- LIS-Forum - ncsi.iisc.ernet.in

WebJunction - Online Community of Libraries.
by Sukhdev Singh 01 Dec '04

01 Dec '04

Dear Members, The following link could be of your interest. http://webjunction.org It is an online community of libraries and other agencies with the aim to share knowledge and experience to provide the broadest public access to information technology. It is from parterners like OCLC. Perhaps someone can evaluate it for the benefit of LIS-FORUM Community. Regards Sukhdev Singh

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[ARL-EJOURNAL] eProfile of Marcus P. Zillman in _Library Hi Tech
by Gerry Mckiernan 01 Dec '04

01 Dec '04

eProfile of Marcus P. Zillman in _Library Hi Tech News_ I am pleased to announce the publication and availability of my latest eProfile in _Library Hi Tech News_ - "Z as in Zillman." '"Z as in Zillman" is a descriptive review of the publications and (mostly free) information resources and services provided by Zillman: "Z as in Zillman," Library Hi Tech News 21, no. 9 (November 2004): 25-30. Self-archived at [ http://www.public.iastate.edu/~gerrymck/Zillman.pdf ] The products and services I profile in my review include: *** Zillman Columns *** [ http://www.zillmancolumns.com ] "Since 1996, Zillman has also published regular columns that focus on timely Web topics (www.zillmancolumns.com) In 2004, for example, his columns included: * Student Research Resources on the Internet (October) * Grid and Distributed Computing Resources on the Internet (September) * Financial Sources on the Internet (August) * Data Mining Resources on the Internet (July) * Healthcare Resources on the Internet (June) * eCommerce Resources on the Internet (May) * Survey Resources on the Internet (April) * Privacy Resources and Sites on the Internet (March) * Finding People Resources and Sites on the Internet (February) * Finding Experts on the Internet (January) *** Awareness Watch* Newsletter *** [ http://www.awarenesswatch.com ] As exemplified by the Awareness Watch* Newsletter (www.awarenesswatch.com) a major theme in the work of Zillman is related to current awareness about quality information Web resources. His Awareness Watch* Newsletter is "a free monthly publication that * highlight[s] * . First published in December 2003, issues of this newsletter have profiled a range of Web sites and resources that include: * Anti-Virus, AntiHoax, AntiMyth, AntiFraud, AntiChain Letter and Anti-Spam sites on the Internet * Browsers and Information Visualization Tools * Business Intelligence Resources * Deep web and the Invisible web * Demographics and Statistics Resources * Information Alerts * Knowledge Discovery, Knowledge Management and Knowledge Harvesting Sources * Niched Blog Search Engines, Blog Directories, and Web-based News Aggregators * Quality Information Resources, and * Subject Directories, Gateways, and Portals. *** Subject Tracer* Information Blogs *** [ http://www.subjecttracer.com ] One of the most innovative publication series developed by Zillman is his Subject Tracer* Information Blogs (www.subjecttracer.com) As described by Zillman, "a subject tracer is a blog created with the help of bots that monitor/collect the latest information on a subject on the Net" and "then update the [Subject Tracer*] blogs after determining the quality and competency of the source and data" (Murali, 2004). *** Books *** Zillman's publication efforts are not limited to compilations of quality Web-based resources. He is also the author of two major books: Internet Sources* Manual and Mining the Invisible Web. The Internet Sources* Manual (www.internetsources.info) is "a 378 page manual listing all the very latest and greatest sources and [Web] sites * that have been compiled over the [course] of the last ten years *. ." [SNIP] Coauthored with Sundar Kadayam, Mining the Invisible Web (www.miningtheinvisibleweb.com) provides a comprehensive and detailed review of significant Hidden Web resources and the tools necessary to identify and harvest such resources. *** Internet MiniGuides * *** [ http://www.internetminiguide.com/ ] Many of the topics found in Zillman's Web-based compilations are covered more extensively in a 'miniguide' series. The current Internet MiniGuides (www.internetminiguide.com) include: * Academic Resources * Advertising, Marketing, and Public Relations Resources * Business Resources * Competitive Intelligence Resources * Education and Distance Learning Resources * Healthcare Resources * International Trade Resources * Legal Resources, and * Security Resources. Each Internet MiniGuide contains "... hundreds of the very best links to relevant and competent resources. All links are listed with complete URLs and verified for activation. The resources, services that are profiled include White Papers [http://www.whitepapers.us/] Current Awareness Happenings on the Internet [http://listentomarcus.blogspot.com/] Watch Marcus* [ http://www.watchmarcus.com/ ] and a personal blog [ http://www.zillman.us/ ]. Thanks (again) Marcus for All Your Great Resources and Services!!! /Gerry Gerry McKiernan Marked Librarian Iowa State University Ames IA 50011 gerrymck(a)iastate.edu ############################################################# This message is sent to you because you are subscribed to the mailing list <ARL-EJOURNAL(a)arl.org>. To unsubscribe, E-mail to: <ARL-EJOURNAL-off(a)arl.org> To switch to the DIGEST mode, E-mail to <ARL-EJOURNAL-digest(a)arl.org> To switch to the INDEX mode, E-mail to <ARL-EJOURNAL-index(a)arl.org> Send administrative queries to <ARL-EJOURNAL-request(a)arl.org> Vist the web archive at <https://mx2.arl.org/Lists/ARL-EJOURNAL/>

