Note from the Washington State Library: In order to participate in the Winter 2002 Washington State Databases Trial, each vendor was asked to address questions the Statewide Database Licensing Committee felt were most critical in order for library staff to evaluate products and vendors. Please contact the vendor's representative, listed below, for additional information on this product.

1. Describe the database product(s). If you want us to link to more than one product, provide a unique description for each product. Be sure we know what information belongs with each product. If there are special hardware or software needs, please make sure you include them in this description. When you provide a description of your product, please go beyond the typical advertising brochure text. We are hoping for a thoughtful, descriptive paragraph that will enable someone unfamiliar with your product to understand the nature and coverage of your product. The more concise the description, the better.

Gale is pleased to offer the following K12 databases for Washington State's Winter 2002 trial:

Discovering Collection
Junior Reference Collection
Student Resource Center - Gold
Student Resource Center - Silver
Student Resource Center - Bronze
Student Resource Center - Junior
Literature Resource Center
Biography Resource Center
General Reference Center - Gold
InfoTrac Student Edition
InfoTrac Junior Edition
InfoTrac Kid's Edition

Gale database(s) provide accurate, complete and current reference resources that meet the cross-curricular needs of students, whether they be in the classroom, school library, or accessing from home via Gale's remote access method. The database(s) available through Gale offer indexing and abstracting for a broad range of subject areas, and include graphic images and full-text for a significant number of reference databases. The coverage of such database(s) are age-appropriate to study, reference and research.

The database(s) offered by Gale are compatible with multiple platforms, allow for remote access, are fast in operation and results delivery, and offer printing, e-mailing and downloading of results. Database content covers the range of topics and reading levels required by the general public and school libraries offering as deep a backfile as possible with stable content updated in a timely fashion.

Discovering Collection meets the needs of the five core subject areas (History, Literature, Biographies, Science, and Social Studies). Gale Group views Discovering Collection as a complete reference source. Discovering Collection will involve leveraging the work we have already done and create a reference collection consisting of the reference data already updated for the Student Reference Center.

Discovering Collection will meet your needs in three core areas:

Provide your high schools with one core curriculum reference product
Discovering Collection will address the need with appropriate content for high-school students performing below grade level and for ESL students. We accomplish this by adding the U*X*L content (a lower reading level), which was requested by the marketplace to meet this need.
Discovering Collection will furnish public libraries with a comprehensive Homework Center for students from grades 5 through 12.

Two key benefits/features of Discovering Collection will be:
Use of the Student Resource Center interface and functionality will allow students to more effectively analyze information.
The reference content in Discovering Collection is based on national curriculum standards, which will complement your textbook interpretations.

Junior Reference Collection. With nearly 12,000 documents, 8,500 photographs and illustrations, 50 video and audio clips, and 3 complete Merriam-Webster's dictionaries (Collegiate, Biographical, and Geographical), the Junior Reference Collection is a complete reference source. Geared towards the grade 5-8 audience, the Junior Reference Collection is a comprehensive, cross-curricular research tool that combines the following U*X*L products into one database that is simple to navigate, easy to comprehend, and supports classroom learning:
U*X*L Biographies
U*X*L Junior DISCovering Authors
U*X*L Junior Worldmark
U*X*L Multicultural
U*X*L Science
Asian American Almanac
Asian American Chronology
Junior Worldmark Encyclopedia of World Cultures

The Junior Reference Collection's search paths are distinguished by subject area---People, Places, Subjects, Authors, Books, Timeline---and the results are categorized by document type---Overview Essay, Biography, and Timeline Event. The database is updated quarterly.

Student Resource Center - Gold is a comprehensive cross-curricular resource for schools and libraries to use in effectively integrating technology and real-world issues into the curriculum and research process. Including the respected Gale Group products, American Decades CD-ROM, DISCovering Authors, DISCovering Biography, DISCovering Science, DISCovering U.S. History, DISCovering World History, EXPLORING Novels, EXPLORING Short Stories, American Journeys: African-American Experience, American Journeys: The American Revolution, American Journeys: The Asian-American Experience, American Journeys: Civil Rights in the United States, American Journeys: The Civil War, American Journeys: The Constitution and the Supreme Court, American Journeys: The Great Depression and the New Deal, American Journeys: The Hispanic-American Experience, American Journeys: Immigrant Experience, American Journeys: Native-American Experience, American Journeys: The Vietnam War Era, American Journeys: Westward Expansion and American Journeys: Women in America, U*X*L Biographies, U*X*L Junior DISCovering Authors, U*X*L Science, U*X*L Junior Worldmark, and U*X*L Multicultural, the Student Resource Center also delivers 1103 full-text periodicals, newspapers, primary source documents, professional development tools, and student research tools. More than 200 audio clips are included as well. In partnership with Merriam-Webster, Inc., the Student Resource Center provides access to Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, Merriam-Webster's Biographical Dictionary, Merriam-Webster's Geographical Dictionary, and Merriam-Webster's Encyclopedia of Literature.

