The Program on Negotiation Clearinghouse is pleased to announce that its written teaching materials are now available in electronic format in addition to hard copy. Clearinghouse customers who choose electronic format will receive their files via e-mail, and may either print or forward the number of copies that they purchase. We hope that you will find this new feature useful.

Below are the answers to some questions you may have about the electronic distribution option. If you have additional questions, please contact the Clearinghouse at chouse@law.harvard.edu or by phone at 800-258-4406 (within the U.S.) or 781-239-1111 (outside the U.S.).

Q: What is a "soft copy"?
A: A soft copy of a Clearinghouse exercise is an electronic file sent via e-mail, as opposed to a paper "hard copy."

Q: Is there a price difference between hard and soft copies?
A: Hard and soft copies are priced identically, and both entail the same handling charges due to the manual effort required to fulfill each order. However, there are no shipping charges for soft copies. For large, urgent, or international orders, the savings on shipping costs can be substantial.

Q: What are the benefits of electronic soft copies versus hard copies?
A: The primary benefits of soft copies are that they can be distributed to others (such as students) electronically, that the delivery time is much shorter than for hard copies, and that soft copies entail no shipping charge. The primary benefits of hard copies are that they require no additional time or effort to prepare them for in-person use, and that (for multiple-role simulations) they are printed on colored paper that makes it easier to distinguish the different roles.

Q: Who might want to order soft copies instead of hard copies?
A: Clearinghouse customers who might prefer soft copies include those who teach online and/or distribute their course materials via e-mail or a course website; those who wish to incorporate PON materials into a course packet; those who need their materials on an urgent basis, and those (particularly outside the U.S.) for whom shipping costs might be an obstacle. Customers who plan to distribute their course materials in paper format might prefer hard copies because the hard copies arrive fully ready for use.

Q: Do I need any special software or equipment to order soft copies?
A: Soft copies are in Adobe Acrobat PDF format and may be read with the free Acrobat Reader, available at www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html. Please note: At the present time, Clearinghouse soft copies are compatible with the following versions of the Acrobat Reader: English, German, French, Spanish, Swedish, Portuguese, Japanese, and Korean. If you have a different version, you may wish to download one of these at the Adobe website, or contact the PON Clearinghouse at chouse@law.harvard.edu, 800-258-4406 (within the U.S.), or 781-239-1111 (outside the U.S.) for further assistance. This restriction does not apply to the freely available Teacher's Package Review Copies.

Soft copies will be delivered as one or more linked URLs (website addresses) within the body of an e-mail; you can click on these links to download or forward your documents. Please note that soft copies can only be read on a PC running Windows 2000 or Windows XP (Windows 95, 98, NT 4.0, and ME are not supported at this time), or a Macintosh running OSX 10.3 or higher. In deciding which email address to use, please note that the links for both PC- and Mac-compatible files can be sent to any e-mail address, but that PC-compatible files may only be read on a PC, and Mac-compatible files may only be read on a Macintosh.

Q: Will my firewall or e-mail security settings prevent me from receiving the electronic files?
A: Probably not, unless your e-mail system blocks mail from unidentified senders. (If that's the case, please contact the Clearinghouse at chouse@law.harvard.edu or 800-258-4406 to make special arrangements). You will not be sent an e-mail with an attachment, but rather a e-mail containing a URL (website address) to which you can link to download your files. This avoids most problems with firewalls or security settings.

Q: Once I order a soft copy, will I be able to download, forward, or print it as often as I want?
A: No. Clearinghouse materials are protected by U.S. copyright laws, and one soft copy must be purchased for each time that the file will be downloaded, forwarded, or photocopied. The files are protected with ArticleWorks® digital rights management software, which tracks the number of computers to which the files are downloaded. After a file has been downloaded the maximum number of times (i.e., as many times as soft copies purchased), it may not be downloaded or forwarded again until an additional soft copy is purchased.

Q: Can I purchase and download soft copies 24 hours a day?
A: Just as with hard copy orders, you may place your soft copy order 24 hours a day, but due to the steps involved in fulfilling the order, you order will be fulfilled by a human being during normal Clearinghouse business hours (Monday - Friday, 8:30 am - 5 pm EST). You can expect to receive your soft copy order within one business day, and if you place the order during Clearinghouse business hours, you generally will receive it within hours.

Q: If I purchase soft copies, can I arrange to have our copy center incorporate them into a course packet?
A: Yes. Simply purchase the same number of soft copy permissions as the number of course packets into which you plan to insert the exercise (so, if you're having 40 course packets printed, you would order 40 soft copies of the exercise(s) you plan to include). This option works well for case studies and other exercises for which each student receives identical material.

If you are ordering role simulations, remember that most role simulations include different sets of confidential instructions for different participants. So, if you order 40 copies of a 2-party role simulation, you would receive 20 permissions for one party's instructions and 20 permissions for the other party's. In this case, you might choose to either (a) create different course packets for different students; (b) include only the general instructions for the role simulation in the course packet, if the simulation comes with them, and distribute the confidential instructions separately; or (c) omit the role simulation from the course packet entirely.

Q: What if I have additional questions?
A: Please contact the Clearinghouse at chouse@law.harvard.edu or by phone at 800-258-4406 (within the U.S.) or 781-239-1111 (outside the U.S.).