VPI's Center for Innovative Technology (with help from Nimbus and others) publishes a series of free CD-ROM databases. Virginia Disc One (VAD1) can be read on any system, but its TOPIC browsing/retrieval software runs only under DOS. VAD1 contains 6000 files (600 megabytes), with more than 30 searchable databases: USDA Extension collections; ACM's Guide to the Computing Literature; Computer World texts; bibliographies; archives of IRList and AIList; the King James Bible; a list of English words, etc. VAD2 contains mainly library collections. VAD3 is for Macs running A/UX, and contains mainly UNIX-type software. Contact Dr. Edward A. Fox (fox@fox.cs.vt.edu).

ACM is marketing a PC-based CD ROM bibliography covering the last decade of computing literature. You get over 93,000 book/paper citations from 475 periodicals plus 9,000 full-text reviews, including page images of tables and formulas. $799 to members. (212) 869-7440.

I don't know know the current status, but Charles Wilson at NIST has been compiling a database of handwriting samples from lab notebooks. (301) 975-2080.

Lua Kim Teng (National U. of Singapore, luakt%nusdiscs.bitnet @cs.rpi.edu) reports in NL-KR that the Chinese and Oriental Languages Information Society sells a $250 database of 46,000 Chinese words, with Hanyu Pinyin and frequencies of occurrence. Lua also has a personal database of 70,000 Chinese words grouped into 12 major, 94 medium, and 1428 minor classes.

STREETS 4.0 is a business-oriented map database/interface system with street maps available for thousands of cities. Prices start at $225. Klynas Engineering, Box 499, Simi Valley, CA 93062; (805) 583-1029.