The ABI/INFORM (ProQuest) database has been enhanced recently with several hundred country reports and data from the Economist Intelligence Unit and Oxford Analytica.

They can be viewed by clicking the Browse tab after logging on to ABI/INFORM Complete. Look under the Country Reports Heading. Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) Country Data, for example, "contains 370 economic variables over a 50 year period (1980-2030), actual and forecasted. Reports include comprehensive information such as GDP, import/export statistics, industry data, monetary indicators, liquidity metrics, and more." This is for the G20 countries. Data can be downloaded into a spreadsheet.

ABI/INFORM Complete can be accessed from the Rod Library Business Portal and the Rod Library home page under Databases A-Z.

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The ABI/INFORM (ProQuest) has been enhanced recently with several hundred new international and domestic (U.S.) industry and market reports from Business Monitor International and First Research.

Business Monitor International reports cover more than 30 industries, with separate reports for dozens of countries, such as 104 page document called, "China Pharmaceuticals & Healthcare Report - Q3 2009." First Research reports cover about 140 domestic industries such as bars, theatres & cinemas, and pharmaceuticals.

These Industry and Market Research Reports can be viewed by clicking the Browse tab after logging on to ABI/INFORM Complete. They also can be accessed by doing a Basic or Advanced search for an industry such as movie theaters, and then clicking the Reference/Report tab on the results screen.

ABI/INFORM Complete can be accessed from the Rod Library Business Portal and the Rod Library home page under Databases A-Z.

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Industry Snapshots contain 2007 Economic Census data for numerous industries as released by the Census Bureau during 2009. Also includes 2002 Economic Census data for comparison. Includes data such as dollar value of shipments and payroll.

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The Duke University Libraries have created several Digital Collections of interest those studying advertising and many other subjects.

One of the links on this page is for Advertising and Consumer Culture. It contains several collections of advertisements in various formats, some dating back to the 19th century. Two examples:

Ad*Access - "presents images and database information for over 7,000 advertisements printed in U.S. and Canadian newspapers and magazines between 1911 and 1955"

adViews - "a digital archive of thousands of vintage television commercials dating from the 1950s to the 1980s"

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The publisher of the CCH Internet Tax Research Network database changed its name to IntelliConnect over the summer. IntelliConnect can be accessed from the Rod Library Business Portal or from the Rod Library home page Databases A-Z list.

They also changed the log-on process. Before, the database could be accessed by entering your email address. Now, new users must create individual accounts the first time they log on, using the "New User" link on the right side of the initial screen.

Last, the IntelliConnect interface is significantly different from the the CCH interface. After logging on the first time, you may want to click the Help/Getting Started link on the left side of the screen. The material here includes a short video tour.

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The publisher of ABI/INFORM Global (ProQuest) has expanded our subscription at no additional cost. The Rod Library subscription now includes the following, which as a group is called ABI/INFORM Complete:

*ABI/INFORM Global
*ABI/INFORM Trade & Industry
*ABI/INFORM Dateline
*The Wall Street Journal

ABI/INFORM Complete can be picked to search everything, or the individual components can be picked from a drop-down on the ABI/INFORM home page.

ABI/INFORM Complete can be accessed from the Rod Library Business Portal and the Rod Library home page under Databases A-Z.

New types of sources include:
*Industry and market research reports from Business Monitor International and FirstResearch
*Country Finance and Country Forecast reports from Economist Intelligence Unit
*Commodity reports from Economist Intelligence Unit

Other types of resources that may be of interest include:
*ProQuest Annual Reports Collection (10Ks and Annual Reports to Shareholders)
*Doctoral dissertations
*Social Science Research Network working papers

Posted by Stanley Lyle at 3:56 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Global Markets Direct Company Profiles, a source in LexisNexis Academic, contains data and analysis on more than 8,000 companies. For about 1,000 large firms, it provides SWOT and other analysis such as:

* Business Strategy
* Financial and Operational Data
* Revenue Breakdown
* SWOT Analysis
* Value Chain Analysis

Another Rod Library database, Business Source Elite, also provides SWOT analysis for large firms in its company profiles.

