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25th June 2009
No.280
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About FreePint
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FreePint publishes newsletters, websites, magazines and resources for the information industry. The FreePint Family of publications publishes practical tips, product reviews, expert tips, research collections and hands-on tools to support information work of all kinds. The FreePint Bar provides a Q&A forum for getting your research questions answered and building a network of peers worldwide.
This twice-monthly free FreePint Newsletter serves as a guide to the latest content, including discussion at the Bar, tips articles, vacancies, professional development events, product reviews, editorial commentary and more. Subscribing is free and connects you with the information community around the world. Subscribe today.
The latest announcements, including publication contents, can always be found at the FreePint Feed. Subscribe to RSS for the FreePint Feed for fastest updates.
Please share FreePint with others by forwarding this newsletter.
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Editorial
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By Sara Waddington
 FreePint had a good time at SLA 2009 - thanks to the contributors, subscribers, customers and fans who took the time to stop by our table and share their impressions. We love hearing what you think of events, so don't miss the opportunity to contribute your thoughts to the FreePint SLA 2009 Special Report. You'll get a free copy of the full report upon publication in July.
 Finding text-only information will no longer suffice in organisations striving to maintain a competitive edge in the marketplace. Useful business information lies in speeches, product demonstrations, interviews, factory images, product diagrams, photographs and so much more. Cindy Shamel provides a real-life comparison of the best video and audio search tools available in her article 'Finding Videos, Audio and Images on the Web: Search Tools'.
Whether working within government or for-profit organisations, information service departments will be expected to show how they add value to the organisation. With global economic contraction, comes even more pressure to quantify the value that info pros provide. Dennie Heye describes different aspects of 'perceived value' and how to show ROI to management in his article 'Information Services Add Value: Measuring and Proving It'.
FUMSI subscribers can also now enjoy the latest FUMSI 'Folio on Adding Value'. This Folio includes six expert-written articles providing tips and techniques for adding value to information work products, framed with commentary from Tim Buckley Owen, FUMSI's Contributing Editor for the Use practice area.
FUMSI subscribers also received a copy of the FUMSI Report: Survey on Adding Value last month. This month's survey results on intranet management will be out shortly, but there's still time to add your input to our next survey, on social media in the enterprise. This brief survey will take you fewer than 5 minutes to complete. If you provide a valid email address, you'll receive a free copy of the results upon publication in July.
Sara Waddington
Senior Managing Editor
FreePint
FreePint is a Registered Trademark of Free Pint Limited (R) 1997-2009
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 Develop Your Strengths with Quantum2
For a wide array of hands-on training and resource materials, turn to Quantum2, an innovative skills development programme provided *free* by Dialog. The programme helps information professionals:
- Expand your services through strategic and business competencies
- Improve flow of information in your organisation
- Gain visibility and build value for your work
Discover best practices, *plus* the know-how to implement them.
Free monthly newsletter and further information at: http://quantum.dialog.com/
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My Favourite Tipples
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By Larry Payne
- Zoho is a comprehensive suite of web-based applications for small businesses. It offers free business programs such as word processing and presentation software/spreadsheets as well as web conferencing, notebooks, wikis and online word processors etc. Very useful for pros on the go....
- Pando is free software that allows you to download, stream and share large media files quickly and easily. You can e-mail/send links and large file attachments as well as initiate video transfers. Pando Publisher lets you stream full-screen HD video from your site.
- I'm a bit of a history buff so I use the Best of History Web Sites portal to access annotated links to over 1000 history web sites.
- Need comparative data/statistics on countries? Use the NationMaster central data source to graphically compare nations. You can generate maps and graphs on all kinds of statistics.
- Planning a trip? The Time Out Worldwide website offers lots of information on cities around the world, including hotels, restaurants, arts and entertainment.
Larry Payne is a former sales and advertising executive who has worked with a variety of trade print and electronic media in a range of fields.
Would you like to add your Favourite Tipples suggestions for the FreePint Newsletter or write an article for FUMSI (Find, Use, Manage or Share Information?).
If so, please contact Sara Waddington at sara.waddington@freepint.com with your ideas or visit <http://web.freepint.com/go/family/contribute>.
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Share Your Social Life - Participate in Our Survey
Social Media in the Enterprise
Take 5 minutes to complete our online survey on how you use social media at work. Free copy of the full report for anyone who participates.