Student Resource Center - Silver builds on a foundation of literary, science, history and biographical databases. Student Resource Center Silver provides a premium selection of original reference material, overviews, critical essays, a massive archive of primary source documents and periodicals, and full-text form newspapers that are updated daily. Integrated content from the acclaimed American Decades, an indispensable source for cultural, political and historic analysis of the 20th century. In this database, students will find:

More than 82,000 biographies, essays and overviews
Full-text articles from more than 765magazines and journals, updated daily
Periodical back files from 1986
More than 16,000 timeline event descriptions
More than 15,000 photographs, maps and graphics
More than 41,000 source documents, including diary entries, letters, recordings and more
Full-text articles from encyclopedias and almanacs
8+ hours of audio and video clips

Student Resource Center - Bronze offers easy access to award-winning content based on national curriculum standards. Student Resource Center Bronze state of the art search features are furnished by InfoTrac Web, Gale's powerful search engine. Subject, keyword, people, literature, timeline events and custom searches give quick and accurate results to student researchers. Results are returned by document type, allowing students to focus on the information presented rather than typical web-generated hits lists. In Student Resource Center - Bronze, students will find 575 magazines and newspapers.

Student Resource Center - Junior provides the content and context middle-school students need to develop and strengthen critical thinking skills. Developed to meet the distinct needs of middle school students, it addresses the diverse needs of users' skill levels, giving them the background, analysis and real-world applications of knowledge that will transform them from "web surfers" to "web searchers."

Student Resource Center Junior provides:
255 full text magazines and newspapers
Periodical back files from 1980
More than 21,000 timeline entries
More than 20,000 biographies, 500 essays and 10,000 overviews
Thousands of primary source documents, including diary entries, letters, and interviews
More than 8 hours of audio and video clips

Literature Resource Center provides comprehensive access to information on authors from every age and literary discipline, as well as information on their works, and critical material related to their works. In this single Internet-searchable service, you'll find biographical information on more than 120,460 novelists, poets, essayists, journalists and other writers, with additional in-depth coverage of 2,500 of the most-studied authors. Beyond this wealth of biographical information from the Contemporary Authors and Dictionary of Literary Biography databases, Literature Resource Center features more than 4,000 full-text and excerpted pieces of literary criticism from the Contemporary Literary Criticism Select database, more than 344,000 full-text articles from more than 70 literary journals, more than 4,000 plot synopses offering contextual information on an author's works, more than 5,000 author-related Web sites selected for their authority and quality, the full text of Merriam-Webster's Encyclopedia of Literature, and more data found in Literature Resource Center alone. Further, Literature Resource Center subscribers can opt to add the Gale Group's Scribner Writers Series or Twayne's Authors Series to their subscription and benefit from integrated results from all these sources. New and updated material is added at least twice each month. This coverage of authors of fiction, nonfiction, poetry, drama, history and journalism is enhanced through a partnership with Bell & Howell that allows Literature Resource Center customers who also subscribe to Literature Online (LION) through Bell & Howell direct linking between LION and Literature Resource Center.

Biography Resource Center is a comprehensive online biographical reference database containing nearly 300,000 biographies is designed to meet the needs of public and school libraries in the areas of literature, science, multicultural studies, business, entertainment, politics, sports, government, history, arts and newsmakers.

Biography Resource Center combines more than 80 of the most frequently consulted Gale biographical databases with more than 250 full-text periodicals. Whether your users want to learn about past and present note-worthy figures for their own personal benefit, or need a starting point for more in-depth research on a particular event, country or era, the information presented in Biography Resource Center makes it the first source to turn to for research.

