Harnessing Other People's Databanks

Computer users rely on outside sources of machine-readable data because information costs more to produce than to reproduce. Users must know what they want to do and what databanks are available before they can use these outside sources profitably. Two checklists in this article are offered to help users decide how best to apply other people's data to their own needs. To supplement the checklists with a glimpse of the actual problems in using external databanks, the remainder of the article surveys the uses and hazards of financial databanks.