RE: One of the Best Kept Secrets in Health Physics

["Lavera, Ron" <Ron.Lavera@nypa.gov>]

At the risk of incurring the wrath of Ms. Woo, I would like to offer my
agreement with this sentiment.  From a Power Reactor perspective, this
program has been very helpful in locating pertinent documents.

I'm going to try to make sure that we get this latest revision.

...  Mine and mine alone  ...

Ron LaVera
Lavera.r@nypa.gov

		-----Original Message-----
		From:	norman@charlotte.med.nyu.edu
[mailto:norman@charlotte.med.nyu.edu]
		Sent:	Wednesday, March 31, 1999 8:20 PM
		To:	Multiple recipients of list
		Subject:	Re: One of the Best Kept Secrets in Health
Physics

		OK, Melisa told me what I was doing wrong so here it is
again.  Sorry.




		Dear rad health - research, teaching and health physics
colleagues,

		The Medical Center/Institute where I maintain my office has
an excellent
		and comprehensive resource library and provides extensive
Internet hookup
		with many e-journal site licenses.  However, I have found
that none of
		these literature search options is as inclusive or
subject-specific, and as
		user-friendly as "QUEST" for accessing the health physics,
radiation
		dosimetry, and radiation protection literature.

		For those of you who are unfamiliar with "QUEST", it is a
commercially
		available computer program that is installed and runs
locally on a PC.
		Although there are many data base searches available these
days, I have yet
		to encounter one that includes the enhanced array of
profession-specific
		literature titles and abstracts as does QUEST. I am always
surprised,
		therefore, that professionals who call me about one or
another reference,
		have not turned to QUEST. As an important time saving guide
to the
		radiation safety, health physics, and dosimetry literature,
it must truly
		be one of the best kept secrets in the profession.

		Recently, I had occasion to speak with Bill Schadt,
President of the
		company that markets QUEST and was saddened to learn that
the 1998 QUEST
		update, due to be released soon, might be the last of the
series.  To me,
		the possibility that QUEST might not be continued,
represents the loss of
		an essential resource that, over the years, has become akin
to a close and
		reliable old friend.

		Since its inception in 1986, I have often heard (and sadly
witnessed
		first-hand) that this program may hold the record as one of
the most
		"pirated pieces of software in health physics". As a
consequence, perhaps,
		members of this profession and its national organization
have not fully
		supported its continued viability and may soon suffer the
consequences of
		its untimely demise.

		There are several ways that this loss may be prevented and I
propose that a
		show of encouragement and support might help save this
valuable resource. I
		would also suggest that QUEST be subsidized by its annual
distribution with
		the Health Physics journal which now prints author and
subject indexes
		every six months.

		Norm Cohen, Ph.D., RSO
		Radiation Studies
		norman@charlotte.med.nyu.edu



	
************************************************************************
		The RADSAFE Frequently Asked Questions list, archives and
subscription
		information can be accessed at
http://www.ehs.uiuc.edu/~rad/radsafe.html
************************************************************************
The RADSAFE Frequently Asked Questions list, archives and subscription
information can be accessed at http://www.ehs.uiuc.edu/~rad/radsafe.html