Governments as electronic publishers? The Dutch case

The improvement in the accessibility of government information is one of the primary goals of government information policy. The Dutch government seems to regard the Internet as an ideal vehicle for providing citizens with government information. But, despite the open and public character of the Internet, the Internet is not the only relevant technology that can improve the accessibility of government information. This article examines how the Dutch government has tried to improve accessibility in six particular cases of electronic publishing. The experiences within these cases can help to identify feasible options that governments have in dealing with these issues, especially the technological and organizational choices that governments face.     

ONIX: Is there a return on investment for all publishers?

Summary What will be the future of ONIX? Some argue that wider industry acceptance will lead to increased efficiencies in the transfer of book data, which will ultimately benefit book sales. ONIX still has to overcome many challenges: its implementation cost is high, whole-salers and aggregators are still using different spreadsheets and information sources. Furthermore, MS Excel as an alternative solution is widely available and accepted by the industry. Small publishers need more education and a straightforward demonstration of ONIX’s return on investment. An outreaching of the helping hand of professional organizations is strongly suggested to foster the adoption process among small players. It is the role of the AAP and BISG to get their memberships to think about what is good for all members as a whole throughout the industry. As an organization BISG can recommend, educate, and promote the standard. It cannot, however, bring pressure or demand organizations use it. Publishers, retailers, and wholesalers make those decisions for themselves and quite apparently the majority do not yet see the rewards. Market players need to determine the cost versus benefit and as long as distributors and retailers agree on receiving other formats, ONIX will never take a strong hold in the marketplace. After all, publishers should compete against each other with good books and not with multiple computer codes.     

Who are the self‐publishers?

This paper describes new research into the motivations, demographics, processes, and outcomes of self‐publishing authors of books. The findings challenge traditionally held notions about self‐publishing being a process undertaken by the untalented, as a last resort. The cohort studied emerges as highly educated, often well informed about the publishing process, and generally very positive about the self‐publishing experience. As the number of people self‐publishing continues to grow and associated technology progresses, a number of fundamental implications for stakeholders in both the non‐fiction and fiction publishing business pipelines are noted. With disintermediation now widespread, there will be increased pressure on the traditional industry to adapt its business models and focus on adding value. At the same time, opportunities in publishing services can be identified and the role of the author is significantly enhanced. Parallels between the cultures and processes of academic and self‐publishing authors are discussed; these will set the scene for future research.     

Are you a budding academic writer?

Academic writing can seem a daunting prospect although with the right support and information it can be more achievable than you think. In this first set of editorial comments of 2016, editors from all sections of the Health Information and Libraries Journal outline the origins of the individual section of the journal which they oversee and highlight some of the things you might want to consider when thinking of submitting your writing for publication.     

Whose metrics? Citation,usage and access metrics as scholarly information service

As the Internet has enhanced the collection and provision of citation, usage, and access metrics, the challenge lies neither in the technology nor the method, but in constructing databases that deliver services of value to the scholar. The question everybody should be asking is: what kind of metric information services would serve scholars? One example is given of the systems that might well help a postdoctoral researcher.     

Critical communication pedagogy as a response to the petroleum industry’s neoliberal communicative practices

Courses: Professional Speaking, Business and Professional Communication, Environmental Communication, or any course covering topics related to neoliberalism and the environment.

Objectives: In this single-class activity, students will first examine the possible environmental effects of fracking near the Bakken Oil Formation in North Dakota. Second, students will evaluate how the petroleum industry obscures the effects of fracking through the use of corporate ventriloquism. Third, students will respond to the petroleum industry’s power by utilizing critical communication pedagogy.     

Who's afraid of the Data Protection Act? Is the Data Protection Act 1998 a problem for journal publishers?

This article outlines a series of straightforward steps for journal publishers to follow to ensure compliance with the Data Protection Act 1998.     

Who Are We Missing? Conducting a Diversity Audit in a Liberal Arts College Library

In the spring of 2021, Thomas Tredway Library at Augustana College undertook an audit of the library's print book collection to determine if there were gaps in representation of the voices of authors of differing races/ethnicities; genders; or sexual orientations. With the results of this audit, Augustana College librarians now have a better understanding of which voices and perspectives are missing and/or underrepresented in the print collection. This article documents the audit methodology; shares the results; and provides suggestions and a toolkit for other libraries to use in audits of their own.     

The Books Are Shelf-Ready; Are You?

Over the past 2 years, shelf-ready services, the outsourcing of cataloging and processing services, has become the hot topic in the library world. This article examines the implications of shelf-ready service, both operationally and organizationally, for both library and vendor. Using the format of a dialog between librarian and vendor, the article discusses the following questions: Why are you interested in contracting for (or providing) these services? What do you hope to gain? What are the stumbling blocks to implementing a shelf-ready program? What is the impact on workflow and staffing in your organization? How many and what kinds of jobs are affected? How do library/vendor responsibilities change when shelf-ready procedures are applied to an approval plan … to firm orders … to standing orders? How can quality control be assured? Which errors really matter? Are the same standards applied to vendor staff as to in-house staff? How are standards affected by shelf-ready? How do both library and vendor know when they’re “ready for shelf-ready” in a given situation?     

