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

Shouldn't Indian libraries join either the Open Content Alliance or the Google Library?
by Subbiah Arunachalam 03 Nov '05

03 Nov '05

Dear Balki: I have a specific question for you, as you are a pioneer and the first in India to set up both an open access institutional archive for research papers (at IISc) and the Million Books Digial Library. Should not major Indian libraries join the Open Content Alliance (promoted by Brewster Kahle) and/ or the Google Library? Major western libraries are joining one or the other, but our libraries have some unique collections in the areas of philosophy, religion, literature in our own languages, some of them (e.g. Sanskrit and Tamil) older than all the western languages, indigenous systems of medicine, etc. Please take the lead and make our books widely known and read around the world. Generations of Indians will begrateful to you! NCSI could be the nodal point. I am sure the Knowledge Commission and the Department of Culture can be approached for any funds required. Microsoft (USA) has pledged to scan 150,000 books. May be you could ask Microsoft (India) and other IT majors to lend support. Best wishes. Arun [Subbiah Arunachalam] Dear Balki: I have a specific question for you, as you are a pioneer and the first in India to set up both an open access institutional archive for research papers (at IISc) and the Million Books Digial Library. Should not major Indian libraries join the Open Content Alliance (promoted by Brewster Kahle) and/ or the Google Library? Major western libraries are joining one or the other, but our libraries have some unique collections in the areas of philosophy, religion, literature in our own languages, some of them (e.g. Sanskrit and Tamil) older than all the western languages, indigenous systems of medicine, etc. Please take the lead and make our books widely known and read around the world. Generations of Indians will begrateful to you! NCSI could be the nodal point. I am sure the Knowledge Commission and the Department of Culture can be approached for any funds required. Microsoft (USA) has pledged to scan 150,000 books. May be you could ask Microsoft (India) and other IT majors to lend support. Best wishes. Arun [Subbiah Arunachalam]

1 0

(no subject)
by Subbiah Arunachalam 02 Nov '05

02 Nov '05

UNESCO endorses OA On September 22, UNESCO adopted Amendments to the Draft Programme and Budget for 2006-2007 that have the effect of endorsing OA. (Thanks to Heather Morrison.) Excerpt: [UNESCO] Requests the Member States (a) to foster through the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) dissemination of the principles of open access; (b) to foster dissemination of the principles of open access, particularly in universities; (c) to promote developing countries open access to archives for the sake of spreading scientific know-how; Invites the Director-General (a) to assess the feasibility of creating a database on existing open access initiatives worldwide and to report at the forthcoming sessions of the Executive Board and the General Conference on the progress of open access strategies throughout the world; (b) to promote a network of national working groups with a view to fostering open access in their universities, to cooperate internationally in initiatives and projects on the subject of open access, and to promote the training of experts for cooperation in the publication of and open access to texts free of charge.

1 0

Regarding Bibliogrphy compilation on Museology
by Rehan Siddiqui 02 Nov '05

02 Nov '05

Dear friends, I am working in National Museum of Mankind, bhopal as an Information Asstt. My Inst. has decided to compile and publish a comprehensive bibliography on museology : Science of museum. I want y' r help in this regard and want to information from you. So please suggests the primary, Secondary, Tertiary, Sources , E-sources, INTERNET links, other digital database in this field or whrerever you may find. This information will be very helpful to us to compile Bibliography and will be acknowledged in our book. So please guide me right sousce and give relevent information in this regard. Thanking You Mohammad Rehan Library and Information Asstt. Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Manav Sangrahalaya Post Box No. 2, Shamla Hills, Bhopal (M.P.) Ph. 0755- 2661290 2661319 --------------------------------- Yahoo! FareChase - Search multiple travel sites in one click. Dear friends, I am working in National Museum of Mankind, bhopal as an Information Asstt. My Inst. has decided to compile and publish a comprehensive bibliography on museology : Science of museum. I want y' r help in this regard and want to information from you. So please suggests the primary, Secondary, Tertiary, Sources , E-sources, INTERNET links, other digital database in this field or whrerever you may find. This information will be very helpful to us to compile Bibliography and will be acknowledged in our book. So please guide me right sousce and give relevent information in this regard. Thanking You Mohammad Rehan Library and Information Asstt. Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Manav Sangrahalaya Post Box No. 2, Shamla Hills, Bhopal (M.P.) Ph. 0755- 2661290 2661319 http://us.lrd.yahoo.com/_ylc=X3oDMTFqODRtdXQ4BF9TAzMyOTc1MDIEX3MDOTY2ODgxNj… Yahoo! FareChase - Search multiple travel sites in one click.

1 0

[Fwd: Alliance for Taxpayer Access]
by Subbiah Arunachalam 01 Nov '05

01 Nov '05

---------------------------- Original Message ---------------------------- Subject: Alliance for Taxpayer Access From: "Subbiah Arunachalam" <subbiah.arunachalam(a)gmail.com> Date: Tue, November 1, 2005 7:56 pm To: arun(a)mssrf.res.in nvjoshi(a)ces.iisc.ernet.in ratnakar(a)informindia.co.in dksahu(a)medknow.com franc(a)ncsi.iisc.ernet.in balki(a)serc.iisc.ernet.in shaddy.shadrach(a)oneworld.net -------------------------------------------------------------------------- *Bowdoin joins the ATA* The Bowdoin College Library <http://www.bowdoin.edu/> has joined<http://www.taxpayeraccess.org/member.html>the Alliance for Taxpayer Access <http://www.taxpayeraccess.org/>. (PS: If your US-based university, library, or non-profit organization has not joined the ATA, please recommend it. The ATA is a major force in OA advocacy in the US.) ---- We should promote an Alliance for Taxpayer Access in India! Especially with the Right to Information Act and the many initiatives in the area of e-governance, such an Alliance will be of great relevance. The Alliance can also promote OA to publicly funded research. Please forward this mail to others who might be interested in such an Alliance Arun