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eProfile of Marcus P. Zillman in _Library Hi Tech News_
by Gerry Mckiernan 01 Dec '04

01 Dec '04

eProfile of Marcus P. Zillman in _Library Hi Tech News_ I am pleased to announce the publication and availability of my latest eProfile in _Library Hi Tech News_ - "Z as in Zillman." '"Z as in Zillman" is a descriptive review of the publications and (mostly free) information resources and services provided by Zillman: "Z as in Zillman," Library Hi Tech News 21, no. 9 (November 2004): 25-30. Self-archived at [ http://www.public.iastate.edu/~gerrymck/Zillman.pdf ] The products and services I profile in my review include: *** Zillman Columns *** [ http://www.zillmancolumns.com ] "Since 1996, Zillman has also published regular columns that focus on timely Web topics (www.zillmancolumns.com) In 2004, for example, his columns included: * Student Research Resources on the Internet (October) * Grid and Distributed Computing Resources on the Internet (September) * Financial Sources on the Internet (August) * Data Mining Resources on the Internet (July) * Healthcare Resources on the Internet (June) * eCommerce Resources on the Internet (May) * Survey Resources on the Internet (April) * Privacy Resources and Sites on the Internet (March) * Finding People Resources and Sites on the Internet (February) * Finding Experts on the Internet (January) *** Awareness Watch* Newsletter *** [ http://www.awarenesswatch.com ] As exemplified by the Awareness Watch* Newsletter (www.awarenesswatch.com) a major theme in the work of Zillman is related to current awareness about quality information Web resources. His Awareness Watch* Newsletter is "a free monthly publication that * highlight[s] * . First published in December 2003, issues of this newsletter have profiled a range of Web sites and resources that include: * Anti-Virus, AntiHoax, AntiMyth, AntiFraud, AntiChain Letter and Anti-Spam sites on the Internet * Browsers and Information Visualization Tools * Business Intelligence Resources * Deep web and the Invisible web * Demographics and Statistics Resources * Information Alerts * Knowledge Discovery, Knowledge Management and Knowledge Harvesting Sources * Niched Blog Search Engines, Blog Directories, and Web-based News Aggregators * Quality Information Resources, and * Subject Directories, Gateways, and Portals. *** Subject Tracer* Information Blogs *** [ http://www.subjecttracer.com ] One of the most innovative publication series developed by Zillman is his Subject Tracer* Information Blogs (www.subjecttracer.com) As described by Zillman, "a subject tracer is a blog created with the help of bots that monitor/collect the latest information on a subject on the Net" and "then update the [Subject Tracer*] blogs after determining the quality and competency of the source and data" (Murali, 2004). *** Books *** Zillman's publication efforts are not limited to compilations of quality Web-based resources. He is also the author of two major books: Internet Sources* Manual and Mining the Invisible Web. The Internet Sources* Manual (www.internetsources.info) is "a 378 page manual listing all the very latest and greatest sources and [Web] sites * that have been compiled over the [course] of the last ten years *. ." [SNIP] Coauthored with Sundar Kadayam, Mining the Invisible Web (www.miningtheinvisibleweb.com) provides a comprehensive and detailed review of significant Hidden Web resources and the tools necessary to identify and harvest such resources. *** Internet MiniGuides * *** [ http://www.internetminiguide.com/ ] Many of the topics found in Zillman's Web-based compilations are covered more extensively in a 'miniguide' series. The current Internet MiniGuides (www.internetminiguide.com) include: * Academic Resources * Advertising, Marketing, and Public Relations Resources * Business Resources * Competitive Intelligence Resources * Education and Distance Learning Resources * Healthcare Resources * International Trade Resources * Legal Resources, and * Security Resources. Each Internet MiniGuide contains "... hundreds of the very best links to relevant and competent resources. All links are listed with complete URLs and verified for activation. The resources, services that are profiled include White Papers [http://www.whitepapers.us/] Current Awareness Happenings on the Internet [http://listentomarcus.blogspot.com/] Watch Marcus* [ http://www.watchmarcus.com/ ] and a personal blog [ http://www.zillman.us/ ]. Thanks (again) Marcus for All Your Great Resources and Services!!! /Gerry Gerry McKiernan Marked Librarian Iowa State University Ames IA 50011 gerrymck(a)iastate.edu

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KALA Vetarans Day
by I.R.N.Goudar 01 Dec '04

