Welcome to SLA Connections, your source for news and information from the information profession and industry.
Knowing the Flow of Information
While reviewing the interim results of the 2006 SLA Membership Study, I was surprised to see that members of SLA generally are not aware of our involvement in the copyright/intellectual property policymaking arena. The topic was rated as one of the most important business issues facing the global community of information professionals, but awareness of the great work we are doing to protect your interests could be better. With this column, I'll begin my campaign to spread the word!
Copyright has always been a topic of great importance to the library and information profession. In the past 10 years, however, its significance has increased dramatically. Laws and regulations protecting the work of authors, creators, publishers and distributors of content have been strengthened to the point where a copyrighted work is now considered the property of its owner. We can debate the propriety of these changes in more detail elsewhere, but for the purposes of this column, let's simply assess the business impact.
In my opinion, the evolution of copyright/intellectual property law has two consequences for the library and information profession: 1) it places greater restrictions on the use of content and, thus, enhances the value of licensing agreements; 2) it places you and your colleagues in a strategic position within your organizations. Your place as a practicing information professional does not exist to interpret the law - we should leave that to the attorneys who are paid for that purpose. Your place exists to ensure the flow of information within your organization leads to successful achievement of the organization's goals.
Knowing how licensed information flows in your organization can be immensely valuable to you and to your management team. This means more than simply knowing who has access to digital content. What are the tendencies of your users? How do they share information within their teams? Do you sense that some users share licensed content in a rather "flexible" manner? These are just some of the questions you should answer on the path to total awareness of the flow of information in your organization.
Burning Question
What kind of digital copyright/intellectual property programs are you operating in your organization? Have you implemented new practices from which others might benefit? I want to hear from you!! Send me an email at Janice@sla.org.
Janice's List
Rethinking Information Work: A Career Guide for Librarians and Other Information Professionals, by G. Kim Dority, 2006 (Greenwood Publishing). Dority is founder and president of G.K. Dority & Associates, an information strategy consultancy. She is an SLA member and serves on the adjunct faculty of the University of Denver's Graduate Library and Information Science Program, where she teaches courses on information entrepreneurship and alternative careers for information professionals. She's also the faculty advisor to the UD/SLA Student Group. Rethinking Information Work examines the entire spectrum of information management and helps the reader to determine the most fulfilling types of careers available in this profession. The book just released at the beginning of this month, and we wish Kim much success with it! Buy it from Amazon.com.
Consider This
"I like long walks, especially when they are taken by people who annoy me." Noel Coward, English actor, dramatist, and songwriter (1899-1973).
| OUTSIDE THE BOX |
EPA Library Update:
Lawmakers Say EPA's Numbers DON'T Add Up!
GAO agrees to review agency's plans for digitizing documents its regulators use
U.S. House Democratic leaders have asked the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to review the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) plan to close some of its libraries as the agency converts a network of physical libraries to a digital library system. The lawmakers are concerned that thousands of documents might become inaccessible during the switchover, but EPA officials say they will ensure that doesn?t happen. Read the whole article at Federal Computer Week
Most Reliable Search Tool Could be Your Librarian
CNET's Elinor Mills says: "Your child wants to learn more about Martin Luther King Jr.? You might consider consulting a librarian instead of Google, AOL or Microsoft search engines." Read the article and join the conversation on CNET's website.
From the Free Pint Universe: DocuTicker
Specializing in full-text, freely available reports, the DocuTicker editorial team of librarians and information professionals collects and posts (daily) reports by government agencies, public interest groups, associations, Non-Governmental Organizations (NGO) and other nonprofits. Check it out: http://www.DocuTicker.com.
Apple Cracks Down on Use of the Word 'pod'
Trouble ahead for podcasts?
Apple has stepped up its legal crackdown on businesses using the word 'pod' in product and company names. Read more in Information World Review.
Online Information Conference 2006
VNU's Online Information Conference is 28-30 November in London and attracts over 800 delegates from over 40 countries across all continents providing a forum dedicated to learning, debate, professional development, technology reviews and assessments, expert discussion as well as case-study presentations and the sharing of research results and opinion.
This year's keynote speaker is Thomas A. Stewart, Editor of Harvard Business Review. Thomas's presentation - Ideas, creativity, and knowledge are capital: everything else is just money now, will review how organizations are using intellectual capital based on his insight as the world's most pre-eminent management journal. This year's track keynote speakers represent thought leaders from around the world including America, Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Poland, Sweden and the UK. Learn more or register.
FREE Online Access to ALL SAGE Journals Until 18 October 2006
If your institution subscribes to one or more SAGE journals, free online access to ALL SAGE journals is available for your faculty and students until 18 October 2006.
No registration is required. Start accessing articles today in many disciplines on SAGE Journals Online, SAGE's online journal delivery platform.
