July 2001

A gaggle of web related stories I\’ve collected and not used so far this week.


The digital divide: Ignore it at our own risk is a CNet story by who says the web is not a luxury item but is the key that opens the door to the knowledge economy, if we fail to provide access we essentially deny them an opportunity to participate in the new economy of the 21st century.


The NYTimes reports Government Sites for Children Aren\’t the Coolest, they basically stink.


Taming the Wild, Wild Web is a pathetic LA Times story that says corporations contend the Internet\’s freewheeling design kills moneymaking opportunities, so some idiots want more control so they can make more money, because they can\’t seem to figure out how to now.


Reps Warn Parents About Porn and Mom: ISP Should Pay for Kid Porn are two Wired stories on the web/porn thing.

Massachusetts libraries are getting more than $2.4 million in federal funds to upgrade their IT and improve accessibility:

The state Board of Library Commissioners is dispensing the federal money to more than 80 public, academic, school, regional and special libraries across the state. The money will fund such projects as digitizing historical resources, upgrading network systems and increasing access for people with disabilities. The money comes from the national Institute of Museum and Library Services, which is mandated under the 1996 Federal Library Services and Technology Act to promote access to learning and information resources for all types of libraries and for people of all ages.

(More from Federal Computer Week.)

I\’m not sure if it has an application in the library world, but, the \’ATM for books\’ is eight feet long, 38 inches wide, it can produce a book in 12 minutes, and costs $82,000. The MTI PerfectBook-080 machine could change book stores as we know them. Instead of allowing books to go out of print, you can store them as digital files and publish them \”on demand\” in bookstores, while customers wait, using self-contained book printers.


Does something like this have a place in a library?

Digital Mass Has The Story

I seem to have collected quite a few DMCA related stories.


The Copyright Cops Go Too Far from Business 2.0 says the DMCA still has some big problems, but handcuffs aren\’t the answer. Wired Says The DMCA continues to enjoy remarkably broad support on Capitol Hill. No bill has yet been introduced in Congress to amend the DMCA for one simple reason: Official Washington loves the law precisely as much as hackers and programmers despise it. A Small Glimmer of Hope seems to be Rep. Rick Boucher, his office will draft a bill to be introduced later this year.


Linux Planet is calling it Digital Millennium Rape Act.


If you aren\’t familiar with the DMCA, read it and weep.

\”Lie of the Land: The Secret Life of Maps\”, an exhibit investigating how maps have been used distort or justify our perceptions of the world, has just opened at the British Library:

Some maps deliberately set out to deceive. Many show a selective view and reflect only the interests of the people who made them. Stunning maps from ancient to modern reveal a secret world. In every case there is more than meets the eye. As well as over 100 maps and other exhibits from the British Library\’s superlative collections, there are interactive screens and events to help you explore the themes further . . .

Highlights from the exhibit are available online.

Bob Cox sent along This Washington Post Story on A 1603 Painting in Toronto Purports to Show the Young William Shakespeare, if they prove to be right, the picture may be the only one of him painted while he was still alive.

The owner says the portrait was painted by an ancestor named John Sanders, who may have been an actor in a theatrical company owned by Shakespeare.

\”It looks to be quite conceivably a 1603 painting of someone. Whether it is Shakespeare, we won\’t be able to answer,\” says Christina Corsiglia, curator of European art of the Art Gallery of Ontario. \”We don\’t know what he ultimately looked like.\”

Time has this article on the conflict between publishers and libraries over issues of copyright in the electronic age. Not an in-depth look, but an interesting overview all the same.

The International Herald Tribune today has this review of the book \”Libraries in the Ancient World\” by Lionel Casson. It includes a look at the history of the original library of Alexandria as well as descriptions of \”curses invoked by different cultures to protect their libraries from thieves\”. Now, that might be quite useful!

Something to liven up your afternoon – a short and funny parody of \”Cops\” from The Cartoon Network featuring a librarian on patrol to bust folks with overdue books!

Scroll to the bottom and click on the link labeled \”Overdue.\” Flash software is required to view the cartoons.

Here\’s The Latest Link.

John Guscott writes \”Just wanted to let you know that the NPR show The Connection had
a program called \”The Future of the Public Library\” on air last week.
The show is Archived.

The guests were Catherine Dibbell, Director of Public Services from
Boston Public Library, Suzie Neubauer from the Robbins Library in
Arlington MA and myself. The show focused on what libraries are doing
today in the wake of increasing competition from mega-bookstores and the
Internet. Not exactly news to librarians, but since it was a call-in show,
it\’s interesting to hear the public\’s take on this issue.\”