Learn how your peers:
- Use social networking sites and tools for business
- Prioritise online and offline networking options
- Rate their organisations in terms of social media savvy
Complete the survey now »
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FreePint Bar
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By Sara Waddington
Recommendations for setting up as a freelance researcher, courses to produce value-added reports, SLA 2009 Special Report, memory systems and social media reports are hot topics on the Bar at the moment. See a round-up of recent conversations below and click through to join the discussion. Post your research dilemmas to the FreePint Bar »
FreePint Bar
- A Bar member, whose main areas of expertise are competitor/market intelligence, is due to be made redundant shortly and is thinking about setting up as a freelance researcher. He would appreciate advice, hints and tips from the Bar on doing this.
- The FreePint team has had a great time meeting with subscribers, customers, sponsors, contributors and fans at SLA 2009 in Washington, D.C. What's been the best session so far? What new ideas are you bringing home? Share your insights here, or contribute them to our SLA 2009 Special Report. Every contributor gets a free copy of the full report upon publication.
- One 'Pinter would appreciate recommendations on available courses on how to write value added reports. Does anyone know of any such course or a course provider?
- Another member would value suggestions from the Bar on systems for memorising and understanding long text eg. books, speeches, essays, chapters etc.
- In July, FUMSI will be publishing a report to help organisations plan, implement and measure their use of social media. As part of that project, we invite you to participate in a brief online survey about how you and your organisation use social media. Take the 5-minute survey. We'll send a copy of the survey report to anyone who completes the survey and provides a valid email address.
Visit the FreePint Bar »
FreePint Feed
The FreePint Feed keeps you up to date on what's new across all the sites in the FreePint Family.
Visit the FreePint Feed »
Sara Waddington is Senior Managing Editor of FreePint. She can be contacted at sara.waddington@freepint.com
The FreePint Bar is where you can get free help with your tricky research questions.
Subscribe to the free FreePint Digest to receive a weekly update of the latest Bar discussion, plus FreePint Feed announcements.
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FUMSI Features
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 FUMSI publishes articles, tools, and a monthly magazine, to give you practical help with information skills.
Visit http://www.fumsi.com/
However you Find, Use, Manage or Share Information, you'll find something in FUMSI to help.
Become a fan of FUMSI on Facebook »
We add new articles to the FUMSI database in each practice area every month, which are free to read, browse, email, print or save. Here are the most recent additions:
Finding Videos, Audio and Images on the Web: Search Tools
 By Cindy Shamel
FUMSI: Find
Text-based information is fast ceding ground to audio and video content in the enterprise, and traditional search engines can't always keep up. Cindy Shamel provides a real-life comparison of the best video and audio search tools available, along with some that are just for fun (for now anyway!)
WHAT'S INSIDE: 'The goal was to find an image of a particular aircraft known to be in development. The manufacturer had multiple reasons for keeping the design under wraps, so there was clearly nothing on the website, in journals, magazines, or trade publications. Image searching with multiple specialised search engines lead to an aerial shot captured during a test flight. Mission accomplished.'
Read, print, save or forward this article now »
Information Services Add Value: Measuring and Proving It
 By Dennie Heye
FUMSI: Use
Even when the economy is booming, information professionals are called to prove their value over 'DIY' research on the Internet. But, with global economic contraction, comes even more pressure to quantify the value that info pros provide. Dennie Heye describes different aspects of 'perceived value' and how to show ROI to management.
WHAT'S INSIDE: 'Branding is a combination of different elements: name, logo, slogan and consistent style. Think about the branding of Porsche; it associates itself with positive concepts like luxury, status and technical perfection. It boosts that brand by having a unique style of advertising where it uses celebrities and design. With which concepts is your department associated?'
Read, print, save or forward this article now »
Also recently added to the FUMSI database:
Browse all FUMSI articles »
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Discover Nexis®Direct
LexisNexis® offers world-class content, information and workflow solutions for professionals in the legal, risk management, corporate, government, accounting and academic markets - to make their jobs faster, easier and more productive.
Nexis, our comprehensive news and business information service and Nexis®Direct, our new tool for business users, provide quick access to premium content covering news, companies, executives and industries worldwide.
To find out more, visit our website or call us on 020 7400 2984.
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VIP Features
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VIP publishes in-depth, unbiased reviews of business information products. If you purchase or use premium information resources, make VIP part of your professional reading every month »
 VIP Magazine No. 67 includes:
- A special two-page section called VIP Horizon. Based on conversations with subscribers, we are experimenting with ways to help you communicate internally around issues and challenges in information work. We invite VIP subscribers to extract the VIP Horizon pages, add your notes, and share them freely throughout their *entire* organisation, regardless of their distribution level.