If your institution does not subscribe to any SAGE journals, you may sign up for a free online trial to ALL SAGE journals by registering here.
| INSIDE THE BOX |
THIS JUST IN! Former U.S. Vice President Al Gore to Speak at 2007 SLA Annual Conference in Denver
Just before this issue of SLA Connections went to "press" we received word that the Sunday evening Opening General Session on 3 June will feature a Keynote Address from former U.S. Vice President Al Gore. Read Announcement.
SLA Public Policy Update: WIPO Broadcast Treaty Statement
SLA and other groups offered a united statement in a common belief that as currently drafted, the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Treaty on the Protection of Broadcasts and Broadcasting Organizations, would harm important economic and public policy interests. This Statement offers comments on several key aspects of the treaty. Read Letter.
DVD on US Government Secrecy Now Available from SLA
"Are We Safer in the Dark?" covers national discussion on right-to-know, access to information, and openness. Read more.
SLA Podcast Center
The October SLA Information Center podcast is narrated by Carolyn Sosnowski, Information Specialist at SLA Headquarters and the author of the "Websites Worth a Click" column in Information Outlook, the SLA member magazine. Take a tour of the SLA Website as she leads you to the areas of the SLA Website that are "worth a click," visit the SLA Podcast Center.
2006 SLA Salary Survey Results
The 2006 SLA salary survey shows that U.S. and Canadian members' average salaries continue to rise.
- The mean salary for all U.S. respondents was $67,400 (2005: $65,482) and for all Canadian respondents was Can $65,522 (2005: Can $63,083).
- The mean percent changes for respondents in the U.S. in the same job and the same organization in 2006 as they were in 2005 outpaced inflation again.
- The mean percent change was 4.0% for U.S. based respondents compared with a CPI raise over the same period of 3.5%. Canadian respondents' mean change was 3.9%.
The full report will be published by the middle of November, a little later than in previous years because sending out the salary survey was delayed this year until after the 2006 Membership Study survey had been completed. The web summary of the 2005 results can be found at 2005 SLA Salary Survey and Workplace Study.Call for Papers: SLA 2007 in Denver
Please consider sharing your work with your colleagues in Denver in June 2007!
The Contributed Papers sessions at the SLA Annual Conference allow our members to share their expertise, research interests, or practical applications in a forum of like- minded information professionals. Following the conference, selected papers are posted on the SLA website where others, including those that can't attend the sessions in Denver, may benefit from their research and findings. We encourage SLA members to participate by submitting a brief proposal, due 8 December. For details, see the Call for Papers full page announcement in August's Information Outlook, page 14; or visit this website.Information Management Benchmark Study
To see recent papers presented, visit these archived sites:
SLA 2006 Contributed Papers
SLA 2005 Contributed Papers
An invitation to take part in the Outsell Information Benchmark Study has just been sent out to most SLA members.
This year the questionnaire is 33% shorter and focuses on key benchmark metrics. Members who complete the survey will be sent top-line results from the survey, and will receive a complimentary $20 Amazon.com gift certificate. An executive summary of the results will also be posted for SLA member-only access on the Recent Industry Reports section of our Web. We hope that you will find time to complete this survey as your participation will help the information management community to grow and meet future challenges.By Popular Demand: SLA NETWORKING OPPORTUNITIES!
The survey results will answer questions such as:
- Have information management (IM) budgets increased, decreased, or remained flat in 2006?
- What is the average IM expenditure per employee at corporate, government, academic, and healthcare organizations?
- How many users do your peer organizations support?
- What do your peers believe are the most important IM services and activities?
Just when you didn?t think it was possible for SLA's most utilized and popular member benefit to get any easier, it does!
SLA offers members the opportunity to expand their networks by joining multiple SLA Chapters and/or Divisions. Please follow this newly created direct link to change or add SLA Unit affiliations to your record. If you have moved, changed jobs or never selected a chapter or division, now is the time to do so! Get to know MORE of your SLA colleagues today, you won't be sorry!Update Your Information
It's that time of year again! Please take a few minutes and Update Your SLA Information. Updating your home and business contact information ensures that your SLA benefits and services are sent to the correct address.
Recruit-a-Member Campaign
Back by popular demand, the annual "Member-Get-a-Member" campaign is back and better than ever in 2006! For those who are especially skilled at recruiting NEW members, SLA HQ will reward your efforts with awesome prizes! From free Click University classes to SLA Marketplace gift certificates, this is a great opportunity for you to help SLA and get some great tools to advance your career! Learn more about how you can champion SLA to one of your colleagues and be in the President's Club! Click here.
Leadership Summit 2007 Registration Now Open
If you are someone who is seeking to develop your leadership skills whether within your employing organization or within SLA, it is time to register for SLA's 2007 Leadership Summit, 24-27 January 2007 in Reno, Nevada, USA.
