To read the CDs you need "Word" and "PowerPoint" software, available on most PCs or Macs. Each CD starts with a Directory "Intro&SMSList" which explains the idea of the new "SMS List", gives a background to it and shows the latest version which the "List Committee" agreed upon.
The major part of the CDs is filled with the "SMS Trip Archives". These are collections of trip reports, maps, and picture files of SMS trips from about the last decade. The Archives serve for trip planning, description of List activities and memories of past trips. An "Excel" file on the CDs summarizes the contents. A shortened version can be found on this web site by clicking on SMS Trip Archives, Participants and List Status.
The trips are organized by 5 categories: Peaks, Passes and Couloirs on one CD (SMS #1); Tours and Traverses, Local Trips and Training Trips on the second CD (SMS #2), Summer trips on the third CD (SMS #3). Each main folder contains many detailed folders named after the destination. Double-click those and you find in each a "Word" file with trip write-ups and a "Powerpoint" file with a scanned map, route description and many color pictures and recently also VGA movie files. The pictures are of screen quality (about 1 MByte) and should look much sharper than web pictures. There are about 1500 pictures and 100 trips on these CDs and it is likely that you are somewhere in the pictures. Every month new trips are added. Every trip leader and participant is encouraged/obliged to contribute to the "Archives".
If you did not get the CDs, you can purchase an updated version of the SMS Archives (now 3 CDs) for $10 (payable to SMS) from Reiner Stenzel. Below is a copy of the SMS List:
| Southern CA | Baldy, San Jacinto, and San Gorgonio |
| Western Sierra | Skier's Alta, Silliman |
| Eastern Sierra | Mt Gould, Perkins, Tinemaha, Mary Austin, Birch, Cloudripper, Ski Mtrs Pk, Basin, San Joaquin, Ritter, Wood, Dana, Gibbs, False White, Conness, Dunderberg, Excelsior, Leavitt, Matterhorn, Rose, Tallac |
| Northern CA and elsewhere | White Mtn, Boundary, Lassen, and Shasta |
10 Passes Kaiser, Cottonwood, Kearsarge, University, Bishop, Lamarck, Whitney Trailcrest, Blue Couloir, Duck, Sonora.
10 Canyons Sardine Cyn, Armstrong Cyn, Elderberry Cyn, Basin Couloir, Dade's Hourglass, Dana, Wahoo, Bloody, Matterhorn, Zen on Baldy.
5 Tours Trans-Sierras such as High Route, Cirque Crest, King’s Route (Onion Valley-Mineral K.), Sierra Crest Routes such as Onion Valley to South Lke, Rock Creek to Mammoth, or other 4 to 7 day backcountry tours to, e.g., the Clark Range, Goddard, Kaweahs, White Mtn Range, etc.