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Deloitte has published a 2009 Industry Outlook for aerospace, automotive, banking, and eleven other industries. Each industry report discusses challenges and offers advice on how to deal with the recession and be well positioned for future growth.

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Google Books is a database of several million books. In some cases the entire book can be viewed online, in other cases a snippet or limited preview, and in other cases only descriptions are available. Individual book entries link to a "Find this book in a library" service; this link indicates whether Rod Library or other nearby libraries own the book.

This Rod Library video provides an overview of the Google Books service and how to use it.

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The American Institute of Certified Public Accountants launched an Economic Crisis Resource Center on March 1.

"Whether you are job hunting, seeking articles on job skills in a recession or looking for financial reporting or strategic planning guidance for your business, the Economic Crisis Resource Center is designed to help all CPAs to get through this together."

This site focuses on accounting, but it also covers topics likely to be of interest to students in finance, economics, hr, and other disciplines.

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Mergent Online contains up to 15 years of quarterly and annual financial data and other information for the publicly-held companies it covers. This has been limited to 10,000 U.S. companies until recently, when the publisher added coverage for more than 20,000 publicly-held firms in more than 100 different countries.

Mergent Online can be accessed from the Rod Library home page under Databases A-Z and also from the Rod Library Business Portal.

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There are different ways to do this. One approach is to use LexisNexisAcademic or WestLaw Campus. Both are available from the Rod Library Databases A-Z page or from one of the Business Portal pages.

In LexisNexis Academic, for example, click the Legal link at the top of the page. After reaching the Legal section, click the Federal & State Cases link on the left side of the screen. The resulting form includes a place to enter the case name or citation if you already have such information.

A drop-down menu on the Federal & State Cases search form can be used to pick (and search) only U.S. Supreme Court cases or Iowa, Federal & State Cases combined, for example.

One way to find cases that deal in a significant way with some topic, from the North Western Reporter (court cases from Iowa and other midwestern states), is to structure the search as in this example:

Cite (n.w.) and headnotes (breach of contract) [and add either more keywords, or a date range, etc.]

Or pick the Iowa, Federal & State Cases combined drop-down to search Iowa Federal and State court cases. Here's what LexisNexis says about what's available through the drop-down for Iowa, Federal & State Cases combined:

"The Iowa combination of Federal and State case law provides all available case
law for jurisdictions relating to Iowa.

The Federal case law includes the U.S. Supreme Court, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, as well as the U.S. District Court and Bankruptcy Courts for the State of Iowa.

The State case law includes the Supreme Court of Iowa and the Iowa Court of Appeals."

Posted by Stanley Lyle at 11:52 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The IBISWorld database contains reports on some 700 industries. The President of IBISWorld announced on January 12, 2009 that they are adding a recession outlook section to each of the 700 industry reports they regularly produce. They also have prepared a more general economic forecast.

IBISWorld predicts that some industries will actually benefit from the recession and that "the turning point for every industry is different."

IBISWorld can be accessed from the Rod Library Business Portal and the Rod Library home page under Databases A-Z.

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A group of large business libraries, led by the University of Pennsylvania, has developed a "Business FAQ" which serves as a tool to find the best sources, databases, and data sets on various topics. Other business libraries, mainly at PhD-granting unversities, have modified the FAQ to fit their circumstances.

Some of the recommended sources are free and others are licensed by Penn. Rod Library subscribes to some of the licensed sources. Check UNISTAR, the library catalog, to see if Rod Library has a particular subscription database listed on the Penn Business FAQ...or Ask Us! at Rod Library.

