ACRL News Issue (B) of College & Research Libraries 5 0 2 /C & RL News In te rn e t R e v ie w s HLAS Online. Access: http: //lc w eb2. loc. go v/hlas/. L a u n c h e d in D e c e m b e r 1996, HLAS O nline is the W eb version o f the well- know n H andbook o f Latin Am erican Studies, a massive annual annotated bibliogra­ phy covering numerous sub­ jects in the humanities and social sciences. Recently, a se p arate section o n elec­ tronic reso u rce s has also been added. Signed biblio­ graphic essays accom pany extensive annotated bibliographies, each year comprising more than 5,000 citations. Since 1935 the Handbook has been an indispensable a n d a u th o rita tiv e re s e a rc h to o l for Latin Americanists. It is also available in CD-ROM format, and via telnet to the Library of Con­ gress’ LOCIS system. The strength of HLAS Online is quite sim­ ply the quickness and efficiency with which relevant resources can be identified. Users can search not only the entire span of the bibliog­ raphies from 1935 to the present, but also ac­ cess preliminary data already online for future volumes not yet published. The search engine is efficient and powerful, and complex search strategies, Boolean operators, and truncation are all unnecessary. Full bibliographic records include hyperlinked subject headings which can be searched with a click of the mouse, allow­ ing easy redirection o f a search. Help screens are well designed and thorough, as is the en­ tire site. Another feature unique to the Web version is that it is fully bilingual, so users can choose to access either a Spanish- or English- language interface. Future plans include the development of a Portuguese interface as well. There are some noteworthy features of the print version missing from HLAS Online. For example, the most recent bibliographic essays are not available online, and editorial overviews, lists of contributing editors, and most tables of contents are also not included. Thus, librarians inclined to rush out and cancel subscriptions to the print volumes of the H andbook in favor of HLAS Online should instead consider these as complementary resources. HLAS Online is hig h ly re c o m m e n d e d for q u ick literatu re searches, for remote users, and for Spanish-lan- Sara Amato, editor guage access. Researchers seeking to gain a clear un­ derstanding of recent devel­ opments in a particular field will need to consult the print volumes. Both versions are vital resources for all aca­ demic or large public library collections.— Susan A. Vega Garcia, Iowa State Univer­ sity; savega@iastate.edu P e rry -C a s ta n e d a Li­ brary M ap Collection. Access: http://www.lib.utexas. e d u / L ib s /P C L /M a p _ c o ll e c tio n /M a p _ collection.html. This site is a rich resource for students, faculty, and librarians looking for maps on the Inter­ net. D eveloped and maintained by the Docu­ ments Department in the Perry-Castaneda Li­ brary (PCL) at the University of Texas at Austin, it is unique among map sites in that it provides more than 2,100 public-domain m aps which can be freely dow nloaded and printed (users are asked to credit the PCL Map Collection). Easy to use, with excellent content, the site provides a valuable service in making avail­ able electronic maps from many different fed­ eral agencies, including the CIA, National Park Service, State Department, U.S. Bureau of the Census, and U.S. Defense Mapping Agency. Impressive for its international coverage, the site opens with links to electronic maps of coun­ tries currently in the news, which at this writ­ ing included Albania and Zaire. The rest of the w orld’s countries are listed by region. Most of the country maps are from the CIA, with some from other sources such as the State Depart­ ment. The political m aps show cities, major roads and railroads, and political boundaries. For many countries additional maps are in­ cluded, such as shaded relief maps and the­ matic maps showing population densities, eco­ nomic activities, and land use. More than 120 world city maps are included. These are basic maps, not detailed enough for your next walk­ ing tour of Paris, but good for general informa­ tion. There is also a very useful, extensive list of links to other city map sites on the Web. Sara A m ato is auto m a ted systems librarian a t Central W ashington University; sa m a to@ tahom a.cw u.edu mailto:savega@iastate.edu http://www.lib.utexas mailto:samato@tahoma.cwu.edu J u ly /A u g u s t 1 9 9 7 / 5 0 3 More than 300 maps are included in the U.S. category, w hich has a large contingent of Texas maps. Many historical maps are included, such as U.S. city