1 0

OA for developing countries and public health
by Subbiah Arunachalam 31 Oct '05

31 Oct '05

The case for OA is powerfully argued in an article in PLoS Pathology. Arun ---- OA for developing countries and public health Josefina Coloma and Eva Harris, Open-Access Science: A Necessity for Global Public Health, PLoS Pathogens, October 2005. Excerpt: The world of scientific research and scholarly publishing is undergoing a profound transformation in large part due to the rapid development of information and communication technologies. The Internet and the advent of faster networking capabilities now allow virtually unlimited access to information, remote data gathering, real-time integration of data into databases and models, and online purchasing of research supplies. At the same time, it has opened new possibilities for researchers to communicate with colleagues and with the society in general. However, although some investigators in the developing world are keeping pace with this new reality, the majority are largely excluded from this transformation because of their limited access to scientific information. Particularly relevant to the area of pathogen research, the vast majority of infectious diseases in humans, animals, and plants occurs in the developing world, and efficient communication between local scientists in developing countries and the global community will facilitate advances in knowledge and control of these pathogens. Here we discuss open access and socially responsible philosophies in relation to scientific training, publishing, and intellectual property, and give examples of how we can help keep the developing world fully informed about these new models....In the developing world, scientists face a greater challenge to remain informed about the progress in their fields of research. Although they are disproportionately affected by infectious diseases, they are excluded from the relevant information that might help them cure, control, and manage the effects of these diseases....The first principle we should all support is that publicly funded research should be made publicly available through the most appropriate open-access channel. Funding agencies and reviewers need to give researchers credit, not penalize them, for efforts to publish in new open-access media. Even with strict peer review, new electronic journals will not immediately attain the same impact status as traditional print journals, but they will have a greater reach and a larger global influence. In fact, it has been shown that online accessibility increases the citation rate and, thus, the impact of a journal by 157%. This new online publishing venue might be the only way that scientists in the developing world conducting highly relevant research can make their data available to the world. It might also be the only means for them to obtain the most recent and relevant information for their research....We believe the whole spectrum of scientific endeavor should be as open access as possible, from training in laboratory and epidemiological techniques, proposal writing, and manuscript-writing skills to open-access publishing and socially responsible intellectual property policies. In this way, a new door of opportunity can be opened so that the fruits of our scientific breakthroughs are disseminated worldwide and benefit global public health.

1 0

(no subject)
by Subbiah Arunachalam 31 Oct '05

31 Oct '05

Friends: Here is one reason why we need to promote open access WORLDWIDE. Escalating prices of journals have led to cancellations of subscriptions even in affluent libraries. But physicists are by and large not affected because many of them adopted open access about 15 years ago! Arun ---- >From Peter Suber's blog of 31 October 2005 More on the pricing crisis Anna Norman, Cost of scientific journals 'staggering', The Daily (newspaper of the University of Washington at Seattle), October 31, 2005. Excerpt: Every quarter, students wonder how to pay for expensive textbooks. The rising costs of scientific and scholarly journals is creating the same problem for the UW libraries, said Timothy Jewell, head of Collection Management Services, which manages research databases and scholarly journals...."The prices of [the journals] are just staggering," said UW President Mark Emmert. "If you went down a list of some of these major journals, you would see series with four issues a year for over $8,000."...Jewell cited publisher consolidation as the primary reason for soaring prices. "A lot of the smaller publishers have been bought out by large, multinational corporations," he said. "The largest scientific, technical and health journal publisher, Elsevier, has been overtaking publishers for the last 10 years or so." With fewer companies dominating the market, journal prices have risen exponentially Despite an estimated 7 to 8 percent increase each year aimed at journal costs, the libraries' budget isn't keeping up with escalating expenses, Jewell said. "In years that we can't find the necessary funding to pay, we have to cancel our subscriptions to stay in budget," he said....Although the library staff has increased funding, there is no end to cancellations in sight, said Mel DeSart, head of the Engineering Library. "I've only been here for five and a half years, and I've already been through two cancellations," he said. "They are substantial cuts - we've cut thousands of titles over the last ten years."...Without major changes in the academic publishing market, Jewell said he isn't sure where the libraries will be a few years from now.

1 0

ICSU calls for open access
by Subbiah Arunachalam 31 Oct '05

31 Oct '05

Friends: Here is a news report from SciDevNet. http://www.scidev.net/News/index.cfm?fuseaction=readNews&itemid=2435&langua… Arun ---- Global forum for free sharing of research data planned Wu Chong 24 October 2005 Source: SciDev.Net [SUZHOU] A forum to promote the free exchange of information in the global scientific community was proposed last week at the annual meeting of the International Council for Science (ICSU). The International Scientific Data and Information Forum or SciDIF would help ensure that scientists in poor countries can access information as easily as those in the North, said Roberta Balstad, chair of the ICSU Priority Area Assessment on Data and Information. Balsted stressed, however, that the forum is "only an idea so far". To take things further, ICSU will set up a committee that during the next three years will define how the forum should work. An ICSU report published on 20 October raises some of the issues. It recommends that all scientific data, whether produced commercially or through public-private partnership, should be provided free or at low cost for research and education purposes in both developed and developing countries. One way to make this possible, says Shuichi Iwata of the ICSU Committee on Data for Science and Technology (CODATA), would be through an open-access database. According to the report, the poor access scientists in low-income countries have to scientific publications makes it difficult for them to learn about research in other parts of the world, and to find an outlet for their own research results. Also, not all researchers in Africa and other poor regions have access to computers, says Balstad. Even those who have computers at research institutes face "exorbitant" costs in accessing information through the Internet and must put up with an unstable electric supply, said David Mbah, executive secretary of the Cameroon Academy of Sciences. Balstad also said it was also important for researchers in developed countries to be able to access information produced in developing countries. "Scientists in poorer countries can seldom build a strong digital database to facilitate the flow of information," she said. "So we place great emphasis on extending new technology, training and capability building in developing countries." Related SciDev.Net articles: Global disaster research programme launched International Council for Science opens Africa office UN meeting urged to back open access science Open access archiving: an idea whose time has come?

