February 2003

Overture Makes Another Move to challenge its chief rival Google by agreeing to buy the Web search unit of Norway-based Fast Search and Transfer for as much as $100 million — its second acquisition in a week.

Overture said last week it would buy search pioneer AltaVista for $140 million. Overture said it hopes eventually to combine the three technologies to fine-tune Internet searching for businesses and Web surfers.

Jen Young points us to This NYTimes Story all the archaeological sites in Iraq.

They say 10,000 have been identified, but only a fraction have been explored. Any of them could change what we know about human history, as past excavations have done. Some have already revealed the world’s earliest known villages and cities and the first examples of writing.

Bob Cox noticed a Guardian Article on Book of the Year prize which went to Michael Moore’s Stupid White Men.

The ceremony, nicknamed The Nibbies because of the large gold pen nibs which are its only prizes, has tended to be seen as a back-slapping rite at which the industry rewards authors of its highest selling titles.

But this year’s organisers, the magazine Publishing News, introduced an element of public voting into the judging by distributing more than 100,000 leaflets in bookshops.

The Sun-Sentinel Says Gov. Jeb Bush, who has proclaimed reading a top priority, apparently is moving ahead with plans to break up the 150-year-old State Library and move much of the massive collection from the state capital to a private university in South Florida as a budget cutting move.

“I’m very angry,” said Marti Boles, a semi-retired medical equipment researcher from Southwest Ranches. “They’re going to all get destroyed in the humidity down here. We’ve got mold in all the schools.”

A lawyer for Google has asked the creator of the language reference site The Word Spy to remove or change a page that documents the use of the word \’google\’.

Read the lawyer\’s letter and tell us what you think. Is Xerox any less a brand name because the Oxford English Dictionary notes that people have been using it as a verb for more than 30 years?

\”Chastity Comstock\” sent over this blurb from drewclark.com as part of an article [Subscription Required] from National Journal’s Technology Daily

\”Officials with companies that make Internet filters argued on Thursday that the Library of Congress\’ Copyright Office should not let researchers decrypt the lists of pornographic and other Web sites blocked by the companies\’ filters.
In response to a series of comments filed in a Copyright Office rulemaking on digital copyright law, the filtering firms N2H2, Bsafe Online and 8e6 Technologies argued that academic researchers do not need the ability to decrypt such lists in order to assess which sites are blocked.\”

Someone passed along This WorldMag Article that wonders…Does WORLD belong on the periodical shelves of public libraries and the libraries of public universities?

It seems Joel Belz is having some trouble getting WORLD into his local library, and someone else had the same trouble at the state university where she is an alumna.

“Does WORLD belong on the periodical shelves of public libraries and the libraries of public universities? That is, of course, not my job to determine. But just because these institutions are public, it seems altogether appropriate to ask those in charge to make public what their policies and criteria are for making such decisions.“

David Goldman writes \”For all those librarians public, corporate, legal and university who still rely on Microsoft products I highly recommend reading this Business Week article. BTW the software which runs kfsource.com(postnuke.com) is free…yes free. So the next time someone tries to sell your library a web page package upgrade for only $1000.00 or more (not including the cost of programming in coldfusion) think about running postnuke on a Linux server. Doing this will surely make your budget administrator as well as your patrons smile.\”

I\’ll also point out that LISNews runs on PHPSlash which is what PostNuke based their code on. As usual, check out OSS4Lib and /usr/lib/info for lots of good library open source stuff. The BusinessWeek article is a nice look at the history of Linux, not exactly library stuff, but it\’s a nice start for those who don\’t know the story.

Bob Cox shares This American Prospect Story that says the “sedate shushers of your childhood” have stepped into the political arena, and they’ve emerged as one of the most vital and effective progressive forces in the country.

They also point out librarians, and their professional governing body, the American Library Association (ALA), have been behind some of the most significant civil-liberties battles in the country.

“But no matter how shrewd their lobbying efforts, librarians may soon find that entering the political fray on such hotly contested issues comes with substantial costs. As states face budget crises, many libraries are staring down massive cuts — even branch closings — and it’s at times like these when it pays to have politicians in your corner. The ALA has made its share of enemies, and last year a federal bill that would have doubled library spending failed to make it to a floor vote.“

Gary D. Price spotted a Neat Article on Nancy Nitzberg a book conservator, skilled in the art of repairing the torn pages, broken bindings, and frayed leather covers of old books.

Demand for conservators’ skills is growing, Frank Mowery, head of conservation at the Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington, said. “People are realizing that if you have something in your possession – a family heirloom, a work of art – it has to be maintained in good condition to retain its value, and these things are getting more and more valuable,” he said.