News Release: xrefer Releases Version 2.0 of xreferplus

["Ellen McCullough" <ellen.mccullough@xrefer.com>]

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE		

xrefer Releases Version 2.0 of xreferplus 
Enhanced online ready reference service offers information
visualization, unit conversions and additional new content

BOSTON, MA, September 29, 2003 - xrefer, the online ready reference
service that provides full-text, aggregated content to academic, public
and corporate libraries, announced today that it has released version 2.0
of its xreferplus service, which includes improved information
visualization capabilities (a new "Research Mapper"), a host of new
content and unit conversions.

The Research Mapper is a visual map that displays how search terms and
topics in xreferplus are interconnected.  Users can access the Mapper from
any set of search results, enabling them to quickly explore the links
among topics within the area they're researching.

The Research Mapper leverages xrefer's proprietary "xreference"
technology, whereby added xreference links enhance the content by
seamlessly connecting related entries.  Unlike traditional
cross-references, which connect related terms within a single source,
xreferences cut across topics, titles and publishers, as well as text,
audio and image files.  The 1.25 million entries, 66,000 images and 76,000
audio files in the service are xreferenced, providing an integrated user
experience.

The Research Mapper displays all of the xreference links that are included
in a set of search results in an interactive and easy-to-use format that
illustrates how--and how closely--the search results are connected to
other xreferplus entries.  Research Maps can guide users to the most
relevant information related to their research, and can lead users to
areas that warrant further exploration.  A public version of the Mapper is
available at www.xrefer.com/research.

In addition, xrefer continues to add to its content offering, increasing
the number of titles in xreferplus by 80 percent in 2003 alone.  Recent
additions include The Bridgeman Art Library Archive, Webster's New WorldT
Computer Dictionary, Dorland's Illustrated Medical Dictionary and The
Academic Press Dictionary of Science and Technology.  The company
continues to add new titles regularly, focusing on robust content that
includes image and audio files in addition to full text entries.

xrefer has also added Unit Conversions to its reference library, which
will enable users to compare and calculate measurements of area, distance,
energy, speed, volume, weight and more.  The conversion calculator
simultaneously displays all units of measure within a given category, and
is fully integrated with xreferplus.

"We're very pleased to offer these enhancements to the xreferplus
service," said Adam Hodgkin, Managing Director of xrefer.  "With the new
Research Mapper, such huge growth in our offering of prestigious content
and the launch of unit conversions, we are fulfilling our mission to
provide libraries and their users with the best online ready reference
service available."

###

About xrefer

xrefer (www.xrefer.com) delivers technology-enhanced online reference
services to libraries and their users worldwide.  The company's fully
customizable subscription service, xreferplus, features full-text,
aggregated and integrated content from over 150 reference books and 27
book publishers.  xreferplus adds value with its proprietary
cross-reference technology that cuts across a broad array of topics,
titles and publishers.  A privately-held corporation, xrefer was founded
in London, U.K. in September 1999 and has its North American headquarters
in Boston, Massachusetts.

For more information contact Ellen McCullough at (617) 426-5710, by fax,
(617) 426-3103, or by e-mail, ellen.mccullough@xrefer.com.

********************************************
Ellen McCullough, Marketing Director
xrefer
31 St. James Ave., Suite 370
Boston, MA 02116
ph: 617-426-5710
fx: 617-426-3103
www.xrefer.com 

xreferplus: named an Outstanding Academic Title by CHOICE, 2002