1 0

Bangalore University Library Website
by Dr.P.V.Konnur 30 Oct '05

30 Oct '05

Dear Friends, Best wishes for Happy Diwali on behalf of Librarian and Staff of Bangalore University Library. I am happy to inform you all that, we have launched our Website on the Internet (for trial) today. You may access the same through the fallowing URL: http://202.141.128.125/index.htm Many of the links are yet to be connected. I desire to take your advise before I finalise my website. You can access the UGC-Infonet online journals and also search the Library online catalogue through the website. Your suggestions are most valuable to us. Please do not hesitate to criticise also, which will correct us effectively. Thanks, Konnur. Dr.P.V.Konnur, University Librarian, Bangalore University Library, Jnana Bharathi, Bangalore-560 056 Phone: o8o-22961131, 080-23215510 __________________________________ Yahoo! FareChase: Search multiple travel sites in one click. http://farechase.yahoo.com

1 0

China wants be the cleverest
by Subbiah Arunachalam 29 Oct '05

29 Oct '05

Friends: Here is something very interesting. Sundar Sarukkai and Anitha may forward this to all participants of the NIAS conference on India's competitiveness and preparedness. This step is probably the result of the discussions the political leaders have been having with academics like Prof. Xue Lan, the public policy professor at Tshinghua University, which I mentioned in my talk. Thanks. Arun China's next great leap is to be the cleverest country By Howard French in Shanghai October 29, 2005 China wants to transform its top universities into the world's best within a decade, and is spending billions of dollars to woo big-name scholars and build first-class research laboratories in the latest bid to raise the country's profile as a great power. Having already pulled off one of the most remarkable expansions of education in modern times, increasing the number of undergraduates and people who hold doctoral degrees fivefold in 10 years, this latest model is simple. Recruit top foreign-trained Chinese and Chinese-American specialists, set them up in well-equipped labs, surround them with the brightest students and give them tremendous leeway. China is focusing on science and technology, areas that reflect the country's development needs but also reflect the preferences of an authoritarian system that restricts speech. The liberal arts often involve critical thinking about politics, economics and history, and China's government, which strictly limits public debate, has placed relatively little emphasis on achieving international status in those subjects. In fact, Chinese say - most often euphemistically and indirectly - that those very restrictions on academic debate could hamper efforts to create world-class universities. Nonetheless, the new confidence about entering the world's educational elite is heard among politicians and university administrators, students and professors. "Maybe in 20 years MIT will be studying Qinghua's example," said Rao Zihe, director of the Institute of Biophysics at Qinghua University, an institution that is renowned for its sciences and is regarded by many as China's finest university. "How long it will take to catch up can't be predicted, but in some respects we are already better than the Harvards today." When Andrew Chi-chih Yao, a Princeton professor who is recognised as one of the top computer scientists in the US, was approached by Qinghua University in Beijing last year to lead an advanced computer studies program, he did not hesitate. It did not matter that he would be leaving one of America's top universities for one that is little known outside China, or that after his birth in Shanghai, he was raised in Taiwan and spent his entire academic career in the US. He felt he could contribute to his fast-rising homeland. "Patriotism does have something to do with it, because I just cannot imagine going anywhere else, even if the conditions were equal," said Yao, who is 58. In only a generation, China has sharply increased the proportion of its college-age population in higher education, to roughly 20per cent now from 1.4per cent in 1978. But only Beijing University and a few other top Chinese institutions have been internationally recognised as superior. The biggest weakness, many Chinese academics indicated, is the lack of academic freedom. "The greatest thing we've done in the last 20 years is lift 200 million people out of poverty," said Xu Tian, a leading geneticist who teaches at Yale. "What China has not realised yet, though, if it truly wants to go to the next level, is to understand that numbers are not enough. "We need a new revolution to get us away from a culture that prizes becoming government officials. We must learn to reward real innovation, independent thought and genuine scholarly work." The New York Times Friends: Here is something very interesting. Sundar Sarukkai and Anitha may forward this to all participants of the NIAS conference on India's competitiveness and preparedness. This step is probably the result of the discussions the political leaders have been having with academics like Prof. Xue Lan, the public policy professor at Tshinghua University, which I mentioned in my talk. Thanks. Arun China's next great leap is to be the cleverest country By Howard French in Shanghai October 29, 2005 China wants to transform its top universities into the world's best within a decade, and is spending billions of dollars to woo big-name scholars and build first-class research laboratories in the latest bid to raise the country's profile as a great power. Having already pulled off one of the most remarkable expansions of education in modern times, increasing the number of undergraduates and people who hold doctoral degrees fivefold in 10 years, this latest model is simple. Recruit top foreign-trained Chinese and Chinese-American specialists, set them up in well-equipped labs, surround them with the brightest students and give them tremendous leeway. China is focusing on science and technology, areas that reflect the country's development needs but also reflect the preferences of an authoritarian system that restricts speech. The liberal arts often involve critical thinking about politics, economics and history, and China's government, which strictly limits public debate, has placed relatively little emphasis on achieving international status in those subjects. In fact, Chinese say - most often euphemistically and indirectly - that those very restrictions on academic debate could hamper efforts to create world-class universities. Nonetheless, the new confidence about entering the world's educational elite is heard among politicians and university administrators, students and professors. "Maybe in 20 years MIT will be studying Qinghua's example," said Rao Zihe, director of the Institute of Biophysics at Qinghua University, an institution that is renowned for its sciences and is regarded by many as China's finest university. "How long it will take to catch up can't be predicted, but in some respects we are already better than the Harvards today." When Andrew Chi-chih Yao, a Princeton professor who is recognised as one of the top computer scientists in the US, was approached by Qinghua University in Beijing last year to lead an advanced computer studies program, he did not hesitate. It did not matter that he would be leaving one of America's top universities for one that is little known outside China, or that after his birth in Shanghai, he was raised in Taiwan and spent his entire academic career in the US. He felt he could contribute to his fast-rising homeland. "Patriotism does have something to do with it, because I just cannot imagine going anywhere else, even if the conditions were equal," said Yao, who is 58. In only a generation, China has sharply increased the proportion of its college-age population in higher education, to roughly 20per cent now from 1.4per cent in 1978. But only Beijing University and a few other top Chinese institutions have been internationally recognised as superior. The biggest weakness, many Chinese academics indicated, is the lack of academic freedom. "The greatest thing we've done in the last 20 years is lift 200 million people out of poverty," said Xu Tian, a leading geneticist who teaches at Yale. "What China has not realised yet, though, if it truly wants to go to the next level, is to understand that numbers are not enough. "We need a new revolution to get us away from a culture that prizes becoming government officials. We must learn to reward real innovation, independent thought and genuine scholarly work." The New York Times http://www.smh.com.au/weekend http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/chinas-next-great-leap-is-to-be-the-clever…

