Technological advances in nonproprietary software are discussed. Developments in general support of software and in computer hardware are examined. It is suggested that nonproprietary software is a resource that can save colleges and universities system development time and costs. (Author/SF)

Proprietary software available to the institutional researcher is discussed. It is suggested that as more institutions use proprietary software, the institutional researcher may find that varying levels of involvement in the process of evaluating and acquiring such software can result in the availability of more useful facilities. (Author/SF)