The Business FAQ can be browsed or searched. To give an idea of the content, the listing under Finance includes dozens of questions (and answers); here are the first five questions:

How do I find analyst reports (investment bank reports)?
How do I find bank rates, including mortgage rates?
Where do I find info on American Depositary Receipts (ADRs)?
How do I find current betas for companies and/or industries?
How do I find data and information on bonds?

Posted by Stanley Lyle at 10:05 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Rod Library recently subscribed to Socrates, produced by KLD Research & Analytics. It can be accessed from the library catalog (UNISTAR) or from Databases A-Z in the middle of the Rod Library home page.

Socrates can be used to study the performance of specific companies in various environmental, social, and governmental areas such as climate change, diversity, and transparency. It also reports company activities regarding controversial business issues such as alcohol, contraceptives, firearms, gambling, and so on.

Socrates also can be used to identify groups of companies that are involved in specified issues.

Posted by Stanley Lyle at 11:42 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Rod Library subscribes to a database called Testing & Education Reference Center. It can be accessed from this link, from the library catalog (UNISTAR), or from Databases A-Z in the middle of the Rod Library home page.

Students who are researching graduate, business, and law schools may find this a useful resource. A Graduate Search section provides a tool to use in searching for schools that meet criteria you specify.

A Test Preparation section provides online study guides and practice exams for GMAT, LSAT, GRE, and many other Graduate Entrance and other exams. After registering, students get 90 days to access the practice tests and study lessons. After the first 90 days, students can register for an additional 90 days. Cumulative practice test scores are saved.

Rod Library also has print graduate education study guides, such as GMAT Review, from the Graduate Management Admission Council. Most of these are kept at the Library Reserve Desk.

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The AICPA, FASB, and GASB standards are now available through RIA CheckPoint (generic logon). RIA CheckPoint can be accessed:

1. On the Rod Library home page under Databases A-Z

3. and on this page of the Business Portal

3. Or through this direct link

Here are two ways to access the standards, if you are using a link that does not take you directly to the standards.

After reaching RIA CheckPoint, note the "Search Practice Area" drop-down in the upper left corner of the screen. Change this from Federal to "Acct, Audit, & Corp Finance." AICPA, FASB, and GASB will appear on the right side of the screen. A particular standards body can be checked and then searched.

Another approach is to click the Table of Contents link on the right side of the screen. Then click the + sign next to Accounting, Audit & Corporate Finance Library, then the + sign next to Regulations and Standards. Continue drilling down, by clicking the + sign next to AICPA, FASB, or GASB. Or, click a particular standards body and do a keyword search.

Two people can access the standards at the same time. The standards cannot be accessed from personal accounts.

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Rod Library recently subscribed to ReferenceUSA, a residential and business/organization directory. Entries in the residential section include telephone numbers, addresses, and neighborhood data from the U.S. Census. The business/organization section contains contact information and other data such as estimated sales, credit rating, year established, primary line of business, competitors, and photo of establishment. Non-profit organizations also are included. The search forms can be manipulated to create lists of individuals and companies meeting various criteria.

ReferenceUSA is included in the Databases A-Z list on the library home page and also in UNISTAR, the library catalog. Here’s the direct link.

The vendor (infoUSA) says they compile the residential information from 3,900 white page directories. Residential entries also include data from the U.S. Census. For example, you can look up an individual and get his telephone number but also neighborhood information such as median household income, median home value, and percentage of owner-occupied units. Customized search forms can be developed to create lists of people in certain neighborhood income ranges in certain geographic areas, for example. Entries for individuals also include mapping functions and links to neighbors within .x miles.

The vendor says the business information comes from 5,600 yellow page and business white page directories; government directories; SEC filings; chambers of commerce; and so on. If you look up a company, you'll get their phone number and address but also other information from a wide variety of government and private sources. Customized search forms can be used to create lists of companies or other organizations of interest, such as those in a certain SIC or NAICS-defined industry in a certain geographic area in a certain size range. Entries for companies also include mapping functions and links to companies in certain industries within a specified radius (e.g., other restaurants within 4 miles).

