Getting the Most Out of Your Research Dollar:
CD-ROMs for News Libraries
Warning: This list is about four years out of date. If you would like to update this list, we would be delighted! Send an e-mail to Carolyn Edds at riverat@afn.org
- I. CD-ROM Titles
- History and Geography
- Government and International
- Literature and Poetry
- News Sources
- Phone Directories
- Ready Reference
- Science and Health
- Statistics and Finance
- II. Vendors
- III. Information Sources
CD-ROMs can help you "get the most out of your research dollar" by saving money
on online searching, enabling end-user searching and saving shelf space. This
handout lists CD-ROM titles, vendors and information sources to help you. No
list is perfect; this list is no exception.
I. CD-ROM Titles
The following are useful CD-ROMs for news libraries. The list provides
information about competing products in some areas and is not meant to be
comprehensive. Omissions from the list include data CD-ROMs that require a
database management system to access the content. Titles owned by U.S. News are
marked with a + symbol.
The contacts listed are for the CD-ROM publisher, although many of these
CD-ROMs are commercially available from retail sources which may have lower
prices. All prices listed are approximate and are for stand-alone use.
HISTORY & GEOGRAPHY
- DeLorme Global Explorer+: Maps the entire world with varying degrees of detail,
some down to street-level. Price: $60
- Contact: DeLorme Mapping, Freeport, ME, 800-452-5831 (207-865-1234)
- DeLorme Street Atlas USA+: Detailed, street-level maps of the United States.
Price: $80
- Contact: DeLorme Mapping, Freeport, ME, 800-452-5831 (207-865-1234)
- Geographic Names Information Service (GNIS)+: Gazetteer from the U.S.
Geological Survey designed to allow mapmakers to standardize names of places,
features and areas. Price: $57
- Contact: U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Geological Survey,
800-872-6277
- Omni Gazetteer of the United States of America: Corresponds to the print
product, providing location and other relevant information for about 1.5
million place names in the USA and its territories. Updated annually. Price:
$995 (one-time or annual subscription)
- Contact: SilverPlatter Information Inc., Norwood, MA, 800-343-0064
(617-769-2599)
- Playboy Interviews 3 Decades+: Features more than 350 Playboy interviews from
1962 to 1982 (update coming soon) including Malcolm X, Fidel Castro, and Jane
Fonda. Price: $40
- Contact: IBM Multimedia Publishing Studio, Atlanta, GA, 800-937-5557
GOVERNMENT & INTERNATIONAL
CIA World Factbook: Corresponds to the book containing facts and figures for
200+ countries and territories. Updated annually. Price: $50
Contact: Quanta Press Incorporated, Minneapolis, MN, 612-379-3956
DRI/McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of World Economies on CD-ROM+: Comprehensive
database of all major world economies including post-communist nations. Updated
semi-annually. Price: $345
Contact: McGraw-Hill, New York, NY, 800-338-3987 (212-337-5904)
Exegy: The Source for Current World Information+: ABC-CLIO's multimedia version
of their Kaleidoscope print product providing information on countries, events,
biographies and organizations. Updated bi-monthly. Price: $650
Contact: ABC-CLIO, Santa Barbara, CA, 800-422-2546 (805-968-1911)
KGB/CIA Factbook: Contains statistics on over 250 countries and territories.
Updated annually. Price: $40
Contact: Compton's NewMedia, Carlsbad, CA, 619-929-2500
U.S. Foreign Affairs on CD-ROM+: Compilation of documents from the U.S.
Department of State including Dispatch magazine, daily press briefing
transcripts, country background notes, testimony, statements and speeches.
Updated quarterly. Price: $80 for quarterly updates; $29 each.
Contact: U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C., 202-512-1524
United States Code+: Laws of the United States. Updated annually. Price: $36
Contact: U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 202-512-1524
LITERATURE & POETRY
B&T Link, Database, The Title Source: Bibliographic and ordering information
for more than 1.9 million book, video, and audio titles. Updated monthly.