- Success Story: Neil Infield of the British Library's Business & IP
Centre talks to VIP's Tim Buckley Owen about the Centre's remarkable achievements over the last three years.
- New Media: Twitter and alternative social sites are replacing traditional ways of finding information on the Internet. Guest editor Malcolm Coles explains how to get the best out of them.
- Close-Up: Highlights from Joanna Ptolomey's comparative review of two leading citation databases, Scopus and Web of Science; and of Jonathan Gordon-Till's close look at Cision Social Media, which allows you to track and analyse social networking sites.
- Under Pressure: The days of predominantly print publishers regarding their websites as profile raising loss leaders seem to be dying fast. VIP reports on the turmoil in the business-to-business sector, and rounds up the latest industry and product news.
In the next VIP: We review a recent addition to the Alacra suite of
products, Alacra Pulse, as well as RightTrade.
Purchase VIP Magazine No. 67 from the VIP Website, or start your subscription now.
VIP LiveWire
VIP contributing editors comment daily on what's happening in the industry.
Visit the LiveWire for their insights, and subscribe to the free VIP Wires Weekly for regular alerts.
VIP Wires Weekly is generously sponsored by LexisNexis.
Recent posts:
- For those of us in London the British Library Business and Intellectual Property Centre is an invaluable resource for market reports and trade publications as well as for patent information.........
Direct link to posting: http://www.vivavip.com/go/e20859
- As a due diligence researcher I am always to eager to learn about sources for hard-to-find information. Therefore, it was with interest that I read about the addition of Arabia Inform.........
Direct link to posting: http://www.vivavip.com/go/e20815
- A trend for corporations to do away with their libraries and information professionals is just one of the many threats facing the Big Three.........
Direct link to posting: http://www.vivavip.com/go/e20727
VIP
LiveWire »
VIP Wire
Information-related product and news announcements. Post your
releases and receive news FREE.
VIP Wire »
VIP - Subscribe
and Back Issues
Start a trial subscription today for only £80 for three months. Visit http://web.vivavip.com/go/shop/volume/trial/ to start your trial. You can also purchase back-issues of VIP from the VIP Archive.
VIP Archive »
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June Special: 15% Off Any Annual VIP Subscription
We offered SLA attendees a special price on VIP. To continue SLA's centennial celebration, we're extending the 15% off offer.
Visit http://digbig.com/4yyge and download the offline form to purchase at these special prices through 30 June 2009:
- VIP Professional (single site): £242.25 (regularly £285)
- VIP Multisite (up to 5 locations): £607.75 (regularly £715)
- VIP Enterprise (global locations): £1,347.75 (regularly £1,585)
Prices do not include VAT where applicable.
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Jinfo - Jobs and Events in Information
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 Jinfo is the central location for supporting your information career. The Jinfo Jobs database lists vacancies, and the Jinfo Events database lists workshops, conferences, training, webinars and other professional development opportunities.
Start a free subscription to receive the weekly Jinfo Update, with a complete list of the latest vacancies and events, or search the databases at any time (free).
Jinfo Jobs in the FreePint Newsletter are supported through our partnership with Quantum2, an innovative skills development programme offered by Dialog. Learn more at <http://quantum.dialog.com/>.
Jinfo Jobs:
Here is a selection of the latest featured vacancies in the Jinfo database:
- Compliance Officer - Legal
Legal Anti - money laundering and compliance assistant required by top City Law Practice. Training provided.
Recruiter: Glen Recruitment
Country: United Kingdom
- Graduate Trainee
Excellent opportunity for a post graduate or as a prelude to post graduate study in information services for 12 months fixed term.
Recruiter: Weekes Gray Recruitment
Country: United Kingdom
- Part Time Libraries Liaison Manager
Healthcare organisation in Scotland seeks part time Libraries Liaison Manager on one year contract to plan & implement training & development £26-38000
Recruiter: Sue Hill Recruitment and Services Limited
Country: United Kingdom
- Digital / E-Communications Specialist
A government agency require an experienced Digital/ E-Communications specialist consultant to oversee...
Recruiter: TFPL
Country: United Kingdom
- GLP Archivist Pfizer Records Service Centre
The role of the Pfizer Records Service Centre (PRSC) GLP Archivist will be to assure that all archived preclinical records...
Recruiter: Pfizer Global Research and Developement
Country: United Kingdom
- Information Assistant
We currently have an opportunity for an enthusiastic team player with a commitment to information work/librarianship.