General Reference Center Gold provides indexing and abstracting to 2,886 periodicals, 2,005 or 70% of which is full text. This comprehensive database covers general interest, business, humanities, social sciences, children's topics, and current event information, with coverage as far back as 1980. The intended audience for this database is high school students, academic students and adults. In addition, indexing and full text is provided of the following reference books:

American Reader: Words that Moved a Nation
Asimov's Science and Discovery
Benet's Reader's Encyclopedia of American Literature
Benet's Reader's Encyclopedia of Literature
Colliers Encyclopedia
Columbia Encyclopedia (single volume)
Constitution of the United States
Democracy Reader
Encyclopedia of American Facts & Dates
English Literature from 1785
English Literature to 1785
Great Thinkers of the Western World
Harper Collins Encyclopedia of Military Biography
Information Please Almanac
Information Please Environmental Almanac
Information Please Sports Almanac
Masterpieces of World Literature
Reader's Companion to American History
Rand McNally Maps
Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, Tenth Edition
"All our Yesterdays" Photo collection of Americana

Also included are over 40,000 full text newspaper articles from Knight Ridder/Tribune News as well as indexing coverage of the most recent two months of The Christian Science Monitor, The New York Times, and The Wall Street Journal. Backfile indexing is available to 1980.

InfoTrac Student Edition is a one-stop, multi-source general reference solution designed especially for secondary school libraries. It features the titles most critical to their libraries and the curriculum as identified by school librarians. InfoTrac Student Edition provides indexing and abstracts of 395 journals with full text of 336 titles. Backfile indexing extends to 1985. Additionally, the database includes more than 40,000 full text newspaper articles from the Knight-Ridder/Tribune News Service and 300+ full color Rand McNally maps. In addition, indexing and full text is provided of the following reference books:

American Reader: Words that Moved a Nation
Asimov's Chronology of Science and Discovery
Benet's Reader's Encyclopedia of American Literature
Benet's Reader's Encyclopedia of Literature
The Columbia Encyclopedia (single volume)
Constitution of the United States
Encyclopedia of American Facts & Dates
Harper Collins Encyclopedia of Military Biography
Information Please Almanac
Information Please Environmental Almanac
Information Please Sports Almanac
Reader's Companion to American History
"All our Yesterdays" Photo collection of Americana
Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, Tenth Edition

InfoTrac Junior Edition is designed especially for junior high and middle schools. It features the titles most critical to their libraries and the curriculum as identified by school librarians. InfoTrac Junior Edition provides indexing and abstracts of 257 full text journals. InfoTrac Junior Edition provides information back to 1995. Additionally, the databases include full text newspaper articles from the Knight-Ridder/Tribune News Service, 300+ full color Rand McNally maps, and the following full text reference books:

Information Please Almanac (Atlas and Yearbook)
Information Please Sports Almanac
Information Please Environmental Almanac
Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, Tenth Edition
The Reader's Companion to American History
The Columbia Encyclopedia

InfoTrac Kids Edition is a perfect way to introduce K-6 students to the process of research. This database gives children easy access to magazines, reference books and newspaper articles selected just for their age group. The database includes 97 indexed titles, 92 or 95% of which are full text. These titles have been selected to reflect the preferences of the K-6 librarians. Additionally, the database includes hundreds of full text age-appropriate newspaper articles from the Knight-Ridder/Tribune News Service, 300+ full color Rand McNally maps, and the following full text reference books: Information Please Almanac (Atlas and Yearbook), Information Please Environmental Almanac, Information Please Sports Almanac, and The Reader's Companion to American History. InfoTrac Kids Edition provides information back to 1995.

2. Is remote access included for the subscription price? If there are additional charges or requirements in order to offer remote access, please describe. What methods of remote access are supported? If applicable, please discuss any methods or assistance you offer regarding remote access patron verification and authentication.

Remote patron authentication is available to the State of Washington schools at no additional cost.

Gale's Remote Patron Authentication Service (RPAS) utilizes CGI scripts written in perl and/or Server hosted authentication using username/password combinations. The CGI scripts are housed on a Gale Group Web accessible server or any Web accessible server. Authentication and authorization can utilize the any of the following methods:

Library card number look up
Username/password lookup
Password look up
OPAC/Institution patron file look up
Barcode pattern analysis and/or look up

Gale is certified as a compliant vendor with the Remote Patron Authentication product from Epixtech. Gale can work within a secure referral URL linkage by imbedding an id number, password, or username/password into the InfoTrac Web access URL.
Gale will designate a Sales Application Engineer to assist in the preparation of CGI scripts for remote access patron verification and authentication. This individual will work directly with the Libraries technical personnel in remote patron access implementation.

