In the 1960s computer technologies began to expand but were still extremely limited due to their size and lack of computing power. Bibliographic searches for users took anywhere between six and 30 days to obtain even using the computer power of the time.

A request was either called or mailed in to the Defense Documentation Center (DDC), DTIC’s name during the late 1960s, and a retrieval analyst would review the request and develop a search strategy.

But in 1974 that cumbersome and time-consuming process would become obsolete with the introduction of the DROLS system.

The DDC Remote Online Retrieval System which would turn into the Defense RDT&E Online System (DROLS) launched in 1974. It would finally give users direct online access to the DDC databases to run their own searches in real time.

As the 1970s progressed so did the technology that made it easier to store and access information.

In the decade from the mid-1970s through the 1980s a major shift occurred in how people were able to access information due to technological advances in computing.

During this time the needs and expectations of those using the DDC products and resources expanded to much more than just documents. They needed specific, relevant, and timely information of various types of reports and documents from a growing number of resources, including foreign and intelligence derived. Thus, in October 1979 the DDC changed its name to the Defense Technical Information Center (DTIC) in recognition of its changing objectives. 

By the end of the 1980s into the early 1990s the information age was not just over the horizon anymore, it had arrived. In the early years of DTIC the growth of scholarly information was measured by the amount of documents in the library collections, which were doubling roughly every 16 years. By the early 1990s analysts were no longer measuring growth by the number of documents but by the information itself, which was estimated to double at a staggering rate of every 18 to 20 months. The very fact that analysts were no longer measuring growth by the amount of documents but instead by the amount of data indicated a seismic shift in information technology. The biggest issue was not merely growth in the amount of material but a revolution in how that information was found, disseminated, and used.

During this time of great technological transition DTIC was transferred from the Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) to the OSD. DTIC would now assume a broader and more important role within the Department of Defense (DoD).  With the move to the OSD, DTIC would now have the ability for the first time to work directly with high-level decision-makers within the Pentagon.

DTIC created its first homepage online which was a starting point for users searching for DoD information. DefenseLINK was developed by DTIC and partners that provided users with a single-entry point to link home pages that offered information about OSD organization, Defense agencies, and military services. It also acted as a news resource that included OSD PAO press releases, transcripts of DoD news and background briefings, contract award announcements, press advisories, and other information.  In 1995 one of the most significant new systems introduced by DTIC was launched, the Electronic Document Management System (EDMS).

The EDMS would ultimately eliminate the manual handling of paper documents during processing because the entire report was scanned upon arrival.

Closing out the 20th century DTIC looked forward to a new millennium and continued advancements in technology.