Proposed CD-Rom Series
Helmut A. Abt
Managing Editor, Astrophysical Journal

Astrophysicists make extensive use of tabular material, digitized
graphics, and other numerical data.  Unfortunately such material
published in our journals is not computer readable.  Some authors
have noted that tapes containing their data may be obtained
directly from them or from central depositories, but some of those
sources have not been completely reliable, such as when an author
moves to a new address.
     It seems reasonable to start the distribution to all
subscribers of computer-readable data involving extensive numerical
tabulations published in our journals, or supporting data for those
papers, such as photoelectric photometry, spectral-line equivalent
widths, model atmosphere or interior data, radio sources, and other
useful catalogs.
     The current medium for storing extremely-large amounts of data
is CD-Roms, so we plan to distribute those about twice yearly to
all subscribers.  The frequency of publication is selected to be
not so infrequent that the data lags the published papers by long
intervals but not so frequent that the CD-Roms are mostly empty. 
The initial ones will be limited to extensive (15 KB) tabular
numbers, but with experience we will broaden their scope.  Each set
of data will be reviewed by the same referees consulted for the
associated papers and those referees will be asked about the
usefulness of the data to many people.  This is not a depository
for all data coming from telescopes or computer simulations.  The
associated papers describing the data and giving the resulting
astronomical conclusions will be published in the Astrophysical
Journal (Part 1 or the Letters), Astrophysical Supplement Series,
or the Astronomical Journal.  Every author has the option of having
his or her longer tables printed only in the printed journal, only
on a CD-Rom, it would be well for authors to include in the printed
papers a partial sample (e.g. one-third of a page) showing the
table's content.  Normally the CD-Roms would include data published
in the printed journal in the previous half year, but we can also
include useful tables published years ago.
     If, as occurs with most contemporary media, CD-Roms 
are later replaced by other technologies, we will transfer the data
to the new technology and make available the current and previous
collections.
     Data submitted in FITS format will be distributed in both FITS
and ASCII formats ASCII data will only be distributed in ASCII
format.   There will be a modest "page charge" for distributing
data on CD-Roms, initially $2 per KB for the first 10 KB and $ 1
per KB thereafter.
     For details of formatting, please contact Lee Brotzman
(Internet:  leb@blackhole.aas.org); for editorial questions please
contact the Managing Editor.