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RBBS in a Box Volume 1 #2
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Info on Michigan Information Transfer Source
Craig Stahl, 11/4/85
FreeForm-Legal RBBS, 313/774-7258, data
The following is information on the best unknown research service for
professionals.
The Michigan Information Transfer Service (MITS) is operated by the University
of Michigan Library Science Department. Their primary goal is to provide
research services for the university - They have gone commercial, perhaps to
help with operating expenses or perhaps to keep those in that major occupied,
who knows. Whatever reason, let me explain why you should find it so useful
and give some examples:
The service has access to all specialized computer databases (directly, not
through something like compuserve). The databases cover all scholarly journals
and most everything else printed. There are more than two dozen databases.
The method of using the service is to call with a general idea of your research
request, or to fill out a form and send it in. They will then return reams of
computer printout within two days. You will be billed the actual cost of
computer time plus $10-30 an hour for the research assistant's time.
What makes the system better than Nexis, The Source and others?
1. The huge number of databases. They have access to bases like inorganic
chemestry, psychological abnormailities and People Magazine (I think the later
two are related).
2. Being University of Michigan, they must have cut a deal to get discount
access time. You will see the actual charges on printouts they send you and
wonder how they got away with it.
3. You talk to a real, thinking person who understands the question better than
you think they do. They know exactly what databases to go into, what to get
and how. After all, that's their major and they are being graded on
performance.
4. You are keeping a hungry undergrad co-op employed instead of improving some
corporation's portfolio.
Turnaround is within two days. No order passes through without supervision
from the director (her name evades at this moment).
Now two examples of why my enthuiasm exudes:
1. Back in law school I was required to write a paper on DISC corporations
(huh? was my first response). I gave MITS the word DISC and ended up with 120
references. Most references were from obscure international economic journals,
some were from legal journals and some were from magazines like Forbes (a
couple quotes from Malcom Sr. can seem like levity in a dreary paper). Some
headnotes were good enough to use without looking at the actual paper. Please
never repeat that - I don't want to be recalled to law school. All this cost
me $60 which I would gladly pay again.
2. A client was anticipating litigation against fly-by-night robotics supplier.
The issue of disagreement was quality of the firmware. I explained vector
analysis, linear interpolation and RS-274D (not 232) to the director of MITS.
The info received back landed on all four points. It helped my client (and
myself) understand what the hell was going on. The info also helped with the
next supplier so that a second bluff wouldn't be successful. This case cost
$120, mostly because we requested a lot of photocopied articles from the
references.
Ask for their information booklet and forms:
Michigan Information Transfer Source (MITS)
Hutchins Hall
University of Michigan
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Sorry again but the zip code and phone number also evade me. I would suggest
1/313-555-1212 as a good starting point for your research.
ADDENDUM: They have two levels of retrival priorities. They can retrive
references while online or wait for a callback overnight. Not much difference
in speed. If your need is extremely urgent and you can't wait for airmail,
they have modems.
LET US KNOW ABOUT YOUR EXPERIENCES - POST THEM ON THE LAWYER'S BBS LISTED ABOVE
AND WE'LL INCLUDE THEM IN THIS TEXT. THANKS.