Price: $995 per year for monthly updates; various other pricing levels down to
$199 per year for semi-annual
Contact: Baker & Taylor, Charlotte, NC, 800-775-1800 (704-357-3500)
Books in Print with Book Reviews Plus+: Corresponds to the print product with
reviews for some titles. Updated monthly. Price: $1595 per year
Contact: Bowker/Reed Reference, New Providence, NJ, 800-323-3288 (908-464-6800)
Bookscope: A book-finding reference database, which allows users to search over 350,000 current titles, including direct access to table of contents information. Price: $995 for a year's subscription
Contact: Primary Source Media, Woodbridge, CT, 800-444-0799 (203-397-2600)
Columbia Granger's World of Poetry+: Contains a fully searchable Granger's
Index to Poetry with the complete text of 8,500 poems and quotations from
another 1,500 poems. Price: $699
Contact: Columbia University Press, New York, NY, 212-666-1000
Contemporary Authors+: Provides biographical and bibliographical information on
more than 100,000 contemporary writers from the Gale series. Updated annually.
Price: $795 per year to lease; $3,650 one-time purchase with $795 per year for
updates.
Contact: Gale Research, Inc., Detroit, MI, 800-877-4253 (313-961-2242)
Great Poetry Classics+: Contains over 100 poems from well-known writers such as
Keats, Shelley, and Shakespeare. Price: $50
Contact: World Library, Inc., Irvine, CA, 800-443-0238 (714-756-9500)
Greatest Books Collection+: Contains 150 classical works from literature,
history, philosophy, poetry, religion, and science. Price: $50
Contact: World Library, Inc., Irvine, CA, 800-443-0238 (714-756-9500)
Library of the Future: Contains over 1,500 titles of classical and modern
literature. Updated irregularly. Price: $150
Contact: World Library, Inc., Irvine, CA, 800-443-0238 (714-756-9500)
NEWS SOURCES
Broadcast News: Full text transcripts from four major broadcast networks, ABC,
CNN, PBS, and NPR. Price: $1495 per year for 12 updates; $495 per year for quarterly updates.
Newslines: A database similar to Broadcast News, but presents over 1,000 images
from AP files rather than news transcripts. Price: updated quarterly, and sells for $249/year.
Contact: Primary Source Media, Woodbridge, CT, 800-444-0799 (203-397-2600)
Canadian News Disc / CD Actualite Canada: Full text of articles from various
Canadian newspapers in English and French respectively. Updated semi-annually.
Price: Can$1,500 for each language or Can$2,250 for both languages
Contact: Southam Electronic Publishing, Don Mills, ON, 416-442-2198
CD NewsBank Comprehensive: News articles from newspapers and wire services
covering "an issue or event of either national or international importance."
Updated monthly. Price: $3,700
Contact: NewsBank, New Canaan, CT, 800-243-7694
DIALOG OnDisc Papers: Text of articles from individual newspapers. Updated
quarterly with ability to dial in to DIALOG to update a search. Price: $995
per year for "current year plus one" subscription to a single paper; $2,295 -
$2,995 for initial subscription to full archive of a single paper
Boston Globe 1986 - present
Detroit Free Press 1988 - present
Los Angeles Times 1986 - present
Miami Herald 1989 - present
Newsday and New York NewsDay 1988 - present
Philadelphia Inquirer 1987 - present
San Francisco Chronicle 1987 - present
San Jose Mercury News 1986 - present
Contact: DIALOG Information Services, Palo Alto, CA, 800-334-2564
(415-858-3785)
Federal News Service: Four years of transcripts covering primarily the federal
government, Congress and politics. Updated monthly. Price: $1,600 per year for
monthly subscription
Contact: UMI, Ann Arbor, MI, 800-521-0600 (313-761-4700)
General Periodicals OnDisc+: In the most comprehensive form, includes abstracts
of over 1000 general periodicals and scanned images of over 350 of the
publications. Comes in three groups: Library or Select, Research I and
Research II. Updated monthly. Price: $6,985 - $8,450 per year for monthly
subscription.
Contact: UMI, Ann Arbor, MI, 800-521-0600 (313-761-4700)
Globe and Mail / Financial Times of Canada: Full text of both publications from
1991 to the present. Updated annually. Price: $499
Contact: Globe Information Services, Toronto, ON, 416-585-5163
Magazine Article Summaries Full Text Select/Elite: Abstracts of articles from
450 general magazines plus the full text of 60/90 magazines respectively.