Lists can be printed or downloaded 15 names at a time.

See a tutorial and other aids under the Help tab in ReferenceUSA.

Posted by Stanley Lyle at 11:04 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Datamonitor company reports can be found in the database called, "Business Source Elite."

Business Source Elite is listed on the Rod Library Business Portal. It also is listed on the Rod Library home page under Databases A-Z.

After connecting to Business Source Elite, click the Company Profiles link in the middle near the top of the page. After reaching the Company Profiles part of the database, enter a specific company name such as Hy-Vee in the search box or browse by letter of the alphabet. After reaching the page that lists the company, click on "Datamonitor Report" in the PDF Complete Report column.

Datamonitor company profiles usually include sections such as the following: Business Description, History, Major Products and Services, SWOT analysis, and Top Competitors. The SWOT analysis includes a summary table plus a few paragraphs on each factor listed in the table.

The Business Source Elite entry on the Library Business Portal page includes a short video that shows these steps.

Posted by Stanley Lyle at 12:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Rod Library recently subscribed to an electronic journal package from the American Accounting Association (AAA). It contains the latest six years of the 13 journals listed below. AAA says it does not plan to drop any coverage, so the number of years covered will grow.

Use the UNISTAR Journal Title index or the Article Finder on the Rod Library home page to get to the electronic versions of these titles. Electronic versions of some of these journals are available for other years in other databases. For example, The Accounting Review is available electronically from 1926 - 2002 in JSTOR.

Print copies will no longer be collected. The ones already received will not be withdrawn, though, and can be found in the periodicals areas of the bottom floor of the library.

•"The Accounting Review"
•"Accounting Horizons"
•"Issues in Accounting Education"
•"Accounting and the Public Interest" (e-only)
•"AUDITING: A Journal of Practice & Theory"
•"Current Issues in Auditing" (e-only, open access)
•"Behavior Research in Accounting"
•"Journal of the American Taxation Association"
•"Journal of Emerging Technologies in Accounting"
•"Journal of Information Systems"
•"Journal of International Accounting Research"
•"Journal of Legal Tax Research" (e-only)
•"Journal of Management Accounting Research"

Posted by Stanley Lyle at 3:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Rod Library recently subscribed to the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) Working Papers.

NBER is a prominent economic research organization. Numerous Nobel prize winners and past chairs of the President's Council of Economic Advisors have conducted research at NBER. See this page for more details about NBER.

Working papers are preliminary manuscripts designed for quick publication and to stimulate debate. NBER says its working papers "have not undergone the review accorded official NBER publications."

The NBER Working Papers includes papers done from 1973 to the present. The NBER Working Papers are listed in UNISTAR, the library catalog.

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Rod Library has purchased two additional copies of the CPA Examination Review, by Irvin N. Gleim. This makes a total of three copies; all are available at the Rod Library MultiService, located at the bottom of the front stairway. Volume 1 of the CPA Examination Review contains outlines and study guides; volume 2 contains problems and solutions.

This purchase was in response to student requests. Please let me know if you would like the library to consider adding other print or online resources.

Posted by Stanley Lyle at 11:17 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The interface for LexisNexis Academic was revised earlier this semester. New content was added, too, such as Company Dossier. Company Dossier has three main parts: Company Dossier (look up a company); Dossier Create a Company List; and Dossier Compare Companies.

Company Dossier searches look for known companies in more that 60 sources from organizations such as Hoover's, Standard & Poor's, and Disclosure. Financial data can be downloaded to a spreadsheet. The Create a Company list search can be used to create a list of companies, for example, in a certain industry and state that employ more than x thousand people. In Compare Companies, one can enter up to five company names or ticker symbols and get a table that compares them on various financials.

LexisNexis Academic can be accessed from the Rod Library home page under Databases A-Z and also from this Rod Library Business Portal page.