01 Dec '04

Dear Professionals, Karnataka State Library Association (KALA) proposes to felicitate all the veteran Librarians (already retired/retiring before January 29, 2005). Vetaran Librarians to be felicitated include Librarians: 1. From Karnataka/out side Karnataka, but served/serving in Karnataka. 2. From Karnataka served and serving any where in the world. The probable date for this program is January 29, 2005. IN THIS CONTEXT I REQUEST YOU TO KINDLY INTIMATE ME THE DETAILS OF VETARAN LIBRARIANS KNOWN TO YOU IRRESPECTIVE OF WHETHER ONE HAS SERVED YOUR ORGANISATION OR NOT, PREFERABLY WITH DETAILS LIKE POSTAL ADDRESS, TELEPHONE NUMBER, E-MAIL ADDRESS, ETC. I also request all the professionals in Karnataka to communicate their willingness to work as member of the Organizing Committee or Volunteers of the event. I feel that respectful felicitation to all senior professionals is responsibility of all of us. I sincerely request all the fellow professionals to be part of this respectful event, the details of which will be intimated later. With regards Dr.H.S.Siddamallaiah, Ph.D. President, KALA Principal Librarian and Information Officer NIMHANS, Bangalore-560029, India phone: 91-080-26995031 91-080-26995035 91-080- 26995031 www.nimhans.kar.nic.in www.nimhans.kar.nic.in/ila

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Fw: [bytesforall_readers] $100 Green/Solar PC
by Subbiah Arunachalam 29 Nov '04

29 Nov '04

Here is a news story of great interest to poor countries. Please spread the word. Arun SolarPC Announces the $100 green PC & promotes world harmony* http://openflows.org/article.pl?sid=04/11/28/2330243 *If SolarPC's were the standard PC in the US every year it would result in the saving of more than 138 million barrels of imported oil, prevent 25 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions and landfills would have a reduction of more than 100 tons of e-waste! A Maintenance Free PC until 2025 LAS VEGAS, November 18, 2004 -- SolarPC today announced the availability of a $100 PC called the SolarLite. It is a solid-state computer targeted at organizations that require the efficiency of a maintenance free Internet PC. The SolarLite was also created to offer an ecologically and economically viable method to provide information to billions of disadvantaged people around the world. In addition, it serves as a response to last month's challenge by Microsoft's Steve Ballmer for the computer industry to build a $100 PC. In conjunction with the SolarLite announcement, SolarPC circulated details regarding the Global Education Link (GEL) project, an initiative with the goal of giving away a million SolarLite computers to schools in poor countries around the world. The objective of the GEL project is to improve education in third world countries and thereby encourage self-sufficiency and promote world harmony. According to K-12 education specialist Dr. James Johnson, "The Global Education Link project has the potential to break down the barriers that prevent people in the developing world from getting a good education. The recent release of the FireFox Internet browser makes the timing of this announcement extremely auspicious. The open source FireFox browser provides a solid foundation for the development of non-proprietary educational software. It will facilitate the creation of thousands of educational programs that can be distributed to millions of students at no cost. This is a fantastic opportunity to leverage technology that will make the world a better place." "This is the twenty first century equivalent of teaching people how to fish," stated Gary Reynolds, spokesperson for SolarPC, "A standardized, well designed, easy to maintain, low cost PC is the key to unlocking the educational potential of the electronic age. The SolarLite is a fully featured, book sized (9" x 7" x 1.75") machine that weighs approximately three pounds. It features a rugged no-moving-parts design that includes a Compact Flash drive loaded with dozens of software programs, plus links to free development software and educational programs. The design and construction of the SolarLite is consistent with the goal of an environmentally friendly computer. It uses a lightweight, recyclable, aluminum case that has a 20-year warranty. Its VIA chipset based "long-life" motherboard is a "green" lead free product. Like all SolarPC computers, the SolarLite operates on 12 volt DC power and can be run from a solar panel, car battery, or human powered (with a bicycle-based generator). The cool and quiet SolarLite uses approximately 10 watts of energy, just a fraction of what a standard PC consumes. The minimum order quantity for the SolarLite is 100,000 units. Photos and details relating to the SolarLite and the Global Education Link project can be found at www.solarlite.org. SolarLite software is provided by DS Linux, one of the top ten Linux distributions in the world. Additional data about DS Linux is located at: www.dslos.com. More information regarding VIA Technologies can be viewed at: www.via.com.tw. Here is a news story of great interest to poor countries. Please spread the word. Arun SolarPC Announces the $100 green PC & promotes world harmony* http://openflows.org/article.pl?sid=04/11/28/2330243 http://openflows.org/article.pl?sid=04/11/28/2330243 *If SolarPC's were the standard PC in the US every year it would result in the saving of more than 138 million barrels of imported oil, prevent 25 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions and landfills would have a reduction of more than 100 tons of e-waste! A Maintenance Free PC until 2025 LAS VEGAS, November 18, 2004 -- SolarPC today announced the availability of a $100 PC called the SolarLite. It is a solid-state computer targeted at organizations that require the efficiency of a maintenance free Internet PC. The SolarLite was also created to offer an ecologically and economically viable method to provide information to billions of disadvantaged people around the world. In addition, it serves as a response to last month's challenge by Microsoft's Steve Ballmer for the computer industry to build a $100 PC. In conjunction with the SolarLite announcement, SolarPC circulated details regarding the Global Education Link (GEL) project, an initiative with the goal of giving away a million SolarLite computers to schools in poor countries around the world. The objective of the GEL project is to improve education in third world countries and thereby encourage self-sufficiency and promote world harmony. According to K-12 education specialist Dr. James Johnson, "The Global Education Link project has the potential to break down the barriers that prevent people in the developing world from getting a good education. The recent release of the FireFox Internet browser makes the timing of this announcement extremely auspicious. The open source FireFox browser provides a solid foundation for the development of non-proprietary educational software. It will facilitate the creation of thousands of educational programs that can be distributed to millions of students at no cost. This is a fantastic opportunity to leverage technology that will make the world a better place." "This is the twenty first century equivalent of teaching people how to fish," stated Gary Reynolds, spokesperson for SolarPC, "A standardized, well designed, easy to maintain, low cost PC is the key to unlocking the educational potential of the electronic age. The SolarLite is a fully featured, book sized (9" x 7" x 1.75") machine that weighs approximately three pounds. It features a rugged no-moving-parts design that includes a Compact Flash drive loaded with dozens of software programs, plus links to free development software and educational programs. The design and construction of the SolarLite is consistent with the goal of an environmentally friendly computer. It uses a lightweight, recyclable, aluminum case that has a 20-year warranty. Its VIA chipset based "long-life" motherboard is a "green" lead free product. Like all SolarPC computers, the SolarLite operates on 12 volt DC power and can be run from a solar panel, car battery, or human powered (with a bicycle-based generator). The cool and quiet SolarLite uses approximately 10 watts of energy, just a fraction of what a standard PC consumes. The minimum order quantity for the SolarLite is 100,000 units. Photos and details relating to the SolarLite and the Global Education Link project can be found at www.solarlite.org. SolarLite software is provided by DS Linux, one of the top ten Linux distributions in the world. Additional data about DS Linux is located at: www.dslos.com. More information regarding VIA Technologies can be viewed at: www.via.com.tw.

