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In the third paragraph, the author states that ‘Conventional text retrieval systems suffer from a number of problems. First, indexing terms and / or classificators have normally to be assigned manually, which is a very time‐consuming process and can lead to severe problems with regard to inter‐indexer consistency.’ To what types of systems does this refer? From a content perspective it would appear to be addressing the problems of a keyword system, also referred to as a document coding system. Yet, they are referred to as ‘conventional text retrieval systems.’ Manual indexing is not a component of today's text retrieval system, elementary or advanced.

A word of caution to users of online databases — do not rest on your laurels. Though you may be users of online information you must ask yourself, how much of your information is available online? We are all aware of the countless studies that have shown anywhere from 93–95% of all information used by organizations today is in paper format. More importantly, research conducted by the Delphi Consulting Group has shown that less than one tenth of 1% of the information stored electronically is under the control of a text retrieval system. If that concerns you — it should. But it should not concern you as much as the fact that the overwhelming majority of full‐text retrieval front ends to online databases do not utilize state‐of‐the‐art functionality and features. If you believe that as an early adopter of online technology you are guaranteed a place among the victors of the information revolution, you are in for a rude awakening.

As CD‐ROM becomes more and more a standard reference and technical support tool in all types of libraries, the annual review of this technology published in Computers in Libraries magazine increases in size and scope. This year, author Susan L. Adkins has prepared this exceptionally useful bibliography which she has cross‐referenced with a subject index.

One of the emerging roles of management accountants in organizations is the design and operation of their organization's knowledge management system (KMS) that ensures the strategic utilization and management of its knowledge resources. Knowledge-based organizations face identifiable general risks but those whose primary product is knowledge, knowledge-products organizations (KPOs), additionally face unique risks. The management accountants’ role in the management of knowledge is even more critical in such organizations. We review the literature and survey a small convenient sample of knowledge-products organizations to identify the general risks knowledge-based organizations face and the additional risks unique to KPOs. The general risks of managing knowledge include inappropriate corporate information policies, employee turnover, and lack of data transferability. Additional risks unique to KPOs include the short life span (shelf-life) of knowledge products, the challenging nature of knowledge experts, and the vulnerability of intellectual property. The paper includes recommendations for management accountants in KPOs to develop and maintain competitive advantage through their KMS. These include developing enterprise-wide knowledge policies, fostering collaboration and documentation, addressing knowledge security, and evaluating the effectiveness of the KMS.