Updated monthly or quarterly. Price: $2,599 per year for monthly subscription;
$1,799 per year for quarterly subscription.
Contact: EBSCO Publishing, Peabody, MA, 800-653-2726 (508-535-8500)
NewsBank CD-News: Full text news coverage from the following papers. Updated
monthly for most (some available quarterly as well.) Price: Starts at $1,900 -
$2,500 per year for monthly updates to a single paper; $895 - $1,735 per year
for quarterly updates to a single paper
Arizona Republic/Phoenix Gazette/
Arizona Business Gazette 1987 - present
Atlanta Journal/Atlanta Constitution 5/83 - present
Austin American-Statesman 1989 - present
(Baltimore) Sun 1991 - present
(Baton Rouge) Advocate 1986 - present
Boston Globe 1985 - present
Buffalo News 7/92 - present
Chicago Tribune 1985 - present
Christian Science Monitor 1989 - present
Cincinnati Enquirer 5/90 - present
Cincinnati Post/Kentucky Post 4/90 - present
Columbus Dispatch 7/85 - present
Daily Oklahoman 11/81 - present
Dallas Morning News 9/84 - present
Dayton Daily News 7/93 - present
Denver Post 6/89 - present
(Denver) Rocky Mountain News 6/89 - present
Des Moines Register 1991 - present
Detroit News 7/91 - present
Evansville Courier 6/91 - present
(Ft. Lauderdale) Sun-Sentinel 1986 - present
Fort Worth Star-Telegram 1991 - present
Greensboro News and Record 1993 - present
(Hackensack) Record 7/84 - present
Hartford Courant 1991 - present
Houston Chronicle 4/85 - present
Indianapolis Star/Indianapolis News 10/93 - present
Knoxville News-Sentinel 10/90 - present
(Louisville) Courier-Journal 3/88 - present
Los Angeles Times 1985 - present
(Memphis) Commercial Appeal 7/90 - present
Milwaukee Journal/Milwaukee Sentinel 2/90 - present
(Minneapolis) Star Tribune 1986 - present
Newsday/New York Newsday 1986 - present
Orange County Register 1987 - present
Orlando Sentinel 4/85 - present
Palm Beach Post 1989 - present
(Portland) Oregonian 9/87 - present
(Raleigh) News & Observer 6/90 - present
Sacramento Bee 9/84 - present
San Francisco Chronicle 1985 - present
San Diego Union-Tribune 1984 - present
Seattle Times 1985 - present
St. Louis Post-Dispatch 1989 - present
St. Petersburg Times 1987 - present
Tampa Tribune 2/90 - present
Tulsa World 1987 - present
USA TODAY 4/87 - present
Washington Post 9/86 - present
Washington Times 4/86 - present
Contact: NewsBank, New Canaan, CT, 800-243-7694
Popular Periodicals on CD-ROM: Complete text of 32 magazines plus abstracts for
another 100+ titles. Updated monthly. Price: $1,595
Contact: NewsBank, New Canaan, CT, 800-243-7694
UMI Newspapers OnDisc+: Full text of articles from individual newspapers.
Updated monthly. Price: $2,030 - $2,550 per year for current year plus two
year backfile per paper
New York Times+ 1988 - present
USA TODAY 1990 - present
Wall Street Journal+ 1989 - present
Washington Post+ 1989 - present
Contact: UMI, Ann Arbor, MI, 800-521-0600 (313-761-4700)
PHONE DIRECTORIES
- American Yellow Pages+: Disc covering ten million U.S. businesses that can be
searched by type of business or company name keyword. Includes complete
address, phone number and fax number. Allows for limiting by city, state, etc.
and downloading. Updated annually. Price: $59
- Contact: American Business Information, Omaha, NE, 402-593-4595
- CanadaPhone: Contains almost 10 million Canadian residential and business
listings. Can be searched by name, street address, city, province, postal code,
area code, telephone number, business heading or SIC code. Updated quarterly.
Price: $179 per year for quarterly updates
- Contact: ProCD, Marblehead, MA, 800-237-6625
- DirectPhone/SelectPhone+ (ProPhone): Two/ five regional discs containing both
8 million business and 72 million residential listings. DirectPhone can only be
searched by name and then limited. SelectPhone can be searched by name,
portions of address, telephone number, or type of business. SelectPhone is
updated quarterly. Price: DirectPhone: $99; SelectPhone:$299 for annual
subscription; $99 for latest release only.