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A news story on the South-South Exchange Traveling Workshop
by Subbiah Arunachalam 29 Nov '04

29 Nov '04

Friends: Here is an interesting news story written by one of the participants of the South-South Exchange Traveling Workshop conducted by MSSRF in October 2004. Please visit: http://www.oneworld.net/article/view/98468/1/ Best wishes. Arun Friends: Here is an interesting news story written by one of the participants of the South-South Exchange Traveling Workshop conducted by MSSRF in October 2004. Please visit: http://www.oneworld.net/article/view/98468/1/ http://www.oneworld.net/article/view/98468/1/ Best wishes. Arun

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A talk by Jeremy Webb at MSSRF, 10 December 2004
by Subbiah Arunachalam 29 Nov '04

29 Nov '04

Friends: The Bioinformatics Centre at MSSRF is hosting a talk by Mr Jeremy Webb, Editor of New Scientist on 10 December. Please see the attachment. Tea will be served at 1100 hrs and the talk will commence at 1130 hrs. All are welcome. Subbiah Arunachalam Distinguished Fellow, MSSRF Friends: The Bioinformatics Centre at MSSRF is hosting a talk by Mr Jeremy Webb, Editor of New Scientist on 10 December. Please see the attachment. Tea will be served at 1100 hrs and the talk will commence at 1130 hrs. All are welcome. Subbiah Arunachalam Distinguished Fellow, MSSRF

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Last Date Extented for Receipt Papers for International CALIBER-2005 - Now the last date is 15-12-2004
by K Prakash 29 Nov '04

