Newsletter Archive

Newsletter No. 282


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FreePint 23rd July 2009
No.282
 Contents

Editorial
By Sara Waddington

My Favourite Tipples
By Abbe Karavitis

FreePint Bar

FUMSI Features

  • Information in the Cloud: 10-Point Check List for Choosing a Hosted Provider
  • Copyright and Content: Sharing in a Digital Age

VIP Features

  • Intriguing Results
  • Close-Up
  • Recent postings to the LiveWire

Jinfo - Jobs and Events

Jobs in Information:

  • Information Resources Coordinator
  • Information Officer - VLE
  • Knowledge Exchange Co-ordinator
  • Information Specialists - Unit Head
  • Legal Information Officer - 12 month contract

Events in Information:

  • Scenario Planning for the Information Centre
  • Strategic Planning for the Information Center
  • Competitive Intelligence Basics Workshop
  • Higher Education Academy Subject Centre for Information and Computer Science's 2009 Annual Conference

Highlights from ResourceShelf and DocuTicker

Gold and Forthcoming Articles

Contact Information



 About FreePint

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.


 Editorial

By Sara Waddington

Sara WaddingtonThanks to the entire FreePint team for helping to create an excellent experience at SLA 2009. Photos can be found on the FUMSI Facebook page - why not share some of your own SLA photos? Don't forget to request your copy of FreePint's SLA 2009 Special Report. The report, containing comments from those who attended and those who followed from afar, will be published shortly.

VIP has also just published the VIP Report: Survey on Outsourcing. The report documents perspectives, opinions and concerns of information professionals regarding the outsourcing of information services. The report can be purchased through the VIP shop; VIP subscribers receive the report at no additional charge as part of their subscription.

Information in the CloudIn this issue of the FreePint newsletter, Jennifer Smith explains, in her article 'Information in the Cloud: 10-Point Check List for Choosing a Hosted Provider', why cheap hosting is best avoided. Your information is a critical asset and you need to ensure it is hosted by a company with the resources to store it securely. For many companies, hosting provides a more secure and less hassle alternative to maintaining their own hosting infrastructure. Use Jennifer's checklist for reassurance in evaluating your provider.

Also in this issue, Martin Belam sits down with Mark Bide, Project Director for ACAP (a protocol to allow machines to automatically understand the terms and conditions of content re-use over the Internet) to talk about how it can underpin the legal use of protected data assets - read his interview in 'Copyright and Content: Sharing in a Digital Age'.

Don't forget that FUMSI has published the results of its survey on opinions and perspectives of intranet managers. Thanks to all who participated to help make the FUMSI Report: Survey on Intranet Management so successful. Purchase the report to learn more about how info pros rate their organisations for intranet strategy, who's running intranet budgets and staff and challenges identified by info pros in making the most of their intranets. The report is included in FUMSI subscriptions and with any purchase of the FUMSI Report: Folio on Intranet Management, which provides six practical FUMSI articles on approaches to adding value, plus our editor's commentary and recommendations.

All FUMSI Reports are included in the cost of a FUMSI subscription or can be purchased separately.

Sara Waddington
Senior Managing Editor
FreePint


FreePint is a Registered Trademark of Free Pint Limited (R) 1997-2009

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  • 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.
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 My Favourite Tipples

By Abbe Karavitis

  • The Smarta network has been set up for business start-ups and entrepreneurs and covers everything from business tools to business plans, wikis, fora and advice on research, marketing and business set-up.

  • I find The Business Traveller is a great one-stop shop for travel. It offers news, features, city guides, deals on hotel stays, flights, holidays etc., a facility to plan and book flights, choose loyalty schemes and a host of other services for the business traveller.

  • Billed as 'public services all in one place', Directgov is the gateway to UK government information and services (formerly UK online). Information services range from crime, education, employment and environment to health, home, money/pensions, motoring and travel/transport.

  • If you're looking for daily international article links on the arts as well as links to numerous art blogs, then the Arts Journal is a useful site. You can also find information on literature, media and art history.

  • The UK Parliament's website is an intriguing mix of the latest news from the House of Commons and the House of Lords as well as links to the latest Parliamentary research (on a variety of topics), committees and reports, bills and legislation. It also features alphabetical lists of MPs, Lords and constituencies in the UK.

