New topics covered include employment and wages in the information technology industry, criminal victimization at school and breast-feeding of infants. Although the book's emphasis is on national data, many tables present figures for regions and individual States. Should the reader need further information, the Statistical Abstract furnishes titles of additional statistical publications and sources.
The CD-ROM edition contains more years of data, more countries, and more categories of subjects than in the print edition. The CD-ROM also provides over 1,600 table-to-spreadsheet links, direct table-to-Internet site links, and search capabilities on table number and titles as well as general subjects. The Adobe Acrobat PDF software used to view the data offers the advantage of high quality printing and viewing. Tables and charts appear in color highlighting important information and adding clarity to the graphics. The Adobe Acrobat search function allows for easy searching--simply enter a keyword or phrase for a full text search of all files, including text within graphics and charts. Searching by general subjects and table numbers and titles is also supported. By using Lotus worksheet (.WK1) files or Excel (.XLS) files, you can do your own analysis of Statistical Abstract tables, state rankings, and the population of metropolitan areas. The spreadsheet files can be opened directly by clicking on a button at the bottom of each table or directly from spreadsheet software. The CD-ROM also provides more than 1,000 direct table-to-Internet site links. "With our new CD-ROM you can easily get the latest population and money income figures from our Internet links to many Federal agency sites and start your own analysis of the latest trends," says Lars Johanson of the Statistical Abstract staff. Adobe Acrobat Reader plus Search 4.0 is included on the CD; the Microsoft Excel viewer is included for users that do not have either Excel or Lotus 1-2-3 installed.