29 Nov '04

Last Date Extented for Receipt Papers for International CALIBER-2005. Keeping in view the request received from the various professionals across the country, editorial committee has decided to extend the last date of receipt of full paper for International CALIBER - 2005 from 30th November 2004 to 15th December 2004. Website for International CALIBER-2005 is available at http://web.inflibnet.ac.in/caliber2005/index.jsp CALL FOR PAPERS International CALIBER 2005 invites contributed papers and case studies on various aspects of the conference theme Multilingual Computing and Information Management in Networked Digital Environment and listed below sub-themes of the conference: Multilingual Computing and Natural Language Processing Multilingual Computing- Encoding issues, Scripts, Fonts. Character recognition and other challenges, Natural Language Processing, Multilingual Indexing Tool, Multilingual and Multimedia Access Content Management and Information Management Content Structuring and XML- Web Cataloguing, Metadata, Dublin Core, EAD, TEI, XML, Crosswalk, Automatic Classification, Document Clustering, Methodologies, Techniques, Indexing, Retrieval, Content Management, Multimedia Digital Information Processing and Interoperability Archiving, Digitization, Preservation, Information Retrieval, Digital Library Architecture, System Scalability, Systems Design, Distributed solutions, WebServices and Interoperability - Agents related to digital Information, Crossdomain searching, Browsing, Metasearch, OpenURL Framework OAI-PMH. Digital Libraries and Services Digital Library Development Issues, Digital Library Services, Digital Library and E-learning, Digital Library Applications. Subject Gateways, Library Portals, Digital Library Consortia, Wide area and high-speed Networks. Detailed Guidelines and Editorial policy for CALIBER 2005 are available in the conference website http://web.inflibnet.ac.in/caliber2005/callforpapers.jsp Important dates Receipt of Full Papers: December 15, 2004 Intimation to Authors: December 30, 2004 Last Date for Registration: January 7, 2005 Convention Dates: February 2-4, 2005 Contacts For Paper Submission Dr. T.A.V. Murthy Editor-in-Chief Director INFLIBNET Centre (An IUC of UGC) Gujarat University Campus PB 4116, Navrangpura Ahmedabad - 380 009, (Gujarat) India Phone: +91-79-26304695/8528/5971/0002 Fax: +91-79-26300990/26307816 E-Mail: tav(a)inflibnet.ac.in or caliber2005(a)inflibnet.ac.in Registration and Accommodation Dr. (Mrs.) M.D. Baby Organizing Secretary, CALIBER-2005 Librarian Cochin University of Science & Technology, Cochin University P.O. Kochi - 682 022, (Kerala) India Phone: +91-484-2577595 E-mail: caliber2005(a)cusat.ac.in or ul(a)cusat.ac.in Queries Can Also be Sent to Mr. S.M. Salgar Chairman, CALIBER-2005, Scientist -G, INFLIBNET Centre (An IUC of UGC) Gujarat University Campus PB 4116, Navrangpura Ahmedabad - 380 009, (Gujarat) India Phone: +91-79-26304695/8528/5971/0002 Fax: +91-79-26300990/26307816 E-Mail: salgar(a)inflibnet.ac.in For more details on International CALIBER-2005 visit http://web.inflibnet.ac.in/caliber2005/index.jsp With best wishes/ regards. Bye. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ----------- K PRAKASH Scientific/Technical Officer-I Information and Library Network (INFLIBNET) Centre An Inter-University Centre of University Grants Commission Near Gujarat University Guest House Post Box No.4116, Navrangpura, AHMEDABAD - 380 009 India # Tel.: 91 - 079 - 2630 5971 / 2630 4695 Extn: 38; Fax: 2630 0990(Off.); 2676 3724(Res.) # Email: prakash(a)inflibnet.ac.in; prakash_k(a)yahoo.com # URL: http://www.inflibnet.ac.in/ ; http://www.prakashk.netfirms.com/

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On open access
by Subbiah Arunachalam 29 Nov '04