1 0

Corporate Card
by Monali Panchbhai 28 Oct '05

28 Oct '05

Dear Friends, I would like to know if any of our professionals are using corporate card for online purchasing. If then can Please guide me if there are any rules for the same, if anyone wants to have that for library on whose name it should be who should have control over it who is responsible of that generally who all are the authorised for same how it can be misused how to restrict any misuse what all cares should be taken while using the same also update me on any other information which you think will be helpful for me. Thanks to all of you, HAPPY DIWALI & PROSPEROUS NEW YEAR Regards, Monali Panchbhai Sr. Executive - Library & Documentation Odyssey Capital Pvt Ltd Mumbai

1 0

UGC NET - LIS
by Saji S. Nair 28 Oct '05

28 Oct '05

Dear All, Dear All, These days, there is a sharp decline in the number of students clearing UGC NET for JRF/Lectureship in Library and Information Science. In many Universities, not even a single candidate is qualified in many occasions. Is this because of the lack of quality of LIS education in India OR UGC�s hard-line attitude towards this profession? It is a fact that job prospects our field, especially in the teaching arena is not at all encouraging. In such a situation, Why UGC is enforcing strict rules to restrict the qualified candidates? Regards Saji Trivandrum Kerala Join Excite! - http://www.excite.com http://www.excite.com The most personalized portal on the Web!

1 0

Scientific data circulation in an open environment
by Subbiah Arunachalam 28 Oct '05

28 Oct '05

Friends: we have open source software and open access to full texts of research papers. Now we have free data circulation in an open environment! "Free scientific data circulation within an open environment" - an interview with L. Romary, head of the newly created Scientific Information Directorate of the French National Center for Scientific Research. http://www.inist.fr/openaccess/article.php3?id_article=118 A brief interview available on INIST/CNRS website dedicated to the Open Access to scientific data issues. Arun

1 0

Co-operation projects between India and Germany
by Seth, Renu 28 Oct '05

28 Oct '05

Dear Colleagues, I need to know, if you are aware of any partnership projects between India and Germany. E.g. between Indian and German libraries, Library Science Departments, Exchange programmes, or any other kind of continued co-operation between Indian and German Library and Information Science field. I am not refering to one time co-operation but a programme which is continuing for some time or will continue in future. I need this information urgently. In case you are aware of any such programmes, please get back to me as soon as possible. Any help in this regard is highly appreciated. With best regards Renu Seth Librarian In-Charge Max Mueller Bhavan Regional Information Centre & Library 3, Kasturba Gandhi Marg New Delhi 110001 Telephone +91-11-23329506 librarian.mmb(a)delhi.goethe.org www.goethe.de/newdelhi

1 0

Dr. TBR Memorial Seminar on "Information Management in the Digital Era"
by Babu Rajendra 28 Oct '05

