Is it Real or is it Virtual?

Abstract

Digital facsimiles of the Netherlands viewable over the Internet or available on CD-ROMs-as an example of what may be available for other countries-are the focus of this article. The first part of the article discusses facsimiles generally, both analog and digital, as well as the way digital facsimiles have been produced, facilities and places where to find digital reproductions of maps and atlases.     

Is it worth establishing institutional repositories? The strategies for open access to Spanish peer‐reviewed articles

We examine open access to the Spanish scientific literature via investigation of a sample of peer‐reviewed articles in seven subject categories. Of the 28,259 papers published in 2000, 26.89% were freely accessible, with the share varying among disciplines. Articles in the social and behavioral sciences were the most widely available for free. This disciplinary divide applies also to the strategies used to offer open access to documents. In clinical medicine, life sciences, arts and humanities and social sciences open access was mainly based on the publishers' side, while subject‐based repositories were dominant in physical, chemical and earth sciences and deposit on homepages was the preferred strategy in engineering, computing and technology. Institutional and general repositories seem to play a minor role in providing free access to the Spanish peer‐reviewed literature. Papers published in commercial journals are less accessible than those that appear in non‐commercial journals, and we found overlaps in almost 20% of papers deposited. The fastest way to gain open access is to deposit in subject‐based repositories and the longest delays are related to deposits in homepages and especially to institutional repositories. Open access to Spanish peer‐reviewed articles is dominated by the passive mechanism of the “gold route” and the editorial strategy with self‐archiving practices in the minority and directed mainly towards subject‐based repositories and homepage posting of the papers. The results of this study could serve as a reference point for further study on the evolution of open access in Spain.     

Is it a question of trust or why are we afraid to go to Nineveh?

Trust is an overused concept in our contemporary world. This paper explores the complex relationship of trust, efficiency, accountability, transparency and responsibility and their relationship to recordkeeping in our globalizing culture. It focuses on the profound changes that have taken place in the meaning and practice of audit within neo-liberal societies and how the ??rituals of verification?? and the ??managerialism?? may pervert the resulting record. It challenges the unthinking use of much of the rhetoric surrounding these concepts by archivists to justify their existence. It reflects on why the archival voice often remains silent or at best goes unheard in much of the discussion about these questions that have profound consequences for democratic societies. It is easy to lay the blame at the door of a perceived breakdown of trust rather than to consider whether the root of the problem lies with archivists and records managers themselves. This paper draws on my experience in directing the Information Management and Preservation MSC programme at the University of Glasgow and wide and serendipitous reading, which has sometimes been brought to my notice by students.     

“What Is Bought Is Cheaper Than a Gift”: The Hidden Burdens of Gifts-in-Kind and Policies to Help

Abstract

Accepting donations has been a fundamental aspect of librarianship for years. The world’s greatest collections, from Carnegie Libraries to the Library of Congress, have been built by the generosity of others. Yet, in the modern era, gifts-in-kind are offered more democratically and come with mixed quality. This has led to a shift in how libraries look at gifts-in-kind as often more burdensome than genuinely helpful. This is because gifts come with costs to the library that donors fail to consider, and some gifts are offered with ulterior motives. To navigate these burdens and still encourage a generous public, libraries must have a clear written gift policy to ease stresses and anxieties on both the donor and the institution. In the case of academic law libraries, they often don’t share the exact experience of other libraries; however, they face some of the same challenges and require a written gift policy all the same. Examining the gift policies of other law libraries can establish a framework of essential elements when establishing a new gift policy at an institution.     

Evaluating research and researchers by the journal impact factor: Is it better than coin flipping?