- Contact: ProCD, Marblehead, MA, 800-237-6625
- PhoneDisc Business: One disc containing 9.5 million business listings that can
be searched by company name, SIC code, street address and telephone number.
Updated quarterly. Price: $169 for annual subscription; $79 for latest release
only.
- Contact: Digital Directory Assistance, Marblehead, MA, 800-284-8353 (617-639-2900)
- PhoneDisc PowerFinder+ (formerly Reverse): Five regional discs containing 91
million business and residential listings. Combines both PhoneDisc Business and
PhoneDisc USA Residential. PowerFinder can be searched by name, portions of
address, telephone number, or type of business. Updated quarterly. Price: $499
for annual subscription; $249 for latest release only; $199 for annual
subscription for one region.
- Contact: Digital Directory Assistance, Marblehead, MA, 800-284-8353 (617-639-2900)
- PhoneDisc USA Residential: Two regional discs containing 81 million residential
listings. USA Residential can be searched by name and then limited. Updated
quarterly. Price: $169 for annual subscription; $69 for latest release only.
- Contact: Digital Directory Assistance, Marblehead, MA, 800-284-8353 (617-639-2900)
- 11 Million Businesses Phone Directory: One disc containing business listings
that can be searched by company name keyword and phone number. Does not include
complete addresses; see American Yellow Pages. Updated annually. Price: $30
- Contact: American Business Information, Omaha, NE, 402-593-4595
- 70 Million Households Phone Book+: One disc containing residential phone
numbers verified using public records. Price: $30
- Contact: American Business Information, Omaha, NE, 402-593-4595
- 1.1 Million Health & Medical Industry Reference Directory: One disc listing
everything from physicians to health clubs, that can be searched by name, type
of business, professional specialty, zip code, city or state. Price: $49 (list
price)
- Contact: American Business Information, Omaha, NE, 402-593-4595
READY REFERENCE
9-Digit ZIP Code Directory: ZIP Codes for every address in the U.S. Updated
annually. Price: $40
Contact: American Business Information, Omaha, NE, 402-593-4595
Biography and Genealogy Master Index CD-ROM+: Index to over 8.5 million
biographies on over three million people. Updated annually. Price: $1,250 for
the first year; $375 for annual updates.
Contact: Gale Research, Inc., Detroit, MI, 800-877-4253 (313-961-2242)
Britannica CD: Contains the full 44 million-word text of the Encyclopaedia
Britannica. Price: $995
Contact: Encyclopaedia Britannica, Chicago, IL, 800-554-9862 (312-347-7000)
CD-ROMs in Print+: Detailed information including publisher, price, frequency,
and some reviews. Updated semi-annually. Price: $100 for annual subscription
Contact: Mecklermedia, Westport, CT, 800-635-5537 (203-226-6967)
Compton's Interactive Encyclopedia: Corresponds to the print version with
multimedia and searching ability. Price: $395
Contact: Compton's NewMedia, Carlsbad, CA, 619-929-2500
Encyclopedia of Associations CD-ROM: Two versions covering only the National
Organizations of the U.S. or covering national, international, regional, state
and local organizations. Updated semi-annually. Price: $595 / $1,095 per year
respectively
Contact: Gale Research, Inc., Detroit, MI, 800-877-4253 (313-961-2242)
Facts On File News Digest CD-ROM+: Corresponds to the print product of news
stories and indexes from 1980 to the present. Updated quarterly. Price: $795
for quarterly updates; annual updates available as well
Contact: Facts On File, Inc., New York, NY, 800-322-8755 (212-683-2244)
Gale's Quotations: Who Said What?+: A collection of over 117,000 quotations
from ancient times to the present day. Searchable by speaker, author, keyword
and more. Price: $400
Contact: Gale Research, Inc., Detroit, MI, 800-877-4253 (313-961-2242)
Microsoft Bookshelf: Collection of reference works including the American
Heritage Dictionary, Roget's Thesaurus, The World Almanac and Book of Facts,
Concise Columbia Encyclopedia, The People's Chronology, and the Columbia
Dictionary of Quotations. Updated annually. Price: $100
Contact: Microsoft Corporation, Redmond, WA, 800-426-9400 (206-882-8080)
Microsoft Cinemania: Movie guide containing the complete text of Leonard
Maltin's Movie and Video Guide, Roger Ebert's Video Companion, and Pauline
Kael's 5001 Nights at the Movies, biographies and video clips. Updated
annually. Price: $40
Contact: Microsoft Corporation, Redmond, WA, 800-426-9400 (206-882-8080)
Microsoft Complete Baseball: Contains the complete batting, pitching,
baserunning and fielding stats for every major league player, as well as more
than 1,000 biographies. Daily dial-up updates are available by subscription.