Abbe Karavitis has a degree in law/business studies with marketing and runs an estate agency business.


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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City University London

School of Informatics
http://www.soi.city.ac.uk/

With a postgraduate degree, you can earn up to 37% more than your colleagues who only have an undergraduate degree
(The Guardian, 17 Jan 2009)

Join our Master's courses in:

  • Information Science
  • Library Science
  • Information Management in the Cultural Sector

Our graduates find employment in library and information management, information research and analysis, resource description and information architecture.

Start in September 2009; begin your application now »

Also available: short courses for professional development
Past topics include Digital Forensics, Mobile Search, and Data Visualisation

Call us on +44 (0)20 7040 0248 or visit http://www.soi.city.ac.uk/.

Trial FUMSI

Trial FUMSI - only £39 for three months

Order online »

For the cost of a single FUMSI report, you can get FUMSI for three months and share with every location of your organisation to gauge its value.

Take a no-obligation trial today and get:

  • July: FUMSI Report: Folio and Survey on Social Media in the Enterprise

  • August: FUMSI Report: Folio and Survey on Alternative Search.

Plus the monthly FUMSI Magazine and internal reuse of all materials -- intranet, internal newsletter, custom training packets...

Request sample materials, or order online today.

 FreePint Bar

By Sara Waddington

Sara WaddingtonECM and EDRMS software information, data on UK importers, sources for old mobile phones/manuals, alternative search engines and FreePint's SLA experience 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

  • Can anyone help a Bar member find i) the print and/or web publications from the IT-side that deal with ECM (enterprise content management) / EDRMS (electronic documents records management systems) software and solid reviews or commentary on such software; ii) forums which deal specifically or at great length with ECM and / or EDRMS software? Advice, hints and tips from the Bar would be greatly appreciated.

  • 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 the Bar's thoughts on finding data on UK importers. Recommendations on good resources (apart from HMR&C) that have details of shipment numbers and information such as values, sizes, arrival ports/airports are gratefully sought.

  • Another 'Pinter is interested in good sources (specific collections, websites etc.) for old mobile phone manuals and old models of mobile phones, especially from the mid-1990's onwards.

  • In August, FUMSI will be publishing a report on alternative search engines and tools to help researchers get the most value from web-based searching. As part of that project, we invite you to participate in a brief online survey about what kinds of searches you do regularly, which tools you use, and how you manage your knowledge on search engines. 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

FUMSIFUMSI 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:

Information in the Cloud: 10-Point Check List for Choosing a Hosted Provider

Jennifer SmithBy Jennifer Smith
FUMSI: Manage

In an age when cloud storage architecture is becoming more robust, offering not just cost savings but reliability, information professionals are playing a bigger role in determining how enterprise information is getting stored in the cloud. Jennifer Smith offers a common sense checklist of attributes and questions to assess hosted providers, along with tips for the types of answers to look for.

WHAT'S INSIDE: 'Like cheap wine and cheap shoes, cheap hosting is best avoided. Your information is a critical asset and you need to ensure it is hosted by a company with the resources to store it securely.'

Read, print, save or forward this article now »

Copyright and Content: Sharing in a Digital Age

Martin BelamBy Martin Belam
FUMSI: Share

In our digital age, copyright takes on a new urgency for publishers and corporate content consumers. Martin Belam sits down with Mark Bide, Project Director for ACAP (a protocol to allow machines to automatically understand the terms and conditions of content re-use over the Internet) to talk about how it can underpin the legal use of protected data assets.

WHAT'S INSIDE: 'There are certainly those who oppose ACAP because they are opposed to any attempt to regulate online culture. I am sure the same types of voices have been heard on every frontier as civilisation reaches out to bring things under proper control. No doubt, something is lost in the process; but society itself has a great deal to gain.'

Read, print, save or forward this article now »

Also recently added to the FUMSI database:

Browse all FUMSI articles »

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Nexis Direct

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.

 VIP Features

VIP 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 issue 68VIP Magazine No. 68 includes:

  • Intriguing Results: The VIP Editorial Team details the results from a recent Outsourcing Survey conducted by Free Pint Ltd. and Integreon.

  • Close-Up: Highlights from Anne Jordan's detailed reviews of Alacra Pulse (a recent addition to the Alacra suite of products) and RightTrade, a media sentiment and financial analytics service.

