Taxonomy Manager (TM) is a computer-based, full-text method dedicated to represent biological knowledge allowing scientists to continuously revise and reorganize the conceptual framework of data and their interpretation, The system architecture distinguishes clients and a task oriented server. TM provides a distinct, precise, yet user-friendly, formalism for knowledge specification by biologic experts and for factual knowledge input by general scientists on interactive interfaces, An incremental compiler translates and transforms new information specified within full-text editors into an internal format and back again. A retrieval dialog allows access to the results of text analyses including information units and associated rules, and a browser offers free navigation through the network of data, External users can access the information contained within TM by a communication protocol. Copyright (C) 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.