Support : Publications : Chronolog Archives : April 2001

Profound^® Enhancements Bring Faster Searching, New Content, and Much More

Figure 1: Profound Main Screen

If you are a user of Profound for the Internet, you will now benefit from accelerated search times, significant new company information, and Table of Contents pricing on ResearchLine, BrokerLine and CountryLine.

Profound for the Internet, for those users more familiar with the Windows®-based version, is now composed of two major database collections — WorldSearch and QuickSearch — as well as Briefings. The eight databases are listed below.

Both employ easy-to-use keyword search interfaces.

Improved Search Time on WorldSearch

WorldSearch databases are now powered by a new AltaVista® search engine resulting in a considerable improvement in the search response times. This is particularly valuable when conducting complex searches and searches on Profound NewsLine (the largest WorldSearch database).

A counter at the top of the screen indicates that a search is in progress. The counter displays a cumulative count of the number of records found, working chronologically down through database segments until the requested number of records has been retrieved or the search is complete.

New Company Information on QuickSearch

A number of new company data sources has been added to QuickSearch. The new data will be of great interest if you require information on companies based outside the U.S., not available on QuickSearch until now.

New databases include:

• D&B—Dun's Market Identifiers®
  contains directory listings, sales volume, and marketing data for over 18 million establishments in nearly 200 countries worldwide. D&B Canadian Dun's Market Identifiers is also newly offered whilst Market Identifiers for the U.S. has been available previously.



• Teikoku Databank (Japan) provides the latest information on approximately 240,000 Japanese companies. Full and condensed Balance Sheets and Income Statements are available for about 130,000 companies.



• ICC British Company Financial Datasheets (U.K.) provides analysis on the latest financial data of all companies with limited liability in the U.K., including "large," "medium," and "small," quoted and non-quoted public and private companies from all sectors of U.K. industry and commerce.



• Kompass comprises a range of databases providing information on numerous companies in all regions outside the U.S. Kompass has an emphasis on manufacturing, industrial, and associated service sectors with product names displayable and searchable. The Thomas Register Online®, giving similar coverage for companies in North America, is already available on QuickSearch.



• Investext® includes the full series of Investext PDF reports for the first time on QuickSearch. Investext analyst reports cover financial forecasts, market share, competitive analysis, industry trends, and more.

In addition, the EdgarPlus™ database from Disclosure will now be available
on QuickSearch with Extel from Primark coming in the future.

Company information on QuickSearch has been rearranged with the introduction of new data and the division of existing U.S. data into new sets, as shown in Figure 2. Note there is no change to menus for the other three database collections on QuickSearch (Intellectual Property, Research & Development, North American Newspapers).

Removal of CompanyLine and WireLine From WorldSearch

With the additional company-related information that has been added to QuickSearch, CompanyLine has been removed. This is intended to avoid unnecessary duplication of data bringing greater focus to company-related information on Profound.

In the same way WireLine — the WorldSearch database providing news reported on over twenty-five news wires — has also been removed from WorldSearch. All the news wire sources are now being loaded onto Profound NewsLine, the main WorldSearch news database,
meaning you can search all news sources (wires and published) simultaneously.

Section Prices Viewable in Table of Contents on Profound for the Internet

In response to requests from customers, Profound for the Internet now presents a price alongside each separately available section of a report, giving you better
control of your spending. [See Figure 3.] This applies to reports in ResearchLine, BrokerLine, and CountryLine. (NewsLine reports do not have Tables of Contents). This feature will be particularly valuable if you are an information professional because it enables you to provide accurate cost estimates in advance for work you undertake for your clients or colleagues.

Moving to Profound for the Internet

The new enhancements outlined above have removed many of the key obstacles identified by users of Profound for Windows® for not migrating to the Internet-based version of the product. For example, with the AltaVista® search engine, Profound for the Internet now matches the Windows-based product for search speed. Similarly, Table of Contents pricing for sections of reports—long regarded as a great strength of the Windows-based product—is now available on Profound for the Internet.

Your user name and password are valid on both versions of the Profound product. So be sure to test the latest enhancements.

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