29 Nov '04

Friends: Here is a note from Stevan Harnad which would be of interest to all those interested in open access. Arun -------- SENSE ABOUT SCIENCE Peer review and the acceptance of new scientific ideas http://www.senseaboutscience.org.uk/peerreview/ Summary of above report: (1) "If it (peer review) ain't broke, don't fix it" and (2) "Caveat emptor to journalists -- if you use non-peer-reviewed information" On the relation between peer-review reform and the open access (OA) movement: None! OA is about providing free online access to all peer-reviewed journal articles (2.5 million articles a year, from 24,000 peer-reviewed journals). OA is about freeing those articles from online access tolls, not about freeing them from peer review! For more details, do the following search in Google: amsci "simon says" peer review In a nutshell: (1) Historical fact 1: The pre-refereeing preprint always comes before the refereed postprint (2) Historical fact 2: Since well before the internet, some areas of physics shared their preprints amongst themselves well before publication (3) Historical fact 3: With the advent of the internet and web, those same physicists took (quite naturally) to sharing their preprints -- *and postprints* -- via the internet (since 1991). http://arxiv.org (4) Historical fact 4: That practice -- of self-archiving preprints and postprints -- (not unique to physicists, but done most systematically by them) grew, and is still growing today, but not nearly fast enough (even among physicists). End of the catalogue of indisputable facts. Now we move to the area of interpretation and speculation: (5) Interpretation/Speculation 1: Some have hypothesized -- and Paul Ginsparg, the one who wrote the software for the physics Arxiv, was among the ones who made this hypothesis, but so has the mathematician and analyst of electronic publication developments, Andrew Odlyzko -- that the success and usefulness of preprint-self-archiving implies that peer-review (hence postprints) may either not be necessary at all (and done only to satisfy the demands of the author's tenure committee) or (6) Interpretation/Speculation 2: that peer review can be implemented as a kind of (optional?) "overlay," on top of preprints, possibly in the form of post-hoc peer commentary. But what needs to be carefully noted is that the empirical facts are equally compatible with a much simpler hypothesis, which is that it is extremely useful to the impact, productivity and progress of research to make both postprints (definitely) and preprints (optionally) open-access, by self-archiving them, and that this benefit has *absolutely nothing* to do with any hypothetical and untested reforms one might or might not one day wish to make of the peer-review system -- which has continued, absolutely unchanged, since self-archiving began in 1991, with virtually every preprint also being submitted for publication in a peer-reviewed journal, hence also generating the revised, corrected, peer-reviewed postprint meeting the journal's quality standards, *exactly* as it had and has done all along! *Empirically* the only change has been open-access to preprints and postprints. The rest is all interpretation and untested speculation. For the sake of OA, it is extremely important to disentangle all that interpretation/speculation from the facts, which are that providing OA to one's postprints (all of them) and preprints (those one chooses to make OA) has great benefits, so not only 20% but 100% of postprints (and, optionally, preprints) should be made OA in this way. Entangling this theory-independent truth with untested conjectures about ways of reforming peer review simply serves to delay the long overdue passage from 20% OA to 100% OA still longer, needlessly. http://www.eprints.org/self-faq/#7.Peer In fact, the over-emphasis on preprint self-archiving (as if it were a *substitute*, rather than merely an optional *supplement* to postprint self-archiving, which in turn is a supplement to toll-access) was one of several of the incoherent components in the original e-biomed proposal that made it fail, generated opposition (from both publishers and those who did not want peer review tampered with needlessly) and eventually led to the non-optimal form of the NIH proposal we have now (with a 6-month embargo and only central archiving and only NIH-funded biomed) instead of the univeral self-archiving of 100% of postprints (and optionally, whatever percentage of preprints authors also choose to self-archive) that we need, that is still so long overdue, and that we are *at last* moving toward today! All this was already pointed out in the 1999 comments on the original e-biomed: http://www.nih.gov/about/director/ebiomed/com0509.htm#harn45 (1999) http://www.nih.gov/about/director/ebiomed/comment.htm Pertinent Prior American Scientist Topic Threads: Re: A Note of Caution About "Reforming the System" (2001) http://www.ecs.soton.ac.uk/~harnad/Hypermail/Amsci/1178.html Re: Science Article (Roberts et al.) and Science Editorial (2001) http://www.ecs.soton.ac.uk/~harnad/Hypermail/Amsci/1241.html Re: Self-Selected Vetting vs. Peer Review: Supplement or Substitute? (2003) http://www.ecs.soton.ac.uk/~harnad/Hypermail/Amsci/2889.html Stevan Harnad Moderator, American Scientist Open Access Forum Chaire de recherche du Canada Centre de neuroscience de la cognition (CNC) Université du Québec à Montréal Montréal, Québec, Canada H3C 3P8 tel: 1-514-987-3000 2461# fax: 1-514-987-8952 harnad(a)uqam.ca http://www.ecs.soton.ac.uk/~harnad/ Friends: Here is a note from Stevan Harnad which would be of interest to all those interested in open access. Arun -------- SENSE ABOUT SCIENCE Peer review and the acceptance of new scientific ideas http://www.senseaboutscience.org.uk/peerreview/ http://www.senseaboutscience.org.uk/peerreview/ Summary of above report: (1) "If it (peer review) ain't broke, don't fix it" and (2) "Caveat emptor to journalists -- if you use non-peer-reviewed information" On the relation between peer-review reform and the open access (OA) movement: None! OA is about providing free online access to all peer-reviewed journal articles (2.5 million articles a year, from 24,000 peer-reviewed journals). OA is about freeing those articles from online access tolls, not about freeing them from peer review! For more details, do the following search in Google: amsci "simon says" peer review In a nutshell: (1) Historical fact 1: The pre-refereeing preprint always comes before the refereed postprint (2) Historical fact 2: Since well before the internet, some areas of physics shared their preprints amongst themselves well before publication (3) Historical fact 3: With the advent of the internet and web, those same physicists took (quite naturally) to sharing their preprints -- *and postprints* -- via the internet (since 1991). http://arxiv.org/ http://arxiv.org (4) Historical fact 4: That practice -- of self-archiving preprints and postprints -- (not unique to physicists, but done most systematically by them) grew, and is still growing today, but not nearly fast enough (even among physicists). End of the catalogue of indisputable facts. Now we move to the area of interpretation and speculation: (5) Interpretation/Speculation 1: Some have hypothesized -- and Paul Ginsparg, the one who wrote the software for the physics Arxiv, was among the ones who made this hypothesis, but so has the mathematician and analyst of electronic publication developments, Andrew Odlyzko -- that the success and usefulness of preprint-self-archiving implies that peer-review (hence postprints) may either not be necessary at all (and done only to satisfy the demands of the author's tenure committee) or (6) Interpretation/Speculation 2: that peer review can be implemented as a kind of (optional?) "overlay," on top of preprints, possibly in the form of post-hoc peer commentary. But what needs to be carefully noted is that the empirical facts are equally compatible with a much simpler hypothesis, which is that it is extremely useful to the impact, productivity and progress of research to make both postprints (definitely) and preprints (optionally) open-access, by self-archiving them, and that this benefit has *absolutely nothing* to do with any hypothetical and untested reforms one might or might not one day wish to make of the peer-review system -- which has continued, absolutely unchanged, since self-archiving began in 1991, with virtually every preprint also being submitted for publication in a peer-reviewed journal, hence also generating the revised, corrected, peer-reviewed postprint meeting the journal's quality standards, *exactly* as it had and has done all along! *Empirically* the only change has been open-access to preprints and postprints. The rest is all interpretation and untested speculation. For the sake of OA, it is extremely important to disentangle all that interpretation/speculation from the facts, which are that providing OA to one's postprints (all of them) and preprints (those one chooses to make OA) has great benefits, so not only 20% but 100% of postprints (and, optionally, preprints) should be made OA in this way. Entangling this theory-independent truth with untested conjectures about ways of reforming peer review simply serves to delay the long overdue passage from 20% OA to 100% OA still longer, needlessly. http://www.eprints.org/self-faq/#7.Peer http://www.eprints.org/self-faq/#7.Peer In fact, the over-emphasis on preprint self-archiving (as if it were a *substitute*, rather than merely an optional *supplement* to postprint self-archiving, which in turn is a supplement to toll-access) was one of several of the incoherent components in the original e-biomed proposal that made it fail, generated opposition (from both publishers and those who did not want peer review tampered with needlessly) and eventually led to the non-optimal form of the NIH proposal we have now (with a 6-month embargo and only central archiving and only NIH-funded biomed) instead of the univeral self-archiving of 100% of postprints (and optionally, whatever percentage of preprints authors also choose to self-archive) that we need, that is still so long overdue, and that we are *at last* moving toward today! All this was already pointed out in the 1999 comments on the original e-biomed: http://www.nih.gov/about/director/ebiomed/com0509.htm#harn45 http://www.nih.gov/about/director/ebiomed/com0509.htm#harn45 (1999) http://www.nih.gov/about/director/ebiomed/comment.htm http://www.nih.gov/about/director/ebiomed/comment.htm Pertinent Prior American Scientist Topic Threads: Re: A Note of Caution About "Reforming the System" (2001) http://www.ecs.soton.ac.uk/~harnad/Hypermail/Amsci/1178.html http://www.ecs.soton.ac.uk/~harnad/Hypermail/Amsci/1178.html Re: Science Article (Roberts et al.) and Science Editorial (2001) http://www.ecs.soton.ac.uk/~harnad/Hypermail/Amsci/1241.html http://www.ecs.soton.ac.uk/~harnad/Hypermail/Amsci/1241.html Re: Self-Selected Vetting vs. Peer Review: Supplement or Substitute? (2003) http://www.ecs.soton.ac.uk/~harnad/Hypermail/Amsci/2889.html http://www.ecs.soton.ac.uk/~harnad/Hypermail/Amsci/2889.html Stevan Harnad Moderator, American Scientist Open Access Forum Chaire de recherche du Canada Centre de neuroscience de la cognition (CNC) Université du Québec à Montréal Montréal, Québec, Canada H3C 3P8 tel: 1-514-987-3000 2461# fax: 1-514-987-8952 http://uk.f113.mail.yahoo.com/ym/Compose?To=harnad@uqam.ca&YY=51694&order=d… harnad(a)uqam.ca http://www.ecs.soton.ac.uk/~harnad/ http://www.ecs.soton.ac.uk/~harnad/