Are You Who You Say You Are?

Abstract

A growing yet unresolved problem in access services today is controlling user access to resources in a networked environment. This paper describes the history of network authentication, explores the issues involved in selecting an authentication method, discusses the benefits and drawbacks of the various methods, identifies efforts by some integrated library services vendors and academic institutions to address this problem, and makes recommendations for selecting an authentication scheme for a college library. The discussions are based in part upon the results of a survey conducted with California community college libraries, various integrated library system vendors, and online resource companies. Technical terms are defined in a glossary.     

Are You Ready for Your Close-Up? Creating a Library Promotional Video

Learn how to create a promotional library video for your library using the multimedia software Camtasia. Challenges and lessons learned are explored by detailing one reference librarian’s efforts at creating a Ask A Librarian video.     

Analysis of a natural history exhibit: Are Dioramas the answer?

The results of this study indicated that small but significant amounts of knowledge gain did occur upon visiting the Living Land Living Sea gallery, that attitudinal change was not measured, and that exhibit type clearly affects attracting power and holding power.It is only fair to say that the results have left the RBCM staff with mixed reactions. Knowledge gain did occur, but still the majority of intended messages were not communicated. Attitudinal change did not occur, yet this was a stated museum goal. Does this mean the gallery has failed? The attracting power and holding power values for the gallery seemed low. Visitor flow did not follow the designed pattern, nor did visitors stay in the gallery for the intended period of time, whilst key exhibits did not receive the necessary attention, and visitors were attracted to and held at certain exhibits for other than the intended purpose. Are these matters of a serious enough nature to be of concern, or does the overwhelming positive enjoyment reaction outweigh the fact that the visitor did not view the gallery in the manner or sequence intended?Is the Living Land Living Sea gallery a success or not? Are dioramas the answer? These questions demand that the exhibits be studied both from the museological perspective and from that of the visitor. In relation to this gallery, the visitor would vote an overwhelming ‘yes’, but we are fearful that if one is being honest, the museologist must answer ‘no’.One surprising result of this study is that those exhibits judged to be the most successful in behavioural terms, i.e. the larger ‘concrete’ exhibits, were not the most successful in educational terms. The negative relationship between knowledge gain and minimum viewing time, and the implied negative relationship between knowledge gain and Concrete Index scores, leads us to conclude that dioramas are not the best vehicle for communicating ideas. This finding reinforces the concept that large diorama-type exhibits be used to ‘wow’ visitors, but if we want to teach them anything, we should probably go for the small exhibit whose message can be gleaned in a relatively short time.All museums, not just the RBCM, need to re-examine their motives for public exhibits. As ‘tourists’ become increasingly our most important market (since visitation seems to be an indicator of success), more and more museums are contemplating the use of large dioramas to attract visitors. As these data indicated, dioramas are not the answer to all our problems and thus should be used carefully and cautiously.     

Political discourse: Do public libraries serve as a fertile ground?

Libraries in general, and public libraries specifically, are social institutions. It is their role and function to educate, inculcate values and provide recreational opportunities to the community. The success of a democratic political system depends on community involvement in decision making. The role of public libraries in political discourse was assessed with three approaches. Firstly, the geographical characteristics of public library communities were explored using Geographical Information System (GIS) methods. Secondly, the resources, services and activities of public libraries were identified. Thirdly, community perspectives were explored using the five aspects of the “Spectrum of Public Participation” of the International Association for Public Participation (IAP2). The results from all three approaches indicate that the public libraries of Islamabad do not facilitate opportunities for the community to be consulted, empowered or involved in political discourse. Analysis of GIS characteristics, library services and community perspectives suggests that improvements in planning and commitment (especially infrastructure, budget and human resources) would enable public libraries to increase opportunities for Islamabad communities to engage in political discourse.     

What words and where? Applying usability testing techniques to name a new live reference service

OBJECTIVE: A user-focused design approach was taken to develop a new "live reference" service at the Health Sciences Library, University of Saskatchewan. The name of the service, the placement of the links, and the design of a graphical button were seen as key elements in creating service awareness and its subsequent use. METHODS: To ensure library users recognized and understood the label for the new service, selected library users were given an opportunity to choose a phrase that would best describe the service. The top two preferred phrases were then placed on the library Web pages as text and graphic images for further testing. Some pages had links in multiple locations to determine which placement worked best. Task-based usability testing was carried out with participants who were unaware of the new service. Participants were observed as they completed seven Website tasks arranged in increasing levels of difficulty to see whether they would notice the live reference service and seek assistance. RESULTS: The high level of recognition and use of the service indicate that the label name and link placement were effective with library Website users. CONCLUSIONS: Using user-centered design methodology helped ensure that the new live reference service was visible and used and demonstrated the effectiveness of the user-centered design approach for adding new services to an existing Website.