28 Oct '05

Dear All, This is a gentle reminder about the forthcoming seminar, "Information Management in the Digital Era", being organized under the aegis of Dr. TBR Memorial by NCSI-Net. This Seminar is being conducted for the benefit of student community of LIS profession. The response to the seminar by the student community has been very encouraging. We have already received the required number of confirmed registrations. Owing to the logistics problems, we have closed further registrations. We also have received overwhelming enquiries from the non-student community, too, for the possibility of their participation in the seminar. We appreciate the interest shown by the non-student community. As we have already received the required number of confirmed registrations from the student community, we regret to inform the non-student community that we will not be able to accommodate any non-student registrations. However, we are planning to organise a similar seminar in the near future for the benefit of the non-student community. The details will be announced later on this forum. For more information about the seminar, please visit: http://144.16.72.147/workshop Warm Regards, NCSI-NET coordinators ************************************************************************ The information in this email is confidential and is intended solely for the addressee(s). Access to this email by anyone else is unauthorized. If you are not an intended recipient, please notify the sender of this email immediately. You should not copy, use or disseminate the information contained in the email. Any views expressed in this message are those of the individual sender, except where the sender specifically states them to be the views of Capco. http://www.capco.com/ ************************************************************************ Dr. TBR Memorial Seminar on "Information Management in the Digital Era" Dear All, This is a gentle reminder about the forthcoming seminar, "Information Management in the Digital Era", being organized under the aegis of Dr. TBR Memorial by NCSI-Net. This Seminar is being conducted for the benefit of student community of LIS profession. The response to the seminar by the student community has been very encouraging. We have already received the required number of confirmed registrations. Owing to the logistics problems, we have closed further registrations. We also have received overwhelming enquiries from the non-student community, too, for the possibility of their participation in the seminar. We appreciate the interest shown by the non-student community. As we have already received the required number of confirmed registrations from the student community, we regret to inform the non-student community that we will not be able to accommodate any non-student registrations. However, we are planning to organise a similar seminar in the near future for the benefit of the non-student community. The details will be announced later on this forum. For more information about the seminar, please visit: http://144.16.72.147/workshop http://144.16.72.147/workshop Warm Regards, NCSI-NET coordinators ************************************************************************ The information in this email is confidential and is intended solely for the addressee(s). Access to this email by anyone else is unauthorized. If you are not an intended recipient, please notify the sender of this email immediately. You should not copy, use or disseminate the information contained in the email. Any views expressed in this message are those of the individual sender, except where the sender specifically states them to be the views of Capco. http://www.capco.com/ ************************************************************************

1 0

Indiana Library
by Vyasamoorthy 28 Oct '05

28 Oct '05

Please read the trivia given below: The Main Library at Indiana University sinks over an inch every year because when it was built, engineers failed to take into account the weight of all the books that would occupy the building. Incidentally, is there a method to check out the truth of any trivia? Many seem to have arisen out of fertile imaginary minds. Vyasamoorthy ============== ============

1 0

Stockholm Challenge Award 2006
by Mailing List Manager 27 Oct '05

27 Oct '05

Date: Sat, 22 Oct 2005 10:36:14 +0800 From: Yong Liu <liuyongaijiujiu(a)gmail.com> *Please circulate widely and apologies for cross-posting* I hope this will be of interest to you.If you have questions or comments, please contact Earl Mardle at earl.mardle(a)stockholmchallenge.se or Ulla Skid�n at ulla.skiden(a)stockholmchallenge.se. Best, Yong Liu ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ The Stockholm Challenge Award 2006 is open for entries <http://www.stockholmchallenge.se/news_right.asp?IdNr=150>THE STOCKHOLM CHALLENGE AWARD 2006 invites excellent ICT projects from all over the world to compete for the prestigious Challenge trophies. The Challenge is searching for the best initiatives that accelerate the use of information technology for the social and economic benefit of citizens and communities. The objective is to help local entrepreneurs, who work to close the digital divide, by bringing in research communities, development organisations and strong corporate initiatives. THE AWARDS WILL BE HANDED OUT IN SIX CATEGORIES <http://www.stockholmchallenge.se/show_facts.asp?IdNr=9>in the City Hall - on May 11, 2006. Special focus will be on projects in countries and regions with the greatest needs. There will also be an international Challenge conference in Stockholm on issues related to the role of ICTs in global development work. *THE AWARD IS OPEN FOR ENTRIES until December 31st 2005*. The application form <http://www.stockholmchallenge.se/omtavling_index.html>is easily accessible on the home page. The Stockholm Challenge is headquartered at the IT University <http://www.it-univ.se/?lang=en>- a joint initiative by KTH<http://www.kth.se/eng/>(The Royal Institute of Technology) and Stockholm University <http://www.su.se/english> . It is managed by a consortium that also includes the City of Stockholm, Ericsson and Sida, the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency. For more information, please contact: Project Manager Ulla Skid�n ulla.skiden(a)stockholmchallenge.se Telephone: + 46 8 7904469 Cell: +46 70 678 72 82 www.stockholmchallenge.se <http://www.stockholmchallenge.se/> *Rules for participation in the Stockholm Challenge Award 2006<http://www.stockholmchallenge.se/show_facts.asp?IdNr=3> * These are the basic rules for the participation in the Stockholm Challenge Award. All competing projects must: 1. Include ICT Illustrate how ICT is used to create new or better traditional services and/or products, which are beneficial for human and social development. 2. Be implemented All competing projects must be up and running. They should be implemented/piloted since no less than three months. The Stockholm Challenge Award does not accept drafted concepts and ideas only. The jury will only evaluate and compare projects that can show measurable outcomes and impact. 3. Be linked to and/or supported by an established private or public organisation. 4. Be verifiable, i.e. able to present credible references. 5. Be free from religious, political or other personal beliefs. *To be noted:* *Projects that have won one of the Challenge categories in previous years cannot enter the competition again.* *All applications must be in English* *Evaluation criteria<http://www.stockholmchallenge.se/show_facts.asp?IdNr=4> * Innovation, creativity and the convergence of ICT with many different disciplines are some of the qualities that are looked for in the competing projects. The jury, a group of international senior experts, base their evaluation on the following criteria, most of which all Challenge projects should meet: *Innovation* Competing projects should illustrate new and innovative ways of using ICT to improve the living and economical conditions especially of those with great needs. *Convergence* The addition of ICT as a tool to traditional development work can improve and widen the scope of the project impact. Projects should show successful convergences of different disciplines and sectors. *Inclusion* It is favourable for the competing projects to show that they bring individuals, groups and local organisations into larger communities � national and global - such as medical, government, educational and cultural networks, as well business environments. *Equal Opportunity* It is important that the initiatives counteract inequality related to the likes of gender, origin, age, physical and/or mental disabilities. *Sustainability* An important factor is sustainability. Not only economic sustainability, i.e. how long the project will last and bring benefits to its users. Sustainability also includes the contribution of the project to a sustainable society and environment at large. *Opportunities <http://www.stockholmchallenge.se/show_facts.asp?IdNr=2>* To enter a project in the Stockholm Challenge Award is not only to participate in a prestigious international ICT competition - it is also a way to join networks of some of the best ICT entrepreneurs and pioneers in the world. Testimonials from many of the projects, which have competed in their respective categories over the years, say that it is the inspiration, the new ideas, contacts and partners that are the greatest rewards for a Challenger. The Stockholm Challenge represents excellent marketing through the exposure to media, and to private and public organizations that are involved in ICT work and implementations. It gives promotional opportunities for entrepreneurs, universities, cities, cities and regions. The Stockholm Challenge Final Events include a Best Practice Exhibition and a Conference. It is a meeting place for some the world's most successful IT entrepreneurs. Winners and finalists of the Stockholm Challenge are global role models for cities, companies, organisations, schools and others who are involved in adapting and spreading the use of ICT.

