FishBase is large. Its information on fish biology is structured in more than 1,000 database fields grouped into 60 major and 70 minor tables with altogether more than two million records. More than 400 forms and preprogrammed procedures draw on this information to create a variety of screens and reports. These reports have been designed to meet our own needs as well as the anticipated needs of FishBase users in general. If you need a special output not provided so far, please let us know and we will consider it when we update FishBase. Alternatively, you can purchase the Microsoft Access 2000 database software and create your own reports from the data accessible on the CD-ROMs (see chapter on ‘FishBase and Microsoft Access’, this vol.).

On the web, the result of queries and the data behind graphs can be downloaded and saved in htm format, which can be read directly by most modern text, spreadsheet and database programs.

We present below a description of the information in FishBase, how to access it, and how to output information. Note that some of the fields mentioned might not be visible on the form but hidden under links or buttons. For example, information on who entered, modified or checked information is hidden under the Status button in the CD-ROM version. This is also where you find fields used for internal purposes, such as SpecCode and StockCode. The README file on the Database CD-ROM contains information on any changes, e.g., in the preprogrammed routines.