3. What customer training is provided, and at what cost? Please include "freebies" such as Web-based tutorials, end-user documentation tents, cheat-sheets, etc.

Gale commits to provide hands-on training for library staff at sites in Washington State. The cost to Gale is approximately $1000 per day for this training, but initial training is included at no additional charge.

The purpose of training is not to instruct on only basic search techniques, since the interfaces are designed to be largely intuitive and easy to use. Rather, the purpose of training is to inform of what is available, and allow practical use so that users can get the accurate and precise answers desired in the most effective and efficient manner. In this way, subtleties and nuances of the databases strong indexing can be more easily and comfortably accessible.

Each day of training will involve at least two sessions, depending on the focus and the participants' level of experience with databases generally and with Gale databases specifically. Gale 's Western Training Consultant will work with State of Washington personnel to ensure that the training is focused on the main needs of each session's attendees.

Gale is committed to providing its customers with the highest quality product training possible. Gale trainers are training professionals with high levels of library knowledge and experience combined with Gale electronic expertise. Our trainers have the ability to communicate the use of our products in a logical, informative, and interesting training session. Our training department is experienced in delivering training classes to large consortia and will work with the State of Washington to ensure that all eligible librarians in the state have the opportunity to attend product training.
For end users, Gale provides printed one-page Search Tip Sheets for each database interface. These direct the user to key search features, and explain how to use them. Clear references are made with screen shots to illustrate. There is no charge for an initial supply of these for each participating library. If laminated versions are desired, then we will quote a price when requested, as that is dependent on quantity and timing.

On the web are additional User Tools: Guided tour, PowerPoint documents, and Navigation Guides. These can be accessed free of charge. In addition, there are brief users manuals that can be placed by the terminal. These go into much more detail. Full user manuals are available on the Gale web site, and can be printed in whole or in part as needed without charge. General and subject specific teacher inservice packets are also available on the web.

Gale's Training Consultants are trained to accommodate the range of competency in computer and on-line skills and as such, will incorporate such special audience needs into training plans to ensure that information and methods connect with each audience member. Gale Training Consultants will also show examples of how to integrate the State of Washington Gale databases with state educational standards, and discuss the process with them.

Immediately upon being selected, Gale's Training Consultant will consult with the State of Washington as to how best to leverage the training. Training will seek to assist librarians and teachers in K12 to find age-appropriate answers that improve learning while meeting educational standards:
Orientation: These orientation sessions are designed to inform large groups of the databases now available, basic contents of each, and best applications. They are demonstrations, without hands-on time usually. Participants learn what is available, its best uses and how to access it.
Librarian Training: These sessions combine demonstration with hands-on use. They allow smaller groups to practice use with search questions and problems like they face on the job. Materials include practice searches, how to get help, and written instructions on special features and terms, title lists, etc.
Train-the-trainer (T-T-T)Classes: These sessions include the same demonstration and hands-on use as the Librarian Training, plus teaching tips, leaders guides, and copies of the presentation materials and handouts they can use when teaching others. In some states, these regional T-T-T classes have generated many more local training events fairly quickly reaching scores of additional libraries quickly.

4. What customer and technical support is provided, including hours of operation? In your reply, please include contact names (if applicable) or name of department, the phone numbers and e-mail addresses for your support services. If you have toll-free access to these support centers, please make sure they are available here.

Upon award of contract the Gale Group will assign a Sales Application/Support Engineer to handle technical support service specifically for the State of Washington libraries.
In addition to training and technical support, Gale also provides ongoing database assistance through our Content Support Department. Our Content Support department consists of a staff of professional librarians who are experts at searching our databases. They are available to assist our customers with any questions that might arise regarding the search functionality and content of our databases.
Call Gale's 800 number or email Content Support for assistance using Gale databases. Consultations include specific search strategies, tips for maximizing use of those databases, and system functionality.

Content support is available 24 hours per day, 7 days per week via telephone, email and/or fax:

Customer Search Assistance and Content Support:

Toll Free phone number 800-277-8431 - select option 5
Fax number 650-378-5442
Email address [email protected]
This support is also available 24 hours per day, seven days per week.
The group can be reached at: 800-877-4253
Email address is [email protected]

5. Please describe the statistics you provide, and discuss whether your statistical reporting complies in part or in whole with the guidelines developed by the International Coalition of Library Consortia found at http://www.library.yale.edu/consortia/webstats.html

InfoTrac Web statistics, which are used for both InfoTrac and GaleNet databases conform to the ICOLC statistics standard with web-based accessible reports by institution and consortium. Statistics can be delivered in either ASCII, Flat file, (i.e. csv), or Postscript formats. In addition, the consortium can choose to receive one aggregate report for a number of sites and can also have individual usage reports sent to each library with the InfoTrac Web service.