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Fw: Science in UK Department for Internatl. Devt.
by Subbiah Arunachalam 25 Nov '04

25 Nov '04

----- Original Message ----- From: EPT To: scitechcom(a)parliament.uk Cc: enquiry(a)dfid.gov.uk ; chan(a)utsc.utoronto.ca ; Subbiah Arunachalam ; Stevan Harnad Sent: Tuesday, November 23, 2004 11:55 PM Subject: Science in UK Department for Internatl. Devt. MESSAGE TO DR. IAN GIBSON, Chair S&T Ctee cc Hilary Benn, DFiD From members of the Electronic Publishing Trust for Development (EPT) http://www.epublishingtrust.org and Stevan Harnad November 23rd 2004 Dear Dr Gibson, Access to research publications by developing country scientists We have read the comments from your Committee on the Department for International Development report (The use of science in UK International Development Policy, 13th Report of Session 2003-2004) and refer particularly to paragraphs 76 and 133. In these, your comments emphasise the importance of access to research information, the need for digitisation of publications and open access publishing. However, we are very disappointed to see that no reference to Open Access Archiving was made. As you will be aware from our written submission to your 10th Report, Scientific 'Publications: Free for all?', the Electronic Publishing Trust for Development strongly advocates policies to establish institutional archives. This very low cost opportunity has many benefits for science not possible with OA Publishing (OA Archiving will spread knowledge across departments, institutes and countries; OA Archiving can take place almost immediately, whereas the progress of OA Publishing is inevitably far slower; OA Archiving is endorsed by over 90% of publishers, whereas most remain opposed to OA Publishing; OA Archiving can be mandated, whereas OA Publishing cannot). Moreover, OA Archiving can straight away increase the visibility of locally generated research, so important for the development of a strong science base in the less advantaged regions and for the creation of a global digital library that includes the 'missing research'. We know that your Committee fully understands the benefits to be derived from OA Archiving, but we would ask that the Committee ensures that DFiD is made fully aware of these and their huge potential impact on science in information-starved regions. We have in the past tried to inform DFiD about the advantages of institutional archives, but have met with little success. The Department is currently supporting the distribution of subsidised printed journals to some developing countries (but these programmes exclude those where any journals are currently sold by the commercial publishers, eg India) and, while this has short-term benefits, it is clearly not the long-term solution to information poverty. We would hope that DFiD's future programmes would support the sustainable option of training in the establishment of OA archives. The signatories to this letter, and many others, now have substantial experience in running OA workshops that, in our view, will make a tremendous impact on the international inclusion of the science communities in poorer countries. We are heartened that the University of Namibia has very recently established an OA policy and its own OA Archive; some 20 other OA Archives in developing country institutes are also registered in the OA Archives registry. The process has begun and is shown to be feasible; the support of DFiD would substantially speed the process to the benefit of health, agriculture and other essential scientific work in these regions. We hope that your Committee can encourage DFiD in this work, and are available to provide further information/experience at any time. With kind regards, Professor Subbiah Arunachalam, MSSRF Chennia, India, EPT Trustee Professor Leslie Chan, University of Toronto, Canada, EPT Trustee Professor Stevan Harnad, University of Southampton, UK Barbara Kirsop, Secretary, Electronic Publishing Trust for Development, UK ----- Original Message ----- From: mailto:EPT@biostrat.demon.co.uk EPT To: mailto:scitechcom@parliament.uk scitechcom(a)parliament.uk Cc: mailto:enquiry@dfid.gov.uk enquiry(a)dfid.gov.uk ; mailto:chan@utsc.utoronto.ca chan(a)utsc.utoronto.ca ; mailto:arun@mssrf.res.in Subbiah Arunachalam ; mailto:harnad@ecs.soton.ac.uk Stevan Harnad Sent: Tuesday, November 23, 2004 11:55 PM Subject: Science in UK Department for Internatl. Devt. MESSAGE TO DR. IAN GIBSON, Chair S&T Ctee cc Hilary Benn, DFiD From members of the Electronic Publishing Trust for Development (EPT) http://www.epublishingtrust.org http://www.epublishingtrust.org and Stevan Harnad November 23rd 2004 Dear Dr Gibson, Access to research publications by developing country scientists We have read the comments from your Committee on the Department for International Development report (The use of science in UK International Development Policy, 13 th Report of Session 2003-2004) and refer particularly to paragraphs 76 and 133. In these, your comments emphasise the importance of access to research information, the need for digitisation of publications and open access publishing. However, we are very disappointed to see that no reference to Open Access Archiving was made. As you will be aware from our written submission to your 10 th Report, Scientific Publications: Free for all?, the Electronic Publishing Trust for Development strongly advocates policies to establish institutional archives. This very low cost opportunity has many benefits for science not possible with OA Publishing (OA Archiving will spread knowledge across departments, institutes and countries; OA Archiving can take place almost immediately, whereas the progress of OA Publishing is inevitably far slower; OA Archiving is endorsed by over 90% of publishers, whereas most remain opposed to OA Publishing; OA Archiving can be mandated, whereas OA Publishing cannot). Moreover, OA Archiving can straight away increase the visibility of locally generated research, so important for the development of a strong science base in the less advantaged regions and for the creation of a global digital library that includes the 'missing research'. We know that your Committee fully understands the benefits to be derived from OA Archiving, but we would ask that the Committee ensures that DFiD is made fully aware of these and their huge potential impact on science in information-starved regions. We have in the past tried to inform DFiD about the advantages of institutional archives, but have met with little success. The Department is currently supporting the distribution of subsidised printed journals to some developing countries (but these programmes exclude those where any journals are currently sold by the commercial publishers, eg India) and, while this has short-term benefits, it is clearly not the long-term solution to information poverty. We would hope that DFiDs future programmes would support the sustainable option of training in the establishment of OA archives. The signatories to this letter, and many others, now have substantial experience in running OA workshops that, in our view, will make a tremendous impact on the international inclusion of the science communities in poorer countries. We are heartened that the University of Namibia has very recently established an OA policy and its own OA Archive; some 20 other OA Archives in developing country institutes are also registered in the OA Archives registry. The process has begun and is shown to be feasible; the support of DFiD would substantially speed the process to the benefit of health, agriculture and other essential scientific work in these regions. We hope that your Committee can encourage DFiD in this work, and are available to provide further information/experience at any time. With kind regards, Professor Subbiah Arunachalam, MSSRF Chennia, India, EPT Trustee Professor Leslie Chan, University of Toronto, Canada, EPT Trustee Professor Stevan Harnad, University of Southampton, UK Barbara Kirsop, Secretary, Electronic Publishing Trust for Development, UK

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