any combination (such as author, source agency, publication year, language).

1. Press [F9] to view the options menu, use the spacebar to switch between novice and advanced search screens.
2. Enter relevant search terms in any combination of fields, OR move the cursor to the field to search and press [F2] for an index specific to that field.
3. When multiple fields are searched, the fields will be connected with AND by default, narrowing the search. Other operators, OR and NOT, can be inserted (ex., engineering not civil).
4. Press [F3] to view the results.
5. The records display in descending order by year of publication and title of the report. Highlight a title using the arrow up and down keys and press [Enter] to see the full record. The display provides the title, author, source, key terms, abstract, language, price, and ordering information.
6. Press [Page Down] to move to the next record. Use the arrow keys to move up and down within one record.
7. Press [F1] for text-sensitive help at any point while searching NTIS OrderNow.