ASCE Store

Store - FAQ

Please select a question from the list below (links to additional information about a particular topic, or other pages, will open in a new browser window, indicated by the icon).

1. What is the ASCE Online Research Library?

The ASCE Online Research Library is a comprehensive tool for locating articles of interest across all disciplines of civil engineering. The Research Library provides you with unprecedented access to more than 27,000 full-text papers from ASCE Journals and Proceedings published since 1995-- that's over 230,000 pages! Approximately 4,000 new papers will be added each year. A Research Library subscription is not required to use the search and browse features or to view tables of contents and abstracts. Downloading full-text digital papers is available only to Research Library or online journal subscribers. Individuals should purchase an ASCE Research Library Card; subscription information is also available for Institutions.

Personal subscribers gain access to full-text papers via a username and password. Download activity is recorded and tracked in the My Research Library Card account page, which may be viewed anytime after establishing a login session. This account page also serves as a personal archive (this page is not available to institutional subscribers).

Institutional subscribers gain access to the Research Library via their organization's IP addresses and may use the archive in a manner consistent with their institutional online user agreement.

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2. What is the EJCDC Contract Documents Store?

The Engineers Joint Contract Documents Committee (EJCDC) Documents Store offers documents for both immediate electronic download (in MS-Word format) or for shipping to your door (as printed "hard" copies or on CD-ROM). When browsing the catalog, you can make your format choice (Download, Paper, CD) based on what options exist for a particular document. Contract document sets are also available and offer additional savings.

The Engineers Joint Contract Documents Committee (EJCDC) includes the American Council of Engineering Companies, American Society of Civil Engineers, and NSPE's Professional Engineers in Private Practice division. The EJCDC develops and periodically updates fair and objective standard documents that represent the latest and best thinking of practicing engineers and attorneys on the subject of contractual relations between the parties involved in a project.

All of the EJCDC documents are prepared with the advice of legal counsel and reflect the experience of the practicing engineers who constitute the EJCDC. It is the EJCDC's belief that the use of these documents can reduce conflicts and litigation.

In offering these documents to the profession, EJCDC encourages their adaptation for the benefit of all the parties involved in a specific project. But users should recognize that any changes or modifications to the language of a document should be reviewed by legal counsel prior to use. Users should also be aware that any changes in one document may affect related documents and should be coordinated in order to avoid confusing or conflicting language.

Upon purchase of any digital document or set of documents, click on the download button and you will have immediate access to the MS-Word file(s) comprising each document (both View and Download buttons are presented). In addition, you will also be able to download multiple files in a compressed/zipped "bundle" if you so desire. If you do not wish to download all documents in your initial store session, you may return at any time within sixty (60) days of purchase via your personalized MyProducts view of the compilation. Simply return within the 60 days, click on the MyProducts link appearing atop any page in the store, log in, and you'll be able to download any article (even ones you already downloaded). After 60 days, download rights will be automatically terminated — you'll receive an on-screen notification that your access rights to the document(s) have ended. Please note the date of purchase to ensure that you download the entire compilation before your rights expire.

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3. How do I use the stores?

While anyone can freely browse and search the store inventory, in order to make a purchase you must create an account (establish a username and password and provide billing and customer care information). The first time you make a purchase, you will be guided through a check-out process that includes creating an account. Following successful account setup, you will be advanced to payment and confirmation screens. Currently, products can be purchased with only these credit cards: American Express, MasterCard, and Visa. Following credit card authorization, you will be able access your purchase. On subsequent visits, logging in to the store will allow you to view your order history, re-download documents that you've downloaded on prior visits (unless any access rights to the documents have expired), update your profile, change credit card information (if you opt to save it as part of your profile), and change your password.

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4. How do I make a purchase, step by step?

1. Add the product to your shopping cart.
2. When ready to buy, click "Check Out."
3. If you are a new user, fill out the account information and click "Continue."
4. The next screen contains a warning that you must provide credit card information; click "Continue."
5. Enter your credit-card information, or select the option to fax or phone in your information later; click "Continue".
6. Review the details of your order and, if correct, click "Place Order" (your credit card will be charged at this point).
7. The receipt page will appear; click "Download Now" to advance to your product download page. Since the special publication comprises multiple documents in PDF format, you can download each article individually. EJCDC documents can either be single documents or a series of documents, as well as collections or sets of multiple documents. As with the special publication, you have the option of downloading them individually or in compressed/zipped "bundles" for convenience.

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5. Are my store transactions secure, safe, and private?

ASCE Store customers are asked to provide personal data in order to make online purchases. This information is used solely to process your order and to contact you if necessary. We also use this information to set up the account information we store on your behalf, as well as provide you the means to review and modify it to ensure its accuracy. Should you choose to store credit card information in order to speed future purchases, rest assured that these data, in addition to all your other personal account information, are stored on a secure web server. (We reveal only the last four digits of your credit card numbers when confirming an order.) Furthermore, all online transactions via the store utilize a secure server and an automated credit card authorization service protected by software that utilizes the Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) protocol. The ASCE Store also employs cookies, so be sure to configure your browser to accept cookies.

Furthermore, digital files downloaded from the store do not contain any virus or other malicious components, so you can safely store and transfer them from machine to machine.

The store Privacy Policy and Security Statement can be reviewed by clicking here.

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6. How will purchases appear on my credit card statement?

Charges will appear as ASCE Online Store 1-800-344-6902.

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7. What are the minimum web browser requirements to use the store?

The latest versions of Microsoft Internet Explorer (), Netscape Navigator (), and Opera ( ) can all be used safely and securely with the ASCE Store. We recommend version 5.x or higher for each browser. Whichever browser you choose, it must be configured to accept cookies and must support JavaScript. The latest versions of each browser can be downloaded by clicking on the browser names above.