Recruiter: The King's Fund
Country: United Kingdom
Browse all Jinfo
Jobs »
Jinfo Events:
Here is a selection of the latest featured events in the Jinfo database:
Browse all Jinfo
Events »
Jinfo - the best place for information-related job vacancies and professional development opportunities.
- RECRUITING?
- Advertise a vacancy for just GBP 195
- 10% discount for agencies
- 50% discount for registered charities
- RUNNING AN EVENT?
List it on Jinfo to reach a targeted audience seeking professional development opportunities
- Get started at <http://web.jinfo.com/events/load/>
- Partner events listed for free; enquire at <support@jinfo.com>.
Find out more today at <http://www.jinfo.com/>
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| Highlights from ResourceShelf and DocuTicker
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Gold
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A look back at what the FreePint Newsletter covered at this time in previous years:
- FreePint No. 255, 19th June 2008. "Convenience Trumps Quality: How Digital Natives Use Information" and "Library and Information Show 2008: Information Literacy is Key"
- FreePint No. 232, 28th June 2007. "Beyond Online: In-Depth Report from SLA" and "SLA Special Report: Your Wish Was Our Command"
- FreePint No. 208, 22nd June 2006. "The Rise of DocuTicker: So Many Reports, So Little Time" and "Technology and Industrial Innovation Resources on the Web"
- FreePint No. 184, 16th June 2005. "Two Views of the SLA Conference, Toronto, June 2005" and "Setting Up as an Independent Consultant"
- FreePint No. 161, 17th June 2004. "The Impact of the US Sarbanes-Oxley Act on Records Management World Wide" and "RSS: Less hype, more action"
- FreePint No. 139, 26th June 2003. "Taxation Law Resources Online - Tax Doesn't Have to be Taxing" and "Searching Free Trade Mark Databases on the Web"
- FreePint No. 115, 27th June 2002. "RSI and the Library and Information Science Professional"
- FreePint No. 90, 21st June 2001. "Do you Google?" and "Electronic Health Information: A boon and a curse!"
- FreePint No. 65, 22nd June 2000. "Internet Intelligence - analysing web-sites for competitive intelligence" and "WAP Technology and Services"
- FreePint No. 41, 24th June 1999. "Answering back" and "Finding Links to the Past: archaeological resources on the Web"
- FreePint No. 17, 25th June 1998. "Finding information products and services via the Net" and "Bioscience Information on the Internet"
FreePint Newsletter Archive »
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Forthcoming Articles - Provisional
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FUMSI
- Hosted Information Services
- Peer-to-Peer Sharing
- Making Your Intranet Usable
- Digital Copyright
VIP
- Cision Social Media review
- Comparative review of Scopus and Web of Science
If you have a suggestion for an article topic, or would like to write, then please contact FreePint's Editor Sara Waddington at <sara.waddington@freepint.com> or read the notes for authors at <http://web.freepint.com/go/family/contribute/>
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Contact Information
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Address:
Free Pint Limited
4-6 Station Approach Ashford, Middlesex TW15 2QN, United Kingdom
Telephone:
UK: 0870 141 7474 Int: +44 870 141 7474
Directions and maps: <http://www.freepint.com/contact.htm>
Contributors to this issue:
Sara Waddington (Senior Managing Editor, FreePint), Larry Payne, Cynthia Shamel, Dennie Heye, Nancy Davis Kho (Copyeditor), Robin Neidorf (General Manager), William Hann (Publisher), Douglas Brown (Proofreader).
Advertisers/Sponsors:
Quantum2 from Dialog, LexisNexis, Sue Hill Recruitment and Services Limited, Glen Recruitment, TFPL, Weekes Gray Recruitment, Pfizer Global Research and Developement, The King's Fund.
(c) Free Pint Limited 1997-2009 <http://www.freepint.com/>
Technology by Willco <http://www.Willco.com/>
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Please note: FreePint (ISSN 1460-7239) is a registered trademark of, and published by, Free Pint Limited. The publishers will NEVER make the subscriber list available to any other company or organisation.
The opinions, advice, products and services offered herein are the sole responsibility of the contributors. Whilst all reasonable care has been taken to ensure the accuracy of the publication, the publishers cannot accept responsibility for any errors or omissions.
This publication may be freely copied and/or distributed in its entirety. However, individual sections MAY NOT be copied and/or distributed without the prior written agreement of the publishers. Write to Robin Neidorf, General Manager, <robin.neidorf@freepint.com> for more details. Product names used in FreePint are for identification purposes only, and may be trademarks of their respective owners. FreePint disclaims any and all rights in those marks. All rights reserved.
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