Copyright exemption won’t lead to the demise of Canadian publishers
(oncampus.macleans.ca): As discussion over Bill C-32, the federal government’s controversial copyright bill, heats up in Ottawa, educators, publishers, and authors remain concerned over what consequences await them if the proposed bill becomes law. One aspect of the legislation that has sparked a fierce debate between the publishing world and the… Read More
Time and experience are no friends of peer review
(timeshighereducation.co.uk): A study billed as the most extensive conducted of peer reviewers has exposed an unexpected flaw in the process. While it might seem safe to assume that experience brings benefits, the research by academics at the University of California, San Francisco suggests that no fewer than 92 per cent… Read More
The Future Is in the Cloud
(sys-con.com): The computing scenario in the business of the near future may very well look like this: every employee has a desktop computer and can send email, access the company database, pull up the CRM interface, generate invoices and letters, and do everything they always have. The only difference is,… Read More
Cases to Make E-Books Look Like Real Books
(wired.com): Originally, because early e-readers tended to ship with protective covers, there weren't many third-party accessory companies working on cases for e-readers at all. Cases with the look and feel of vintage books began as a homemade, user-driven phenomenon — and the easiest way to make a case that looks… Read More
Intelligent, Online Video Archiving-Just What the Doctor Ordered
(surgistrategies.com): With rapidly evolving new technologies, video is playing an increasingly important role in operating and procedure rooms, throughout the hospital and beyond for surgical training, consultation, case documentation, patient education and more. Given that, how video images are saved for future use is more important than ever before. It’s… Read More
How Copyright Takes Away Rights From Consumers
(techdirt.com): It's amusing to see defenders of current copyright law often making final declarations about how copyright is a "right" for artists, and thus protecting those rights absolutely makes sense. What they never seem to talk about is how, at the same time, copyright quite frequently is removing rights from… Read More
The future of books is a real page-turner
(smh.com.au): The government is seeking the public's help over whether paper books will eventually be superseded by electronic versions, writes Barry Jones. Fifteen years ago, Nicholas Negroponte published being digital. As a dyslexic, he didn't enjoy reading and even apologised for writing a book to disseminate his ideas about "bits"… Read More
France Says Google Is Main Cause Of News Publishers’ Woes
(paidcontent.co.uk): The competition watchdog, L’Autorité de la Concurrence, in an opinion expressed to the finance minister, says Google is “dominant” in search advertising (no surprise there - Google’s search share in Europe is far higher than in the U.S.). But it did not rule Google that is abusing that dominance,… Read More
HE funding in the US and the UK
(scholarlykitchen.sspnet.org): The response in Britain to both the Browne Report and the announced cuts has been predictably intense and polarized. Representatives of research universities with a strong STEM focus were quick to applaud the report and its recommendations, while liberal arts institutions and their faculties reacted with varying degrees of… Read More
Making Open Access Pay
(publishingperspectives.com): In Germany, more often than not, an institute or author is expected to contribute a fair sum to have a work published in open access. The challenge then shifts from funding to maintaining quality control. It is certainly not a new debate, but as libraries and authors put more… Read More