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8. How do I view/print/save PDF documents?

All documents sold in the Special Journal Publications store are downloadable to your desktop in Adobe's Portable Document Format (PDF). Acrobat 3.0 or higher is recommended for viewing and printing these files. You may use the freely available standalone Reader (), the browser "plug-in," and/or Acrobat Exchange. Acrobat products are available directly from Adobe Corporation (). The PDF file format was chosen since it preserves the original layout and style of the original printed document. PDFs cannot be edited or otherwise manipulated. Printing and searching (by Acrobat's native search function) are supported, however. Click on the button below () to obtain a reader. If you are interested in reading your documents on a personal digital device (Palm, etc.), please visit Adobe () for the latest pointers to software to upgrade your specific device.

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9. How do I view/print/save MS-Word documents?

If you've purchased any documents in Microsoft Word format (file extension *.doc), either MS-Word or the MS-Office suite for Windows with Word loaded is required if you wish to edit the files. If you are not running any version of MS Word, Microsoft offers a free Word document viewer that will allow you to view, print, and save documents (but not edit them). The free viewer can be downloaded from Microsoft Corporation (). More information on the viewer, including features and system requirements, is available here (). NOTE: While the viewer does not support editing of Word documents, it does allow you to copy text to the Windows clipboard for insertion into other applications. The viewer can also be configured to open up *.doc files from within Microsoft Internet Explorer and Netscape Navigator.

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10. How do I work with compressed/zipped EJCDC Document collections?

Many EJCDC documents contain multiple files, such as attachments and subparts. In addition to allowing you to view/download each file separately, for your convenience all files are available for download in one compressed/zipped "file bundle." A decompression/unzip utility is needed if you wish to download files in the GZIP (*.gz) format. For Win 9x/NT/2000/ME/XP, we recommend PowerArchiver 6.1 () (freeware) or WinZip () (commercial).

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11. Can I re-download digital documents I've already purchased without paying again?

Yes. All the documents you've purchased in any ASCE store will be listed on your MyProducts screen. Simply click on MyProducts, log in, and you'll be able to re-acquire any document listed, should you misplace it or damage the file. At the current time, you will have access to all documents purchased (both special publications and EJCDC documents) for sixty (60) days from time of purchase.

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12. What information can I get regarding my purchases?

Once you've created an account, you will have access to your order history, which lists all the digital products you've purchased in the store, including title, date of download, and other transaction details.

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13. Who do I contact for technical assistance and customer service?

If you experience any problems using the store, please contact:

Online Services Customer Service

American Institute of Physics

Suite 1NO1, 2 Huntington Quadrangle

Melville, NY 11747-4502 USA

Phone (U.S. and Canada):  +1 800 874 6383

Phone (other locations):  +1 516 576 2664

FAX:  +1 516 576 2604

  E-mail:  help@scitation.org

Customer service office hours are currently from 0730 to 2300 Eastern (U.S.) Standard Time (1330 to 0400 GMT).

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14. What if I experience problems with the download and get a corrupt or incomplete file?

If you discover an incomplete or otherwise corrupt digital document, you can re-enter the store, log in, and re-access it via the MyProducts page. You will be able to download any document(s) you've previously downloaded without being charged again. If there were problems during the download that prevented you from successfully completing the transaction, and you are unsure if your credit card was charged, please contact Customer Service at the points of contact above for resolution. We want you to be completely satisfied with your purchase.

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15. Do you offer any discounts?

Currently, for purchasers of the special journal publication, ASCE Members receive a 40% discount. ASCE Members receive a 50% discount on the price of all EJCDC documents and sets. During the sign-up/check-out process, you will be given an opportunity to indicate that you are an ASCE member and will be asked to enter your membership number for verification. If you do not know your membership number, you may request it from MEMBER@asce.org. If you're not an ASCE Member and want more information on becoming one, click here ().

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16. What if there are problems?

Charge disputes should be reported to your credit card company in accordance with its reporting rules and procedures, and not directly to Customer Service. Your credit card company will contact the store for problem resolution.

If you require more information on this policy or have questions about specific charges, please contact Customer Service for assistance.

If you experience any technical problems during your visit to our store or with the file(s) you purchase, please contact Customer Service.

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17. What are the copyright rules and terms of use governing ASCE digital products that I purchase?

To view the copyright rules, please click here; to view the Terms of Use governing documents purchased in any ASCE Store, please click here.

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18. What do I do if I've forgotten my username?

Should you forget your username, you must create a new account.

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19. What do I do if I know my username but have forgotten my password?

If you've forgotten your password, please proceed as follows:

• Contact customer service by phone at either +1 800 874 6383 (U.S. and Canada) or +1 516 576 2664 (other locations).
• You will need to know your username and the e-mail address provided when you set up your account.
• The customer service representative will assign a temporary password and e-mail it to the address you provide.
• Upon reaccessing the system, immediately reset your password and record it in a safe place.

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20. How do I manage my account?

When you are logged in to the store, there are several account-maintenance areas where you can view and/or modify your user information, including:

• Personal Information — enables you to modify your name, e-mail address, and other contact information.
• Change Password — enables you to securely change your password.
• Address Book — enables you to update your billing address.
• Payment Book — allows you to manage your payment method and any stored credit card information (if you've opted to store such data).

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21. Where can I send feedback about the store (i.e, suggestions)?

Comments about the ASCE Store, suggestions for improvements, and feedback about your purchasing experience may be sent to:

  E-mail: ascestore@aip.org

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