Royalties for web radio

Here's a link to the BBC tech news on the day of silence held this past Tuesday for the new royalties that will be going into effect for Web radio. This will mean an exorbitant cost for web radio, such as NPR. It is part of the continuing fight over what role copyright law or intellectual property law will play on the Web and the internet, and who will bear the costs.

Notice of connection problems

This post is not going to be exciting. My phone line at home is dead, so I am up at the school where I teach trying to get some work done. My phone went dead on Friday (yesterday) and is not supposed to be fixed until Monday, somewhere between 8 am and 7:15 pm. That really holds me up for both my classes I take and the classes I teach. It is not all convenient, to say the least. I am supposed to blog at least 3 times per week, but it looks like I will need to catch up during this coming week. So this is, in a sense a notice.

Folksonomy

Here's some data as to how many more categories are found through folksonomy than occur in traditional taxonomies.&; Some organizations use these to update their own taxonomies, but it seems to be speculation as to whether any number of categories or classifications are shared by a large number of people.This is an interesting problem to ponder when it comes to subject directories, which can sometimes narrow searches that are so broad from search engines.Even search engines that rank retrieval through number of popular links tend to be broad and don't necessarily evaluate these links.Are links really analogous to citations, for instance?  However,folksonomies do allow user input into the classification process for organizations that still rely on more traditional taxonomies. Follow this link.

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For some reason the link is not working. However, I decided that to delete this post, which is what I would usually do.

LIS2600 "Digital Reference" in Scopus

Here's my URL to bloglines feed for Scopus folder. I have it as a link. Enjoy!!!

Nonhuman Primate Morality Search Engine

Here's a link to my Google customized search engine on Nonhuman Primate Morality. It is hardly complete at this point, but if this is an interest of yours, try searching. Right now it is somewhat biased in the direction of Frans de Waal's work on nonhuman primates and the evolution of morality. In the future I hope to add other primatologists, anthropologists or scientists, such as Mark Hauser (unsympathetic to de Waal's theses) and Sarah Hrdy, who has interesting things to say about females in the animal world. Here's a better link that does not go to the gadget but to the search engine. You should try searching with primate morality, nonhuman primate morality, empathy in primates, Frans de Waal. I am not sure why these labels are not showing up, but those are the searches I performed to gather particular webpages, of which there should be more than the 5 now listed. There were lots of web pages I chose to enter.

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Google Wakes Up!!

This article addresses Google's seeking government support to fight Internet censorship abroad, but for reasons of international trade rather than principles of freedom of speech or freedom of inquiry. So perhaps this is a mixed blessing, or is it simply a pragmatic way to address censorship? Certainly international trade agreements, like those on patents through the WTO (World Trade Organization) are not always fair to undeveloped nations, so appeals to international trade are not prima facie based on human rights, and could, in fact, be used against human rights at other times and places. In fact, Google might be a case in point, since it agreed to censor its website in China because the Chinese government made it a condition of allowing Chinese users access to Google web pages. Censorship by governments has become an increasing problem in many Asian nations. Human rights activists often want us to approach such problems with a boycott approach, such as that against apartheid in South Africa. Businesses have often resisted boycotts claiming that they are actually improving the situation for citizens in the countries where they practice business. However, does an information access business work on the same model as other types of business? Would boycotts or sanctions work or is Google's present approach to put pressure through appeals to trade the best approach? "Under World Trade Organization rules, countries can limit trade for national security or public moral reasons" which leaves countries broad justifications for filtering material on the internet or web. Check out this article on Google

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Virtual Libraries/Internet access on the rise

Here's an article on public libraries and how 99% of them now offer internet access, how they have maintained themselves as public forums and community centers by going virtual, and allowing more noise. I think this shows how libraries can still remain very relevant in a digital age, and in a way often overlooked by those who promote digital libraries as only "gateways" to information. However, as community centers do they complement or compete with other community centers, such as YMCA's, coffee shops, bookstores, etc.

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EPA Libraries

The EPA has put a moratorium on the closing of its libraries, due to complaints. There were several reasons that these libraries were being closed - budget slashes among them. How can we advocate for keeping libraries open? Check out this link.

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Digital Divide is National Concern, too

Here's a short article on the digital divide within the United States. So it is not just a global concern. Libraries can be a means to providing internet access for those who don't have it, and unlike cybercafes, internet access can be free of cost, if limited timewise, in a library. Bill Gates has helped fund Gates computer libraries where internet access is available, in small local libraries, such as the one in State College, PA.

Technology, freedom & privacy

Here's a link to Boing Boing director, talking or the transcript to what he said, for an Amnesty International webcast about technology and freedom globally. He warns us that technology has a downside, too, e.g., RFID tags can invade our privacy. RFID tags are used in passports, as he mentions, and in much library automation (for circulation, e.g.), which he does not mention. In other words, they have become more and more pervasive, as more functions are automated throughout society, sometimes with the actual intention of recognizing personal identification and information. The ALA has a position on privacy and confidentiality that library patrons have a right to free inquiry "without having the subject of one's interest examined or scrutinized by others." The ALA also has adopted a resolution on RFID technology. You can find more information about this policy at the following link on ALA RFID policy.

CIC and Google Cooperate on Digitizing Collections

Here's a link to an article about 12 universities cooperating with Google's project to digitize 10 million books. This is important because Google thereby provides a source of funding for what sometimes proves to be an expensive project, especially when the material digitized includes photos, or fragile items, or texts that you might not want to unbind, as well as possible copyright hurdles.

Dogged by Grade Inflation!!!

Comment on Digital Libraries and Digital Divide

The future of digital libraries might lie in speed and convenience in searching and access. That does not mean that digital is necessarily superior for all types of information access in terms of quality. There is also the problem of the digital divide - will poorer nations or communities suffer from lack of internet access or internet resources? This may especially be a problem or challenge given that how digital libraries will be funded and maintained is already and still a problem in developed nations. However, if an economic model could be found - and that might mean actual decisions to search for such a model - digital libraries could actually increase the ability of researchers in undeveloped nations to access necessary information in journals, because of the possibility of remote access. However, this might require flexible licensing agreements or open access. Thus, the main problems might not be technological, but might be economic and legal issues. The photo above and to the left is from a Unesco portal of digital libraries in Africa.

Lending books on-line

Check out this link