Today Google emailed their Book Search participants (among others, I'm sure) with a notice that a preliminary agreement has been reached in regards to their digitization of materials still under copyright, without the copyright-holders' permission.
I haven't had time to read all of it yet, and doubt if I ever make it through.
It raises more questions than answers.
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Someone tell Sheboygan how the Web works
I haven't posted much recently because I'm so busy at work and at home, but this is a short-enough story that I can comment on it. Plus, it's one I don't want to forget.
MediaPost has a short article today on a link take-down command from the police department of Sheboygan to a private citizen.
This shows two things, 1) Scary authoritarianism right here in the U.S., 2) Scary ignorance of people in authority of exactly how this new-fangled computer stuff works.
MediaPost has a short article today on a link take-down command from the police department of Sheboygan to a private citizen.
This shows two things, 1) Scary authoritarianism right here in the U.S., 2) Scary ignorance of people in authority of exactly how this new-fangled computer stuff works.
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
The "cloud" produces rain
In this article in the NYTimes, the publishing of the names and birthdates, along with other information about 34,000 minors. The only sanction against the company even hinted at in the article is a possible lawsuit that might be brought against them by a rival whose data, which may or may not have been obtained legally, was revealed during the same oopsie.
Seriously, that's the best America can do? Corporations "accidentally" release credit card numbers, social security numbers, and now private data on minors, and as long as they cry "sorry" it is okay with us.
Seriously, that's the best America can do? Corporations "accidentally" release credit card numbers, social security numbers, and now private data on minors, and as long as they cry "sorry" it is okay with us.
Friday, July 18, 2008
"New" online bookstore
I received an email promotion from Borders today with the lofty tagline, "introducing a real bookstore. Online." If only it were.
I clicked on the "books" tab of the landing page, well, since they were promoting that it's a bookstore, right? The tab leads to a list of topsellers, with star ratings, covers, and basic bibliographic information. To get to non-bestsellers, or most other titles, various links are offered across the top and left side bars to navigate, etc. Then I clicked on the link to "Are you there vodka, it's me, Chelsea." I'm not a fan of Chelsea Handler's, so her marketing department did a great job suckering me in with the nostalgic Judy Blume reference.
The book page in no way suggests a "brick" bookstore. The book description consists of three paragraphs, and given the title, I would bet that the marketing department that handled the book is equally disappointed in the presentation here. Oh, wait, after a minute of searching I've found the skimpy "Customer Reviews" link. I suppose in that way it's like a bookstore--sometimes it takes a few minutes to find someone else who's read the book.
So, this is not a real bookstore--online. There are no books to browse, it takes one a while to find a way around the "bookstore," and there are no books to browse! Amazon's not perfect, but at least they have that part right.
I clicked on the "books" tab of the landing page, well, since they were promoting that it's a bookstore, right? The tab leads to a list of topsellers, with star ratings, covers, and basic bibliographic information. To get to non-bestsellers, or most other titles, various links are offered across the top and left side bars to navigate, etc. Then I clicked on the link to "Are you there vodka, it's me, Chelsea." I'm not a fan of Chelsea Handler's, so her marketing department did a great job suckering me in with the nostalgic Judy Blume reference.
The book page in no way suggests a "brick" bookstore. The book description consists of three paragraphs, and given the title, I would bet that the marketing department that handled the book is equally disappointed in the presentation here. Oh, wait, after a minute of searching I've found the skimpy "Customer Reviews" link. I suppose in that way it's like a bookstore--sometimes it takes a few minutes to find someone else who's read the book.
So, this is not a real bookstore--online. There are no books to browse, it takes one a while to find a way around the "bookstore," and there are no books to browse! Amazon's not perfect, but at least they have that part right.
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
ChunkIt! ChuckIt?
I don't get it. Christopher Bell praises a new beta program, ChunkIt!, which shows previews of websites before one clicks on them. I admit to a love/hate relationship with Google, but doesn't it do that, anyway? I know there aren't any pretty pictures, but the one or two sentences are usually enough to tell me if I'm going to arrive at aaupnet.org or aaup.org.
What he doesn't mention, but may be implied by his writing for School Library Journal, is that this could benefit those with problems reading, be they 5-year-olds or impatient 36-year-olds.
What he doesn't mention, but may be implied by his writing for School Library Journal, is that this could benefit those with problems reading, be they 5-year-olds or impatient 36-year-olds.
Wednesday, July 2, 2008
Reports from AAUP
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
The Future of (Self/Academic) Publishing
Today Chronicle of Higher Ed features an article on up-and-coming textbook piracy websites, Textbook Piracy Grows Online, Prompting a Counterattack From Publishers.
As I said earlier, I'm looking forward to seeing how some experiments in ebooks turn out. We can't follow the example of the RIAA, and I'm skeptical of Ithaka and their recommendations, even when I agree with them.
I wonder if the survivors of the "new economy" of print might be those who translate the services provided by old companies into a new format. What I mean is that we currently look at ourselves as book publishers. That's what we do. But part of what we do (as has been mentioned many places by others) is add value to academics' work--editors and reviewers, typesetters and designers, marketers and royalty experts. It might be that those who succeed are those that offer the value-added services, say, blind reviews, for a fee, through an easy-to-access web interface. And, if a manuscript passes the reviewers, the author might be offered an opportunity to purchase additional editing, and to choose how she or he wishes to make the book available. I know, there are plenty of self-publishing services, but I don't think there is anything like this model, yet. A Google search for academic self-publishing returned, first, Self-Publishing Textbooks and Instructional Materials, available as a paperback for $32.95.
As I said earlier, I'm looking forward to seeing how some experiments in ebooks turn out. We can't follow the example of the RIAA, and I'm skeptical of Ithaka and their recommendations, even when I agree with them.
I wonder if the survivors of the "new economy" of print might be those who translate the services provided by old companies into a new format. What I mean is that we currently look at ourselves as book publishers. That's what we do. But part of what we do (as has been mentioned many places by others) is add value to academics' work--editors and reviewers, typesetters and designers, marketers and royalty experts. It might be that those who succeed are those that offer the value-added services, say, blind reviews, for a fee, through an easy-to-access web interface. And, if a manuscript passes the reviewers, the author might be offered an opportunity to purchase additional editing, and to choose how she or he wishes to make the book available. I know, there are plenty of self-publishing services, but I don't think there is anything like this model, yet. A Google search for academic self-publishing returned, first, Self-Publishing Textbooks and Instructional Materials, available as a paperback for $32.95.
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