Editorial

Citation

Ashcroft, L. (2009), "Editorial", New Library World, Vol. 110 No. 5/6. https://doi.org/10.1108/nlw.2009.072110eaa.001

Editorial

Article Type: Editorial From: New Library World, Volume 110, Issue 5/6

Copyright continues to be a hot topic. A new copyright issues paper in the UK from the Intellectual Property Office (www.ipo.gov.uk/c-policy-consultation.pdf) relates to a new copyright strategy framework and consultation. Outlining the framework it invites debate on four particular areas: access to works, incentivising investment and creativity, recognising creative input and authenticating works. Last year WIPO member states agreed that copyright exceptions and limitation should be a priority on the work programme of its copyright committee. Similarly the European Commission’s recent Green Paper, Copyright in the Knowledge Economy, re-opened European discussion on copyright exceptions and limitations. The article from Sheppard focuses on the need to bring the public and the public domain together “so that both are empowered to dispel the restrictions that have arisen from an excessive copyright protectionist scheme”. She notes that the public library is in a good position to play a major role in the reclamation of the public domain.

The Charity Book Aid has launched a strategy, of which libraries and librarians are at the core. Book Aid will focus its work more tightly on sub-Saharan Africa, on primary education/literacy, and on working with other international bodies to set up accessible libraries run by local groups and women in particular. Book Aid will increasingly support community libraries as well as educational libraries. Training librarians is key to this new programme, as librarians are the key to success in all libraries and especially community libraries. In their article, Klimaszewski and Nyce discuss a study of a Romanian community and its information infrastructure, the information landscape of which is presented and analyzed in local and national contexts. They critically assess the rhetoric of universal access and comment that further research is needed at community level in order to ensure that policy emphasis on access for all actually translates into equitable, meaningful ICT access for underserved communities.

A new web site, created with young people, is reaching the final stages of development (www.readingagency.org.uk/young/groupthing). It uses Web 2.0 technology to create an online environment for 13 to 18 year olds. Users can set up their own groups, post content, chat, rate and review, enter competitions, get creative advice and work on the site’s development. And dropping in to chat will be illustrators, publishers and games developers. Groupthing is safe, post-moderated and easy to use. In his article, Nielsen discusses another communication tool to get in touch with young readers – Instant Messaging. He provides findings on use of Need2Know, and concludes that while it is a useful tool with which to get in touch with young users, if the service is not anchored in an explicit library context or in library resources, the ask service can decay and not be part of the participatory culture promised by Web 2.0.

One of the tracks at Online Information 2008 focused on new ways of working, which included a presentation on Library 2.0 technologies in higher education. This reviewed the types of Library 2.0 technologies available, such as blogs, RSS feeds, wikis, social networking and podcasts, and how they can be implemented within higher education. A case study was provided together with a review of the benefits and barriers of using Library 2.0 technologies. Another topic for higher education libraries is the storage of theses and dissertations, which have been stored in various systems in different institutions – sometimes being stored in multiple digital respositories and accessed from several places even in a single institution. Deng and Reese present in their article methods for customized mapping and metadata transfer from DSpace to OCLC (Online Computer Library Center). They offer experiences from two institutions and show how a new method can eliminate the need for double entry in DSpace and OCLC, meet local needs and significantly improve electronic theses and dissertations work flow.

One focus of a £90,000 Research Information Network project is the impact that researchers’ use of Web 2.0 tools will have on librarians. It will investigate both the extent of adoption of Web 2.0 tools in different disciplines and the factors that encourage researchers to adopt Web 2.0 tools or limit their uptake. Broady-Preston’s article explores concepts of professional education, development and training within the context of a changing information landscape. She identifies and discusses the current drivers for change in relation to the skills, competencies, education, training and development for the information profession, commenting that the extent to which what is currently categorised as Web 2.0 as the direct or sole cause of dramatic change is open to question.

The Department of Communities and Local Government in the UK has issued several papers on the issue of digital inclusion. A recent paper, Delivering Digital Inclusion: An Action Plan for Consultation (www.communities.gov.uk/communities/digitalinclusion) ends with various practical ideas from appointing a “Digital champion” to a “bank of digital inclusion and data sharing advisers” to help local authorities. Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals (CILIP) has responded to this paper as wanting to be involved in the government’s plans to tackle digital exclusion and being well placed to do so. The paper from Kallenborn and Becker reports on the International Association of Technology University Libraries (IATUL) annual conference, the theme of which was “Digital discovery: strategies and solutions”. They provide a detailed account of the three-day conference, which was particularly dedicated to digitalisation, strategies for a digital information and communication infrastructure, library politics, e-science and support of e-science by librarians, and concepts for the conveyance of information competence.

Linda Ashcroft