After connecting to LexisNexis Academic, click on the Business tab and then look for the Company Dossier options on the right side of the screen.

Posted by Stanley Lyle at 2:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Rod Library does not subscribe to the version of the Wall Street Journal at http://www.wsj.com. Some articles and important features at this address are free, though, such as the Markets Data Center, listed under the Markets Data & Tools tab.

Rod Library DOES subscribe to Wall Street Journal articles via ProQuest ABI/INFORM Global; the full text of Journal articles from January 2, 1984 to the present are available online in this way.

Use this address to go to an ABI/INFORM link to a list of Wall Street Journal issues that can be browsed and searched. Wall Street Journal articles also may show up in searches of ABI/INFORM Global.

Rod Library also subscribes to a print edition of the Journal, available at the MultiService Desk. Older issues are on microfilm back to 1958.

Update on 2/7/08: News Corp. completed acquisition of Dow Jones in December. The News Corp. chair said at a recent conference that the free portion of the WSJ will be greatly expanded but there will continue to be content available only to subscribers. See this 1/25/08 article from the WSJ for more details.

Posted by Stanley Lyle at 10:19 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Rod Library recently added access to ProQuest’s Historic New York Times, a database which provides cover-to-cover access to full page and article images from 1851 – 2003. This link, for example, shows the the front page reports on the "Black Thursday" stock crash in 1929.

Purchase of this database was funded in part through a special allocation of Student Computer Fees.

It is accessible from the Databases A-Z menu that appears under the Journal and Magazine Articles (Panther Prowler) heading on the Library home page and through UNISTAR, the Library’s online catalog.

Posted by Stanley Lyle at 1:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Answer: Business students are probably looking for the ProQuest database called ABI/INFORM Global. (Rod Library subscribes to other ProQuest databases that cover fields like criminal justice, art, and music.) When you connect to ABI/INFORM, you'll see that ProQuest is in large letters, and the name of the database is in small letters.

1. ABI/INFORM Global can be accessed from the Rod Library Business Portal at http://www.library.uni.edu/ris/business/

2. It can also be accessed from the Databases A-Z and by Field of Study in the middle of the Rod Library home page.

3. And this nasty looking URL should work from on campus as well as off campus: http://0-www.umi.com.unistar.uni.edu/pqdauto?COPT=REJTPTM@

Posted by Stanley Lyle at 2:59 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

LexisNexis Academic is undergoing a redesign; Rod Library will move to this new interface later in the year. If you want to take a look now at the redesign, click this link. (There also is a link to this beta version at the top of the page of the current version.)

LexisNexis is changing the search interface and adding new content that may be useful to business researchers, such as the "Company Dossier." A company name search, for example, creates a nicely-packaged collection of data on the company drawn from various sources in LexisNexis Academic.

Another feature that might be of interest is the "Dossier Create a Company List" function. This can be used to create lists of companies that fit specified criteria such as industry, geographic locations, and financial characteristics. Company lists can be downloaded to spreadsheets. The company data come from various sources such as InfoUSA.

Posted by Stanley Lyle at 8:24 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

An expanded version of Investext, called Investext Plus with about 4.6 million reports, is now available. An abbreviated version had been available through the database called Business & Company Resource Center. The database publisher, Thomson Gale, made the entire database available earlier this year for no additional charge. It can still be accessed via Business & Company Resource Center; it also can be accessed directly by clicking Investext Plus in the Databases A– Z list on the Rod Library home page.

Posted by Stanley Lyle at 9:07 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

IBISWorld contains strategic analyses for some 700 industries. Each report covers topics such as industry definition, market characteristics, industry concentration, conditions and performance, key competitors, and the outlook for the industry. It can be accessed from the Databases A-Z list in the middle of the Rod Library home page at http://www.library.uni.edu/. Go to the page at http://www.ibisworld.com/static/industry.asp for an overview of Industry Market Research Reports and a link (lower right) to the full report for Motion Picture and Video Exhibition.

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