Updated annually. Price: $50
Contact: Microsoft Corporation, Redmond, WA, 800-426-9400 (206-882-8080)
Microsoft Encarta: A Multimedia Encyclopedia: Contains the text of Funk &
Wagnalls New Encyclopedia with 1,000+ additional articles, multimedia and
searching ability. Updated annually. Price: $395
Contact: Microsoft Corporation, Redmond, WA, 800-426-9400 (206-882-8080)
Polling the Nations 1986 - 1993+: Polls and surveys from sources as varied as
Gallup and Good Housekeeping. Corresponds to the American Public Opinion Index
and data microfiche. Updated annually. Price: $795 for the first year; $495 for
annual updates
Contact: ORS Publishing, Bethesda, MD, 301-656-8611
Quotation Reference Collection of 75,000 Quotes: Contains the Columbia
Dictionary of Quotations, Simpson's Contemporary Quotations and others. Price:
$150
Contact: AApex Software, Reno, NV, 800-728-7650 (702-324-4580)
Sports Illustrated CD-ROM Sports Almanac: An electronic reference guide of
sports, statistics, and stories. Price: $60
Contact: Time-Warner Interactive Group, Burbank, CA, 818-955-9999
The Way Things Work: Based on the book by the same name. A visual dictionary of over 70,000 inventions. Price: $80
Contact: Doring Kindersley Multimedia, New York, NY, 800-DKMM-575 (212-213-4800)
SCIENCE & HEALTH
Multimedia Encyclopedia of Science & Technology+: Corresponds to the McGraw
Hill Encyclopedia of Science & Technology (minus some of the graphics.)
Updated annually. Price: $1,300 ($325 for annual update)
Contact: McGraw-Hill, New York, NY, 800-338-3987 (212-337-5904)
PDR Library on CD-ROM+: Provides easy access to the drug information contained
in the Physicians' Desk Reference and the other PDR books. Updated three times
a year. Price: $595 Contact: Medical Economics Data, Chicago, IL, 800-223-0581
(201-358-7500)
Science Navigator: Corresponds to the McGraw Hill Concise Encyclopedia of
Science & Technology and the Dictionary of Scientific Terms. Price: $150
Contact: McGraw-Hill, New York, NY, 800-338-3987 (212-337-5904)
STATISTICS & FINANCE
Budget of the United States Government+: Contains all parts of the budget.
Includes the Historical Tables in spreadsheet files. Updated annually. Price:
$24.
Contact: U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C., 202-512-1524
Census Summary Tape File 3A/3C+: Information from the 1990 long form
questionnaire. STF 3A data is available for each state down to the block group
level. STF 3C is the national file data which covers the United States,
regions, divisions, states, counties, places of 10,000 or more inhabitants,
metropolitan areas and American Indian and Alaska Native areas on two discs.
Price: STF 3A $150-250 per state; STF 3C $150.
Contact: Customer Services, Bureau of the Census, Washington, D.C., 301-763-4100
Consolidated Federal Funds Report+: Corresponds to the print publication of the
same name, listing federal government expenditures or obligations in state,
county and subcounty areas of the United States, U.S. territories and the
District of Columbia. Updated annually. Price: $150
Contact: Customer Services, Bureau of the Census, Washington, D.C., 301-763-4100
County and City Data Book: Corresponds to the book containing demographic,
economic and governmental data from both the federal government and private
agencies. Updated every 5 years. Price: $150
Contact: Customer Services, Bureau of the Census, Washington, D.C., 301-763-4100
Federal Prime Contracts on CD-ROM+: Federal government purchase information,
both civilian and defense. Updated quarterly. Price: Starts at $995 per year
for read-only edition
Contact: Eagle Eye Publishing, Vienna, VA, 703-242-4201
Government Spending+: Federal government purchase information, both civilian
and defense. Price: $99 for latest year
Contact: CD Publishing, Inc., Flower Mound, TX, 800-460-2371 (214-724-0023)
National Economic, Social & Environmental (NESE) Data Bank+: Contains
information and data on economics, budget, population, education, justice, the
environment and more. Includes the text of popular publications such as The
Economic Report of the President and Health United States. Updated quarterly.
