“OCLC has announced a new OCLC Minority Librarian Fellowship program designed to provide a unique opportunity for aspiring library professionals from historically underrepresented groups. The 12-month program offers the selected Fellow two 90-day assignments within specific divisions of OCLC, and one six-month assignment with a specific operating unit within the OCLC organization. Applications will be accepted between July 15 and August 29..”
.Georgia State: Online course reserves are fair use
I”n a closely watched copyright-infringement lawsuit, Georgia State University fired back at its accusers, three academic publishers who say the institution invites students to illegally download and print readings from thousands of works. The university asserts that its online distribution of course material is permitted under copyright law’s fair-use exemption. Georgia State made its case in papers filed June 24 in U.S. District Court in Atlanta…”
.Judge throws out Indiana harmful-to-minors law
“A federal court struck down a law July 1 that would have required sellers of sexually explicit materials to register with the state, marking a victory for retailers and First Amendment advocates. U.S. District Judge Sarah Evans Barker ruled that House Enrolled Act 1042, passed by the Indiana General Assembly earlier this year, burdens First Amendment rights and is unconstitutionally vague and overly broad. The law would have taken effect July 1….”
Indianapolis Star, July 1 Chronicle of Higher Education, June 27.
Flash files are now searchable
“For most people on the Web, if Google or Yahoo cannot find something, it doesn’t exist. That has been one of the biggest drawbacks to creating a website or application that displays itself as a Flash (SWF) file. Search engines could see the file, but they could not see what was in it. Until now. Adobe has teamed up with Google and Yahoo to devise a way for the search engines to read Flash files and index all of the information they contain….”
Washington Post, July 1
Readex to create world newspaper archive
“Digital publisher Readex and the Center for Research Libraries in Chicago announced June 26 that they will create the world’s largest, fully searchable digital archive of international newspapers. The resource will first offer Latin American newspapers published between 1805 and 1922 in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Cuba, Guatemala, Mexico, Peru, Venezuela, and other countries. Further series will focus on historical newspapers published in Africa and South Asia….”
New jobs: Subject experts need not apply
“Todd Gilman writes: ‘Many recent job postings for humanities librarians, reference librarians, or those specializing in research education do not list subject expertise as a requirement. In place of subject expertise, those job postings require relevant library experience (variously defined) and, more often than not, technology skills, neither of which, to my mind, makes up for a lack of advanced education in a particular discipline. In a number of recent hires, Ph.D.’s and M.A.’s have been passed over in favor of candidates straight out of library school whose only previous degree was a bachelor’s.’..”.
Chronicle of Higher Education, July 1 Readex, June 26
All a Twitter: Want to try microblogging?
“Ellyssa Kroski writes: ‘While sitting before a presentation at a recent library conference, I was able to broadcast my whereabouts, my mood, and my desire to connect with friends for dinner to over 150 conference attendees simultaneously, using my mobile phone. I managed this feat of hyperconnectivity through a service called Twitter, which enables social butterflies like myself to instantly publish brief messages to a network of contacts.’…”
School Library Journal, July 1
Book drive for Iraq
“Christopher Hitchens writes: ‘In the northern Iraqi city of Sulaymaniyah, the American University of Iraq has just opened its doors, and it is appealing for people to donate books. The U.S. Congress has pledged more than $10 million to the project, as has the Kurdish Regional Government. Thomas Cushman, professor of sociology at Wellesley College, tells me that the American University attaches special importance to the establishment of a library in English.’…”
Slate, June 30
Click here to see entire July 2, 3008 Issue of this e-newsletter
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Posting Submitted by Philip Y. Blue, Senior Law Librarian New York Supreme Court Criminal Term Library.