Banned Books Week

This week is the American Library Association's 'Banned Books Week'.
The event is aimed to promote access to information and bring attention to the harms of censorship.
Check it out: http://www.bannedbooksweek.org/

Porn filters needed in schools, libraries: MPP

Censorship in public libraries has always been an interesting topic to me. Is a public library an unfiltered resource for information or is it a community centre where all members can be safe? At some point you can't have both given cultural norms around certain content. In the news this week Conservative MPP Gerry Martiniuk tabled a bill that "would force libraries and schools in Ontario to install software that will block pornography sites." This would make the prime function of the library to be the latter, a community centre where one can access information with some prohibitions. I like the part where Martiniuk denies that this isn't censorship. But in reality, of course it is, you are impeding access to information, but are we OK with that, and are we OK to have others define "what is pornography" for us.

The article can be found on the CBC website here

Top US copyright cop opposes Google book deal

Head of the U.S. Copyright Office, Marybeth Peters, expresses her opposition to the Google book deal. The opinion could influence the Goggle settlement, set for a hearing on October 7th.

One of Peter's problems is the definition of what constitutes an out-of-print work.

Her complete statement can be found here:

http://judiciary.house.gov/hearings/pdf/Peters090910.pdf

Random House and McClelland & Stewart eliminate rights departments

Random House and McClelland & Stewart have eliminated their rights departments and hired The Cooke Agency International to handle foreign rights, permissions, and domestic book-club sales.

Brad Martin and Doug Pepper, presidents of Random House and M&S respectively, discuss their decision in the National Post.

Differences in the search performance of Bing and Google

There is a website posting that shows that there may be regional or country differences in the search performance of Bing and Google, link http://blog.searchenginewatch.com/090902-125232

Here are some other links to compare Bing and Google search options:

Compare Search Engines Google and Bing:
http://www.blackdog.ie/google-bing/

Bing vs. Google vs. Yahoo: Feature Smackdown :
http://www.pcworld.com/article/165749/bing_vs_google_vs_yahoo_feature_smackdown.html

Microsoft's Bing Vs Google: Head To Head Search Results
http://searchengineland.com/microsofts-bing-vs-google-head-to-head-search-results-20006

List of Bing,Google & Yahoo Comparison tools
http://digg.com/tech_news/List_of_Bing_Google_Yahoo_Comparison_tools

Bing vs. Google, side by side comparison
http://ebiquity.umbc.edu/blogger/2009/06/01/bing-vs-google-side-by-side-comparison/

Thinking Ahead Conference

Here's Stephen Abram's keynote titled "Web 3.0 and Libraries: What is at the Heart of Libraries?" at Thinking Ahead Conference in Salt Lake City

link : http://www.sirsidynix.com/Resources/Pdfs/Company/Abram/20090914_SLC.pdf

Cengage to rent textbooks

Educational publisher Cengage Learning will be renting textbooks out to students starting in December 2009. Titles will be available at CengageBrain.com for 40 to 70% less than the retail price of each book.

Students who rent books will be able to access the first chapter in e-book format until the book is delivered to them. Once the rental term is over, students will have a choice to either ship the book back or purchase it.

The future of libraries

Alexander Feng at SLA's PHT Division blog comments on a recent article from CNN on the future of libraries. The CNN article discusses the changes happening in libraries, public libraries in particular, as they move toward digital resources, digital learning centres, and an increased online presence.

The article also touches on the changing role of the librarian in this context. Linda C. Smith, president of the Association for Library and Information Science Education, comments in the article,

"It's a source of tension in the field because, for some people, trying to re-brand can be perceived as a rejection of the [library] tradition and the values".

Feng reflects on this in light of SLA's move to rebrand and better capture what the organization and its members do.

Geist on Copyright Reform

Here is an article by Michael Geist in the Toronto Star on Copyright Reform.
http://www.thestar.com/sciencetech/article/682006
While agreeable and uncontroversial, I still wish there were more specific comments regarding the protecting (or not protecting) of creator's rights. There is mention of balance but it would be interesting to know what he thinks balance is...

Also, while it may seem intuitive that reform to the act should be technologically neutral to retain long term relevance, the current act makes many references to different technologies. Such avoidance may impossible.

Library as vending machine!

The Contra Costa County Library (in California) is using automated lending machines to reach people of remote and underserved areas. They are called Library a-Go-Go. Patrons in these areas can check out and return a certain selection of paperbacks with these lending machines. Each machine can hold up to 400 titles! To see the vending machine (and other details), go to:

http://www.libraryjournal.com/article/CA6674915.html