Author and Stanford University professor Chip Heath will coach you on how to make your ideas stick; San Jose State University professor Key Haycock will share how to tackle the leadership dragon. Other session topics include: communication skills, running effective meetings, chapter modeling, and strategic realignment in addition to various governance meetings. SLA's vendor community will have table-top exhibits for you to learn what's new. Included in the registration fee are two days of learning, two receptions, two breakfasts and lunches and four refreshment breaks. Where else can you get such a value for only $199? The first to register will win a complimentary copy of a signed copy of the newly published book, Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die.... Register now.SLA Scholarship Program
Applications are now being accepted for SLA's 2006-2007 Scholarship Program. Each year, SLA grants up to US$6,000 in individual scholarships for professional development and graduate study at accredited schools of library and information science.
The SLA Scholarship Committee will determine the winners based on applications, transcripts and personal interviews. Winners are announced in May of 2007, and officially recognized at the 2007 Annual Conference in Denver, Colorado, USA, 3-6 June 2007.
Available scholarships include:
- SLA Scholarship
- Affirmative Action Scholarship
- Institute for Scientific Information (ISI) Scholarship
- Plenum Scholarship
- Mary Adeline Conner Professional Development Scholarship
Details: complete descriptions, eligibility requirements and applications Applications must be postmarked by 31 October 2006.
For additional information, contact Tenikka Greene in the SLA membership department at +1.703.647.4936.
| CLICK UNIVERSITY |
What's happening at Click University? This online learning system is an exclusive member benefit of SLA. Please log in when prompted. Click University is the foundation for all of SLA's educational and professional development programs. To hear the October podcast from Shelva Suggs, the SLA Learning Coordinator, visit the SLA Podcast Center.
Professional Improvement Libraries
Click U also offers a range of recorded courses through our Professional Improvement Library. Information professionals can learn more in core skills such as software and technology use; management, communications, and leadership strategies; and effective practices and methods for the collection, sharing, and use of information and knowledge in the modern working world. These courses are offered in packages that range from $29 to $249 (USD). To see the full Click U program listing, please go to www.clickuniversity.com.
Lesley Ellen Harris' Schedule of Courses for Remainder of 2006
Canadian and international copyright lawyer Lesley Ellen Harris is teaching courses online to SLA members through Click University.
Lesley is the author of several books, including Canadian Copyright Law (McGraw-Hill Ryerson.) The next round of courses begin on 30 October (2006) and you can register anytime before the start of the courses. Her topics include:
Managing Copyright Online
Digital Content Management
| SLA GRAPEVINE: Your Source for SLA Member News, Achievements, and Opinions |
SLA 2006 President's Award Recipient Lisl Zach Receives Prestigious Grant
LSU's School of Library and Information Science to Receive National Leadership Grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services
Drs. Lisl Zach and Michelynn McKnight have been awarded $166,285 from the Institute of Museum and Library Services for a two-year research project to identify and document how information professionals have responded to the needs of users in the aftermath of community-based disasters such as the 2005 US Gulf Coast hurricanes. Their project is one of 25 selected from a pool of 109 applications.
Previous disaster planning in libraries has focused largely on the preservation of physical plant, collections, and staff rather than on the provision of services. However, as was seen in the wake of the Gulf Coast hurricanes, information professionals are in a position to be important "first responders" during community-based disasters. Drawing on first-hand accounts of practitioners' responses to a range of such disasters, the researchers will develop approaches to disaster planning that could help information professionals nation-wide identify potential information needs and develop strategies for providing essential information services in the event of similar disasters. "Today's grants will not only make tens of thousands of items from America's museums, libraries, and archives accessible to the public on the internet but they will also foster community economic development and improve disaster planning so that the delivery of vital information services remains available during times of crisis," said IMLS Director Dr. Anne-Imelda M. Radice. Dr. Zach (principal investigator) is in her fourth year as an assistant professor at SLIS, where she teaches in the areas of knowledge management and organization of information. She recently received the Special Libraries Association's President's Award for her work with libraries in Louisiana after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.
Dr. McKnight (co-investigator) is in her third year as an assistant professor at SLIS; she teaches Information Services and courses related to medical, science, and technology libraries. The Institute of Museum and Library Services is the primary source of US federal support for the nation's 122,000 libraries and 17,500 museums. Its mission is to grow and sustain a "Nation of Learners" because life-long learning is essential to a democratic society and individual success. Through its grant making, convenings, research and publications, the Institute empowers museums and libraries nationwide to provide leadership and services to enhance learning in families and communities, sustain cultural heritage, build twenty-first-century skills, and increase civic participation. To learn more about the Institute, please visit: http://www.imls.gov.
2006 SLA Award Recipients
Do you have an item to include in SLA Grapevine? Email the editor.
| THE BIG FINISH |
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