Accessing technical reports through the Library Catalog

1) Go to the Library Catalog (linked from the Research Library's home page, first section, and elsewhere on the Library website)

2) Search for a report by any of the indexes available on the screen, using a browse or word search. NOTE that technical report records do not always contain author and subject information, but many contain abstracts.

• For topical queries, Title word or All word searches may be most successful.
  
• To locate reports by technical report number, do a BROWSE search: Use the "Select Index" pull-down window in the top box to select Technical report no. Enter the number with its punctuation, for example, LA-12604-MS. The system is case insensitive -- you may enter your terms in upper or lower case. Or, you can do a WORD search for Technical report number, but remember that each segment of a report number separated by punctuation is considered a "word." A word search for Technical report no. may be most useful in combination with another term, e.g. you are looking for an LA report to do with Monte Carlo, so use Technical report no. "LA" and Title word "monte carlo."

3) On the display of the report you are interested in, look at the Location information below the line.

If an electronic copy is available, the Location column will show WWW and the Call Number column will provide the URL web address of the report. To "launch" the electronic report, click anywhere on the URL. (Depending on the operating system you are using and assuming the document is in PDF format, Adobe Acrobat Reader may also be launched separately if it is not already running.)

System requirements

Absolute Minimum:

• Open connection to the World-Wide-Web (WWW)
• Web browser (e.g., Netscape, Microsoft's Internet Explorer)
• Adobe Acrobat Reader to read files in PDF (Portable Document Format)

• A network connection — not a modem — to open PDF files in a reasonable time (some PDF files are very large)
• A monitor with a minimum resolution of VGA or better, to be able to read PDF files
• A laser printer if you wish to create readable paper copy of PDF files

If you do not have all of the above, contact your systems support person for assistance.

Common problems using electronic documents

• Cannot read/launch electronic document file
  The Research Library makes its materials available in PDF (Portable Document Format) a proprietary format of Adobe, Inc. If you cannot open a PDF file, possible causes are:
  • Your Web browser (e.g., Netscape) may not have been configured to launch the Acrobat Reader software needed to view PDF files
  • You have not installed the free Adobe Acrobat Reader software onto your workstation.

• Electronic document file takes a long time to "open"
  
  • If your network connection is "slow", large files, which these electronic documents typically are, will take a long time to download and open
  • If your workstation has insufficient memory it will have difficulty simultaneously having your Web browser (e.g., Netscape), your reader (i.e., Adobe Acrobat), and the file itself open
  • Workstation out of memory.

• Electronic document appears to be incomplete or corrupted
  Electronic document files may come across to you as incomplete or corrupted after they have been downloaded. Several common causes are:
  • Your workstation may lack sufficient memory to handle large files (some documents are large)
  • The file server may have timed out while downloading a large file over a slow modem connection.

• Difficulty printing an electronic document
  Most users will find that printing electronic documents is relatively slow. Here are several suggestions:
  • Whenever feasible print only those pages of the document you actually need instead of automatically printing the entire document
  • If you plan to print a lot of pages, begin your print job at a time when you or those who may share a printer with you will not need it (e.g., at lunch, overnight)
  • Some documents consist of several hundred pages. Your workstation and printer must be capable of spooling very large files.

Library policy on technical support

The Los Alamos National Laboratory Research Library is unable to provide technical assistance in resolving customer problems using its electronic documents or other applications, except when it appears that the problem results from a failure of the Research Library's own systems. We offer the information above Iin the interest of offering some general guidance, but given the variety of systems, software, and network arrangements, each customer of the Library's products and services should seek advice and help from his or her designated network support person.

Questions?  Contact the Library by phone (505) 667-5809 or by email.