1 0

Using the Internet Despite the Dangers
by Sukhdev Singh 27 Oct '05

27 Oct '05

A survey report prepared for WebWatch by Princeton Survey ResearchAssociates International (PSRAI), [ Available as PDF fromhttp://www.consumerwebwatch.org/pdfs/princeton.pdf ] indicates thatWeb users are demanding more of Web sites while becoming less trustfulof them. They are adjusting their behavior in response to what theysee as real threats online. For all online users, the report found that concern about identitytheft is substantial, and is changing consumer behavior in major ways.Four in five Internet users (80 percent) are at least somewhatconcerned someone could steal their identity from personal informationon the Internet. Nearly nine out of ten users (86 percent) have madeat least one change in their behavior because of this fear:• 30 percent say they have reduced their overall use of the Internet.• A majority of Internet users (53 percent) say they have stoppedgiving out personal information on the Internet.• 25 percent say they have stopped buying things online. • 54 percentof those who shop online report they have become more likely to read asite's privacy policy or user agreement before buying.• 29 percent of those who shop online say they have cut back on howoften they buy on the Internet. I had a quick look on the report. It provide insight on the following: --Credibility and Trust Online--What Is Important for all Sites--E-Commerce Sites--Financial Sites--Credit Card Fraud and Identity Theft--Sites for Children and Teens--News and Information Sites--Search Engines The report is worth a look. --Sukhdev Singh, NIC.http://openmed.nic.in

1 0

Webology: Volume 2, Number 3, October, 2005
by Alireza Noruzi 26 Oct '05

26 Oct '05

Dear All, Apologies for cross-posting firstly. We are pleased to inform you that the fifth issue of Webology, an OPEN ACCESS journal, is published and is available ONLINE now. This issue contains: ------------------ Editorial -- Alireza Noruzi -- http://www.webology.ir/2005/v2n3/editorial5.html ----------------------------------------- An Evaluation of the Websites of Charities and Voluntary Organisations Providing Support for Young People: Case Study: Drugscope -- Peter Williams, Karen Dennis & David Nicholas -- http://www.webology.ir/2005/v2n3/a16.html ----------------------------------------- How Do Search Engines Handle Chinese Queries? -- Haidar Moukdad & Hong Cui -- http://www.webology.ir/2005/v2n3/a17.html ----------------------------------------- Contractual Solutions in Electronic Publishing Industry: A Comparative study of License Agreements -- B.M. Meera & K.T. Anuradha -- http://www.webology.ir/2005/v2n3/a18.html ----------------------------------------- ========================================= Call for Papers: http://www.webology.ir/callforpapers.html ========================================= Regards, A. Noruzi Dep. of Information Science University of Paul Cezanne France __________________________________ Yahoo! Mail - PC Magazine Editors' Choice 2005 http://mail.yahoo.com

1 0

Continuing Education Programmes
by Sevukan Rathinam 26 Oct '05

26 Oct '05

Dear Colleagues, I am in need of some information about the role of international agencies (other than IFLA) in continuing education programmes for LIS professionals. Kindly let me know. With regards, R.Sevukan Faculty of Library and Information Science Indira Gandhi National Open University Maidan Garhi, New Delhi - 110 068 --------------------------------- Yahoo! India Matrimony: Find your partner now. Dear Colleagues, I am in need of some information about the role of international agencies (other than IFLA) in continuing education programmes for LIS professionals. Kindly let me know. With regards, R.Sevukan Faculty of Library and Information Science Indira Gandhi National Open University Maidan Garhi, New Delhi - 110 068 http://yahoo.shaadi.com Yahoo! India Matrimony </a href>: Find your partner now.