maps from the 1917 and 1920 edi­ tions of the Automobile Blue Book. Maps of ex­ ploration and maps of national parks are also included. O f interest are the many maps that have b een scanned from the N ational Atlas o f the United States (U.S.G.S.), a classic atlas not available in all libraries. These are basic mapsz not detailed enough for your next w alkin g tour of Paris, but good for general info. The site maintains extensive lists o f links to other map sites on the Web, including com ­ mercial, educational, and governm ent sites. These are especially useful because they are browsable by city or country. There are also links to online reference sources such as gazet­ teers, distance calculators, illustrated descrip­ tions o f 18 different m ap projections, bibliog­ raphies, glossaries, and more. PCL Documents Department staff are scanning in about 20 to 30 maps every w eek from their collection of more than 200,000 printed maps, in addition to updating and adding links continually. Any­ one with an interest in maps will w ant to keep a bookm ark for this first-rate site. Ed. note: Those interested in maps may enjoy this m onth’s “Geography Resources on the Internet” article on page 471.— Susan Clark, University o f the Pacific; sclark@uop.edu Hoover's Online: The Ultimate Source for Company Information. Access: http: //w w w .h o o v ers.co m . Hoover’s Inc. is an information publishing com­ pany b ased in Austin, Texas. Its information is distributed th ro u g h online m edia, CD-ROM p ro d u cts, an d th e ir In te rn e t sites su c h as Hoover’s Online, IPO Central (Initial Public Of­ fering), an d cyberstocks.com . H oover’s also publishes business reference books and soft­ w are products. The H oover’s Online edition covers the financial profiles o n 2,600 interna­ tional com panies. It also publishes historical financial data for more than 8,000 companies. A starting point o f information is found in the section on “H oover’s Company Capsules.” The Company Capsules point to information on more than 11,000 of the largest public and private com panies in the United States and abroad. Each capsule includes a brief descrip­ tion o f the com pany, address, telephone and fax numbers, nam es of officers, and sales and em ployment figures. In addition, it includes hy­ pertext links to relevant information such as financial reports, stock quotes, and SEC filings. Company Capsules are searchable by com pany name, ticker symbol, com pany location, type o f industry, an d /o r by sales. For more detailed information on com pany profiles, users may access the “H oover’s Com­ pany Profile.” H oover’s profiles are insightful, providing information on a com pany’s history, strategies and background, headquarters and locations, nam es of officers, products and ser­ vices, as well as a list o f competitors. The fi­ nancial reports prove to be the most valuable information to investors, marketing profession­ als, and researchers. Financial reports cover up to ten years o f financial information including sales, net income, high and low price/earnings p er year, and stock prices. Additional informa­ tion includes links to press releases and to the StockMaster Stock Charts. Hoover’s Online se­ lects com panies to profile based on their size, growth, visibility, and breadth o f coverage. In­ formation on com pany profiles is routinely u p ­ dated at the en d o f each com pany’s fiscal year. Inform ation sources include the com panies themselves, article sources, reference material, and interviews with com pany representatives. Hoover’s Inc. claims sole responsibility for the presentation of all data. The “Corporate Web Sites’’ links offers us­ ers the option to search H oover’s Online links to W eb sites of the w orld’s 5,000 largest com­ panies. In addition, H oover’s has com piled 1,800-plus sites related to job listings. Both files can be searched by the corporation’s nam e or through the brow se function. The interface is well designed, the informa­ tion is organized in a coherent manner. Most of the graphic links are replicated with hyper­ text links, making it easier for users to access the information. Searching H oover’s Online is simple, the instructions m ake it even more user- friendly, and the Infoseek search engine works fairly well. H oover’s com pany information is especially useful to job seekers, sales repre­ sentatives, investors, marketing analysts, career placem ent offices, and, o f course, to students an d faculty.— Constantia Constantinou, Iona College; cconstantinou@ iona.edu ■ mailto:sclark@uop.edu file:////www.hoovers.com cyberstocks.com mailto:cconstantinou@iona.edu