CD-ROM: information at your fingertips

In this new age of information storage and retrieval, more than 150 reference books and software applications are available on a single compact disk. CD-ROM is being used to store large volumes of material. CD-ROM has brought the storage power of a mainframe computer to the personal computer. Several companies are producing a variety of CD-ROM databases. The databases that an accountant might use can be grouped according to the type of information indexed: 1. specialized information, such as income taxes and accounting and auditing standards, 2. computer software and hardware, and 3. government publications. Tax, auditing, and accounting CD-ROMs include: 1. Audit Reference and Resource Discs from Arthur Andersen & Co., 2. Bankruptcy Library from Matthew Bender & Co., and 3. Federal Taxation Library from West Publishing Co. Information about companies is available from, for example, Dialog Information Services Inc.'s Standard & Poor's Corporations.