1 0

RE: trainees required
by Vrushali Rane 26 Oct '05

26 Oct '05

Dear Coordinator, Could you please post this message on the forum. Thanks & Regards Vrushali Rane Librarian NMIMS > -----Original Message----- > From: Vrushali Rane > Sent: Friday, October 21, 2005 1:29 PM > To: 'lis-forum(a)ncsi.iisc.ernet.in' > Subject: trainees required > > Dear Coordinator > > Kindly post the following message on the forum. > > Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies (Deemed University), Mumbai > is among the top ten business schools in the country. We have a highly > resourceful library with 36,000 volumes, 210 periodicals, online > databases, audiovideo material etc. We are looking for young professionals > (BLISc / MLISc) as Library Trainee. This will be a informal training > programme for 6 months which will enable the participants to begin their > carrer with confidence. Interested candidates may please send their resume > at librarian(a)nmims.edu. > > Vrushali Rane > Librarian > Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies (Deemed University) > V.L.Mehta Road, > JVPD Scheme, > Vile Parle (W) > Mumbai 56. > Tel: 26134577 / 26183688 / 26143277 Ext 184 > Email: librarian(a)nmims.edu

1 0

Microsoft to Offer Online Book-Content Searches
by Farooque Shaheen 26 Oct '05

26 Oct '05

Microsoft announced Tuesday that it planned to join the online book-search movement with a new service called MSN Book Search. Microsoft is making the largest contribution to the alliance to date - $5 million - which is enough to scan about 150,000 books. Several universities, including the University of California, Columbia University and Rice University, as well as the Internet Archive and the National Archives of Britain, have joined the alliance. Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2005/10/26/technology/26book.html Thanks & Regards, Farooque Shaheen, Caritor India Pvt Ltd. Tel. 080-26678388 # 4105 Mobile-9342507449 Microsoft announced Tuesday that it planned to join the online book-search movement with a new service called MSN Book Search. Microsoft is making the largest contribution to the alliance to date - $5 million - which is enough to scan about 150,000 books. Several universities, including the University of California, Columbia University and Rice University, as well as the Internet Archive and the National Archives of Britain, have joined the alliance. Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2005/10/26/technology/26book.html Thanks & Regards, Farooque Shaheen, Caritor India Pvt Ltd. Tel. 080-26678388 # 4105 Mobile-9342507449

1 0

InfoWatch October 2005
by M.R Lalitha 26 Oct '05

26 Oct '05

Dear LIS-Forum member, The October 2005 issue of InfoWatch is now online, bringing you the details of new Internet sites related to Science and Engineering. You can access the complete issue on the NCSI Web server at the URL : http://www.ncsi.iisc.ernet.in/infowatch/iw.php You will also find earlier issues of InfoWatch here. For your convenience, the table of contents is given below. If you wish to be on the mailing list of InfoWatch to receive the complete issue by e-mail, let us know. Also mention your format preference - html or text. Regards -Lalitha M.R (lalitha(a)ncsi.iisc.ernet.in) ------------------------------------------------------------------------ InfoWatch Tracking Networked Scientific Information Sources and Services (An electronic update service brought to you by NCSI) October 2005 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ In This Issue 1. AllAboutCircuits.com - A complete guide to electric circuits 2. Daily rotation [Headlines from 300+ technology news feed sites] 3. Discoveries by National Science Foundation (NSF) 4. EE-triever Toolbar [A information resource for electrical engineers] 5. FreeRTOS - A Real Time Operating System (RTOS) for small embedded real time systems 6. gEDA [GPL software suite of EDA tools for Unix/Linux] 7. Genetics home reference [National Library of Medicine's web site for information about genetic conditions] 8. GEODISE - Grid Enabled Optimisation and Design Search Engine [A design optimisation tool demonstrator for Computational Fluid Dynamics problems] 9. Isotropy software suite [Software for the analysis of phase transitions in crystalline solids] 10. NASA Astrophysics Data System abstract service [A search engine for each of NASA's bibliographic databases] 11. National Semiconductor - The power of analog 12. Nobel prizes for the year 2005 13. NONLIN - Nonlinear dynamic time history analysis [A Microsoft Windows based application for dynamic analysis of single degree of freedom structural systems developed at FEMA] 14. Phenyx - Mass spectometry portein characterisation software 15. Reactome - A knowledgebase of biological processes 16. Sysinternals freeware [Advanced utilities, technical information and source code related to Windows] 17. Technical compendium by Wildpackets [Essays and papers on technical issues of interest to networking professionals] 18. Virtual Machine Shop (VMS) [A non-profit website for machine tool knowledge and training] 19. Web developers' handbook [A reference tool for cascading style sheets, web development, search engine optimization] 20. World Biodiversity Database (WBD) ------------------------------------------------------------------------ About InfoWatch : InfoWatch is a monthly electronic newsletter, brought out by the National Centre for Science Information (NCSI) Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore - 560 012, INDIA. Information in the newsletter is collected and verified by NCSI staff.The newsletter aims to raise awareness of new sources of information on the Internet, particularly those which are relevant for higher education and research. Some items may be of relevance only to the IISc community.Resources reported here have been taken from various discussion lists and other network tools and no special claims are made for accuracy or originality. Most of the sources cited in the newsletter were checked at the time of publication, however it is possible that some of the resources are no longer available. We welcome comments about the newsletter and suggestions for resources to be featured. Please e-mail your comments to Infowatch editors: Ms. K. Thulasi (thulasi(a)ncsi.iisc.ernet.in) & Ms. M. R. Lalitha (lalitha(a)ncsi.iisc.ernet.in) ------------------------------------------------------------------------