Statistical reports include internal and external use by database with the number of searches, sessions, total connect time, average login time, displays, and retrievals (includes breakdowns by citation/abstracts and full text). Statistics on journal use are available through the journal list report, which shows the number of on-screen views and retrievals, with a breakout of citation/abstract and full text. Time of day statistics detail number of users by time of day and day of week for the month or date range selected.

The standard report lists each database subscribed to by the consortium and/or institution receiving InfoTrac Web services. The reports show the number of Searches, Sessions, On-Screen Views and Retrievals (e.g. local printing, email, PDF download.)

Special statistical reports on simultaneous users, average user response time, and turn-aways can be requested through Technical Support.

6. Describe your pricing structure or formula for the product. If there are additional costs for retrieving full text, describe the pricing for this service. (Note: This question means - we want to know what your list prices are and how you calculate your prices: Based on FTEs? On buildings? On a combination, or on something else?)

If you cannot provide a standard price list that would enable each library to understand their cost to subscribe, then for each product you must tell us the list price that you would charge these hypothetical libraries.
a. Library A: A high school library with 750 students in grades 9-12
b. Library B: A public library that serves a population of 100,000 and has two branches
c. Library C: A public library that serves a population of 20,000 and has only one building, no branches
d. Library D: A community college library serving 5,000 full-time equivalent students
e. Library E: A four-year academic library serving 5,000 full-time equivalent students
f. Library F: A hospital library serving a hospital that employees 1,000 staff plus has 200 doctors attached to the hospital

Gale offers unlimited access to all proposed K12 databases for State of Washington libraries. Pricing is based single building site access with remote access included in the pricing. There are no restrictions or special qualifications. No additional costs such as training materials, platform fees, set-up charges, etc. exist. Custom pricing based on unlimited access and FTE will be provided for interested library consortias.

The following chart provides pricing for K12 databases only; please contact Gary Kegley at 800-877-4253, ext. 1728 for Public and Academic Library pricing.

Gale K12 Databases Subscription
Fee

Discovering Collection
Junior Reference Collection
Student Resource Center - Gold
Student Resource Center - Silver
Student Resource Center - Bronze
Student Resource Center - Junior
Literature Resource Center
Biography Resource Center
General Reference Center - Gold
InfoTrac Student Edition
InfoTrac Junior Edition
InfoTrac Kid's Edition
$1,400.00
$ 525.00
$5,900.00
$4,700.00
$4,000.00
$1,550.00
$6,610.00
$3,150.00
$4,320.00
$1,945.00
$ 835.00
$ 395.00

7. If a library subscribes to any of your products as a result of this trial, will their future subscription rates continue to reflect any savings or discount they may receive today?

Gale will honor all discounts for our existing customers and new customers; that discount will reflect the total number of libraries regardless of size that are interested in our databases.

8. What is the minimum participation level (however you care to define it) that would be needed to allow participating libraries to receive a discount? What is the minimum discount for a group buy? How will you treat existing library customers with regard to a group buy?

At least five (5) schools must participate and purchase the same database(s); or all schools in the district with less than five (5) schools may qualify for a District Discount
(a school = one building):

10% discount for 5 - 15 participating schools

15% discount for 16 - 26 participating schools
An additional 5% discount is given for a central billing agent

There will be no discounts given to individual schools purchasing a single database. Additional discounts may apply for multiple database purchases by the same school or district.

9. Please provide the name and contact information (toll-free telephone number, e-mail address, hours, etc.) for libraries to make further inquires. (Sales representatives for our area preferred.)

Customer Contact Information - for additional information, contact your Gale representative at the following:

The Gale Group:
Phone 248-699-4253
Toll Free 800-877-4253
URL www.gale.com
Hours Monday - Friday 8:00 - 5:00 EST

Sales Account Team: K-12

Scott Lewis
Account Manager
800-877-4253, ext. 8374
800-699-8072, fax
[email protected] Randy Bloom
Account Manager
800-877-4253, ext. 2215
800-699-8072, fax
[email protected]