Price: $360 for annual subscription; $95 each.
Contact: U.S. Department of Commerce Economics and Statistics Administration,
Office of Business Analysis, 800-STAT-USA. (202-482-1986)
National Trade Data Bank (NTDB): Consists of two separate files -- NTDB
(Reports) and NTDB (Foreign Traders). NTDB Reports provides full text documents
and statistical data from over 100,000 U.S. Government publications pertaining
to international trade. NTDB (Foreign Traders) contains information for over
12,000 U.S. companies interested in exporting and foreign importers, agents,
and distributors of interest to U.S. companies desiring to export. Updated
monthly. Price: $360 for annual subscription; $35 each.
Contact: U.S. Department of Commerce Economics and Statistics Administration,
Office of Business Analysis, 800-STAT-USA. (202-482-1986)
Regional Economic Information System (REIS): Local area economic data including personal income, employment, and earnings by industry for 1969-92. Updated
annually in May. Price: $35
Contact: U.S. Department of Commerce Economics and Statistics Administration,
Bureau of Economic Analysis, 202-606-5360.
School District Data Book CD-ROM+: Data derived from 1990 Census data, the
National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data, and the Census
Survey of Local Government Finance. Individual states can be purchased, as well
as a single U.S. Summary disc that includes only selected data for all 15,000
school districts. Price: $15 each ($300 for the complete set of 42 CD-ROMs.)
Contact: U.S. Department of Education, Office of Educational Research and
Improvement, Data Systems Branch, 555 New Jersey Avenue NW, Washington, DC
20208. Or Contact Ted Drewes at the National Center for Education Statistics,
202-219-1731 for an order form.
Statistical Abstract of the United States+: Corresponds to the government
bestseller of the same name containing a plethora of statistics and including
tables not available in the book. Updated annually. Price: $50
Contact: Customer Services, Bureau of the Census, Washington, D.C.,
301-763-4100
USA Counties+: Contains data on counties from the Census Bureau and 15 other
federal and private agencies. Price: $150
Contact: Customer Services, Bureau of the Census, Washington, D.C.,
301-763-4100
II. Vendors
While some CD-ROMs are cheaper from their publisher, others are better
purchased from a vendor. Usually the publisher will be able to give you
information about a retailer in your area. The following are some vendors we
have used.
III. Information Sources
The number of CD-ROM titles is growing exponentially. The following are some
resources to help you find useful titles.
- Periodicals
- CD-ROM Professional (Pemberton Press, 800-248-8466): Covers both software and
hardware, including in-depth technical articles.
- Information Today (Learned Information, Inc., 609-654-6266): Special sections,
CD-ROM Today and Multimedia Today, with reviews and product profiles.
- Library Journal (800-677-6694): CD-ROM review column that compares a few
similar products.
- Multimedia World (PC World Communications, 800-766-3294): Covers both software
and hardware.
- PC Magazine (800-289-0429): Covers hardware and software to some degree.
- PC World (800-234-3498 or 303-447-9330): Covers hardware and software to some
degree.
- Reference
- CD-ROM Finder (Learned Information, Inc., 609-654-6266): Product profiles for
CD-ROMs of interest to information professionals. Updated annually.
- CD-ROMs in Print (Mecklermedia, 800-635-5537 or 203-226-6967): CD-ROM with
detailed information on CD-ROMs, including publisher, price, frequency, and
some reviews. Updated semi-annually.
- Gale Directory of Databases, Volume 2: CD-ROM, Diskette, Magnetic Tape,
Handheld, and Batch Access Database Products (Gale Research Inc.,
800-877-GALE): Profiles more than 4000 database products. Updated
semi-annually.
Compiled by Kathleen Flynn
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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