1 0

Re: OA
by Sukhdev Singh 26 Oct '05

26 Oct '05

I am enclosing the contents of the link by Peter Suber on . Which would be useful for anyone new to OA. Hope others won't mind. --Sukhdev Singh, NIC. http://openmed.nic.in http://www.earlham.edu/~peters/fos/brief.htm A Very Brief Introduction to Open Access by Peter Suber Open-access (OA) literature is digital, online, free of charge, and free of most copyright and licensing restrictions. What makes it possible is the internet and the consent of the author or copyright-holder. In most fields, scholarly journals do not pay authors, who can therefore consent to OA without losing revenue. In this respect scholars and scientists are very differently situated from most musicians and movie-makers, and controversies about OA to music and movies do not carry over to research literature. OA is entirely compatible with peer review, and all the major OA initiatives for scientific and scholarly literature insist on its importance. Just as authors of journal articles donate their labor, so do most journal editors and referees participating in peer review. OA literature is not free to produce, even if it is less expensive to produce than conventionally published literature. The question is not whether scholarly literature can be made costless, but whether there are better ways to pay the bills than by charging readers and creating access barriers. Business models for paying the bills depend on how OA is delivered. There are two primary vehicles for delivering OA to research articles: OA journals and OA archives or repositories. * OA archives or repositories do not perform peer review, but simply make their contents freely available to the world. They may contain unrefereed preprints, refereed postprints, or both. Archives may belong to institutions, such as universities and laboratories, or disciplines, such as physics and economics. Authors may archive their preprints without anyone else's permission, and a majority of journals already permit authors to archive their postprints. When archives comply with the metadata harvesting protocol of the Open Archives Initiative, then they are interoperable and users can find their contents without knowing which archives exist, where they are located, or what they contain. There is now open-source software for building and maintaining OAI-compliant archives and worldwide momentum for using it. The costs of an archive are negligible: some server space and a fraction of the time of a technician. * OA journals perform peer review and then make the approved contents freely available to the world. Their expenses consist of peer review, manuscript preparation, and server space. OA journals pay their bills very much the way broadcast television and radio stations do: those with an interest in disseminating the content pay the production costs upfront so that access can be free of charge for everyone with the right equipment. Sometimes this means that journals have a subsidy from the hosting university or professional society. Sometimes it means that journals charge a processing fee on accepted articles, to be paid by the author or the author's sponsor (employer, funding agency). OA journals that charge processing fees usually waive them in cases of economic hardship. OA journals with institutional subsidies tend to charge no processing fees. OA journals can get by on lower subsidies or fees if they have income from other publications, advertising, priced add-ons, or auxiliary services. Some institutions and consortia arrange fee discounts. Some OA publishers waive the fee for all researchers affiliated with institutions that have purchased an annual membership. There's a lot of room for creativity in finding ways to pay the costs of a peer-reviewed OA journal, and we're far from having exhausted our cleverness and imagination. For a longer introduction, with live links for further reading, see my Open Access Overview, http://www.earlham.edu/~peters/fos/overview.htm. First put online December 29, 2004. This introduction is also available in Bangla, Catalan, Czech, Dutch, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Portuguese, Slovenian, Spanish and Ukrainian. I welcome other translations. Peter Suber Open Access Project Director, Public Knowledge Research Professor of Philosophy, Earlham College Senior Researcher, SPARC peters(a)earlham.edu Copyright (c) 2004-2005, Peter Suber. This is an open-access document. > From: "Rajendra Thaty" <pitam97(a)rediffmail.com> > Subject: [LIS-Forum] OA > To: lis-forum(a)ncsi.iisc.ernet.in, oa-india(a)dgroups.org, > c3net(a)dgroups.org > Message-ID: <20051025071052.12333.qmail(a)webmail52.rediffmail.com> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" > > > Dear All, > > Can anybody tell me what is Open Access Initiative and in what way it is better that the traditional journal literature? What are the various OAI models in India and abroad? Which one is the best? I may sound foolish but someone could please help me out . > > > Regards, > > Rajendra > > > Rajendra Kumar Thaty > Librarian > Samabalpur University Central Library > Jyoti Vihar, Burla, > Sambalpur, Orissa > PIN 768019 > Telephone# 0663-2430548 (O) > 98610-47084 (Mob)

1 0

OpenOffice Version 2.0 Now available
by Sukhdev Singh 26 Oct '05

26 Oct '05

OpenOffice.org is a multiplatform and multilingual office suite and an open-source project. Compatible with all other major office suites, the product is free to download, use, and distribute. Version 2.0 has been recently released With new features, advanced XML capabilities and native support for the OASIS Standard OpenDocument format. Some of the new features are: Open Standards XML File Format (OASIS OpenDocument) New Multi-pane View New CustomShapes More Slide Transitions and Animation Effect Enhanced PDF Export New enhanced Database Frontend Mail Merge Wizard Enhanced Word Count Feature Support for Nested Tables Digital Signatures Support XForms Support WordPerfect Filters It can be downloaded from: http://download.openoffice.org/index.html --Sukhdev Singh, NIC. http://openmed.nic.in

1 0

Information required
by kshema prakash 25 Oct '05

25 Oct '05

Apologies for cross postings Dear Professional Colleagues, I require information about cd servers or equivalent technology. If we wish to make the CD and DVD collection of our library centrally accessible to the users, is there any facility available like CD/DVD stakka or CD Towers etc., that are presently used by some university libraries? If so, kindly guide me with appropriate information. Thanks Kshema Prakash Kshema Prakash Faculty Librarian -Gr I DEI Central Library Dayalbagh Educational Institute Dayalbagh, Agra 282 005 9897190604, 3098227 --------------------------------- Yahoo! India Matrimony: Find your partner now. Apologies for cross postings Dear Professional Colleagues, I require information about cd servers or equivalent technology. If we wish to make the CD and DVD collection of our library centrally accessible to the users, is there any facility available like CD/DVD stakka or CD Towers etc., that are presently used by some university libraries? If so, kindly guide me with appropriate information. Thanks Kshema Prakash Kshema Prakash Faculty Librarian -Gr I DEI Central Library Dayalbagh Educational Institute Dayalbagh, Agra 282 005 9897190604, 3098227 http://yahoo.shaadi.com Yahoo! India Matrimony </a href>: Find your partner now.

1 0