  • Under Pressure: Licensing for re-use of newspaper content is set to extend to web sites from next year. VIP reports on this licensing story and rounds up the latest industry and product news.

  • 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.

In the next VIP: We review SkyMinder's aggregated credit database and Esmerk.

Purchase VIP Magazine No. 68 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:

  • The newspaper industry's survival in the digital age has been the subject of discussion in several Livewire postings, as has the concept of the 'freemium' business model adopted by some online publishers.........
    Direct link to posting: http://www.vivavip.com/go/e22056

  • iStrategyLabs released its 2009 Facebook demographic and statistics report - http://digbig.com/5baath - to find that, horrors! The FB virtual corridors that once teemed with the 18-24 set are now filled with parents and grandparents. iStrategy found that 'There has been a staggering increase in the number of 55+.........
    Direct link to posting: http://www.vivavip.com/go/e21704

  • On July 13 Fitch Ratings and Fitch Solutions (www.fitchratings.com) announced the release of a new, integrated single platform website. The company, a global ratings agency providing the world's credit markets with independent and prospective credit opinions, research, and data, now has a single portal through which both registered users of.........
    Direct link to posting: http://www.vivavip.com/go/e21930

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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FreePint Survey

Everyone's Searching for Search Solutions

Audio, video, text, transcripts...
an info pro has to know how to find them all, as and when needed.

Complete our brief survey on alternative search - share your favourite tips, and learn from your peers:
http://digbig.com/5baard

Participants receive a copy of full report upon publication in August.

VIP Wires Weekly

VIP Wires Weekly

Free weekly update with editorial commentary on information industry trends plus press release headlines.

Subscribe now »

Popular posts from the last 60 days:

Add your commentary to any post »

 Jinfo - Jobs and Events in Information

JinfoJinfo 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:

  • Information Resources Coordinator
    Info pro with German & English skills needed to manage & deliver info service in US law firm.
    Recruiter: Sue Hill Recruitment and Services Limited
    Country: Germany

  • Information Officer - VLE
    Information Officer required to maintain and operate virtual learning environment and deal with help desk enquiries.
    Recruiter: Weekes Gray Recruitment
    Country: United Kingdom

  • Knowledge Exchange Co-ordinator
    A research organisation based in the Oxford/Wiltshire area seeks a Knowledge Exchange Co-ordinator...
    Recruiter: TFPL
    Country: United Kingdom

  • Information Specialists - Unit Head
    Information Specialists - Unit Head, Cheltenham
    Recruiter: GCHQ
    Country: United Kingdom

  • Legal Information Officer - 12 month contract
    Research for excellent opportunity with City Law Practice to do involved business information work.
    Recruiter: Glen Recruitment
    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

ResourceShelfEvery week, the editors of ResourceShelf explore a Resource of the Week. Get them for free every week via email by subscribing to the ResourceShelf Newsletter.

Become a fan of ResourceShelf and DocuTicker on Facebook.

Recently published:

DocuTicker
DocuTicker publishes citations of full-text, free reports available on the web. Visit daily for new postings, or subscribe to the weekly DocuTicker Newsletter.

Highlights:

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 Gold

A look back at what the FreePint Newsletter covered at this time in previous years:

FreePint Newsletter Archive »

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 Forthcoming Articles - Provisional

FUMSI

  • DIY Detection
  • Peer-Reviewed Information
  • The Guardian's Library
  • M&A Research

VIP

  • Esmerk
  • C3 (credit information)
  • Syndicated loans databases

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

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), Abbe Karavitis, Jennifer Smith, Martin Belam, Nancy Davis Kho (Copyeditor), Robin Neidorf (General Manager), William Hann (Publisher), Douglas Brown (Proofreader).

Advertisers/Sponsors:

Quantum2 from Dialog, City University London School of Informatics, LexisNexis, Sue Hill Recruitment and Services Limited, Glen Recruitment, TFPL, Weekes Gray Recruitment, GCHQ.


(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.

FreePint is published by Free Pint Limited, registered in England and Wales. Registered Number: 3754418. Registered Office: Delaport Coach House, Lamer Lane, Wheathampstead, Herts, AL4 8RQ

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