The journal impact factor (JIF) is the average of the number of citations of the papers published in a journal, calculated according to a specific formula; it is extensively used for the evaluation of research and researchers. The method assumes that all papers in a journal have the same scientific merit, which is measured by the JIF of the publishing journal. This implies that the number of citations measures scientific merits but the JIF does not evaluate each individual paper by its own number of citations. Therefore, in the comparative evaluation of two papers, the use of the JIF implies a risk of failure, which occurs when a paper in the journal with the lower JIF is compared to another with fewer citations in the journal with the higher JIF. To quantify this risk of failure, this study calculates the failure probabilities, taking advantage of the lognormal distribution of citations. In two journals whose JIFs are ten-fold different, the failure probability is low. However, in most cases when two papers are compared, the JIFs of the journals are not so different. Then, the failure probability can be close to 0.5, which is equivalent to evaluating by coin flipping.     

The Omnipaedia Is Here,But Where Is It?

Summary

Electronic access to information is transforming both the vision of future libraries and the way in which librarians today deliver information services. In reference service, especially in academic libraries, the wide availability of electronic access to periodical indexes and full-text periodical databases has raised speculation about the possibility of relying on purely electronic reference collections. A field test indicates that this is not yet a viable option and points to the continued vital role of the reference librarian as guide, interpreter, and integrator of print and electronic information sources. In the tradition exemplified by Charles Bunge's “Potential and Reality at the Reference Desk: Reflections on a ‘Return to the Field,’” this article rests on field experience and testing, and is written in part in the first person.     

The Integrated Library System: From Daring to Dinosaur?

ABSTRACT

The automated library system (ALS) has undergone significant changes since its inception in the 1970s. It is no longer simply a database to house and retrieve a library's holdings. It has become an integrated library system (ILS) comprised of robust clusters of systems involving every process and module related to libraries.

The Internet, open source, the increase in electronic resources, and the rising expectations of library users are changing the nature of the ILS. Library vendors are at times struggling to keep up with the demand for new services while providing support for existing services.

This article details the evolving role of the ILS and discusses where it could and should be headed.     

Counting publications and citations: Is more always better?

Is more always better? We address this question in the context of bibliometric indices that aim to assess the scientific impact of individual researchers by counting their number of highly cited publications. We propose a simple model in which the number of citations of a publication depends not only on the scientific impact of the publication but also on other ‘random’ factors. Our model indicates that more need not always be better. It turns out that the most influential researchers may have a systematically lower performance, in terms of highly cited publications, than some of their less influential colleagues. The model also suggests an improved way of counting highly cited publications.     

The soaps: What's on and who cares?

This two‐pronged study analyzed soap opera content, centering on demographics, problems, conversations and sex behaviors, and surveyed soap viewers to determine viewing motives, involvement, and possible effects of soap viewing.     

Do they want it? Do they use it? The ‘Demand-Side’ of e-Government in Australia and New Zealand

Drawing on 435 telephone interviews in Australia and 498 in New Zealand, this paper investigates the ‘demand’ side of e-government. That is, we examine the use of and support for e-government measures. Whilst respondents were generally supportive of e-government on a number of measures, we find that the majority were reluctant to use some of the more sophisticated ‘transactional’ e-government measures, and less than half had even visited a government website. High users of information and communications technologies (ICT) were more likely to use e-government measures, and are more positive towards e-government in general across several measures. Similar to a number of U.S. studies, we find a ‘digital divide,’ where older age, and less education were associated with lower ICT and e-government use and support. Income level was not a statistically significant predictor in all cases however, and gender was not significant for e-government support.     

When Is It Acceptable to Lie? Interpersonal and Intergroup Perspectives on Deception

While deception is generally viewed as an undesirable and unethical action, people evaluate some lies as more detrimental than others. This study examined factors influencing deception assessments, including the seriousness of the lie and whom it benefits. The effect of an intergroup versus an interpersonal context for the lie was examined. Utilizing 24 vignettes varying in terms of these conditions, 259 participants evaluated a lie’s appropriateness, deceptiveness, and complexity. Altruistic and white lies were viewed as less deceptive and more acceptable than self-serving and more consequential lies. Lies evaluated as least acceptable were interpersonal, serious, and self-serving compared to altruistic lies and those embedded in an intergroup context. Intergroup and interpersonal deceptions are recognized as distinct forms of lying and are evaluated differently.