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Newsletter No. 336


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FreePint 13th October 2011
No.336
 Contents

Editorial

My Favourite Tipples

FreePint Bar


FUMSI Features

  • Powering up with predictive search
  • In the thick of it: Why information professionals should be at the heart of government digital engagement activity

VIP Features

  • The Competitive Intelligence Toolkit
  • Recent postings to the LiveWire
  • Recent postings to the Wire

Jinfo - Jobs and Events

Jobs in Information:

  • Information Executive - LIS Systems
  • Senior Research Analyst (6 month contract)
  • Client Training Manager

Events in Information:

  • TFPL Cloud Event - Sharing Information...re-defined
  • Evaluating Information Industry Services & Vendors: Best practices for info pros and IT staff
  • Enterprise Search Europe 2011
  • Designing intranets that work - London
  • More...

Highlights from DocuTicker

  • Household Income Trends During the Recession and Economic Recovery
  • Data Mining: DHS Needs to Improve Executive Oversight of Systems Supporting Counterterrorism

Highlights from ResourceShelf

  • Thomson Reuters Launches Book Citation Index for Web of Knowledge
  • American Libraries Launches E-Content Blog

Gold

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.

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 Editorial

Michelle ManafyBy Michelle Manafy

Fresh air and information governance

Information is like air. We are utterly surrounded by it and rarely give it a second thought - with the notable exception of when the requisite quantity or quality is lacking. Of course an excess of a good thing can be bad, even in the case of oxygen and certainly in the case of information. Here again is another similarity in that information governance can be a lot like air management. Managing something as plentiful and amorphous as air or information makes herding cats seem like an organised undertaking by comparison.

Fresh air and information governanceLet's start with the definition of information. Merriam-Webster defines it as the communication or reception of knowledge or intelligence; knowledge obtained from investigation, study, or instruction; intelligence, news; or facts, data. Wikipedia, however, points out one extremely relevant fact, "as a concept, however, information has numerous meanings".

Right. To those on the technology side of the business, it comes down to bits and bytes. To those on the business side, it is the stuff upon which every decision is based. It is also the direct or indirect product of almost every action - from phone calls and emails to spreadsheets and reports. And, as if this weren't enough, it is vastly more.

However intangible it may be, we all know that information is essential. Certainly legal issues such as copyright, discovery and retention require organisations to come to terms with that which must be managed. Recognising the difficulty in defining the scope of information rights and wrongs, FreePint Research has, for several years now, explored issues surrounding copyright and the challenges and implications its management has within organisations.

Our most recent report on this topic, the FreePint Report: Copyright Polices and Practices 2011, made it clear that issues of copyright fall within a much larger issue faced by information professionals: information governance. Thus, this time around, FreePint Research takes on this more complex topic. I encourage you to contribute your insights during the research phase by participating in our Survey on Information Governance. Not only will your answers aid your peers through the provision of real world discussion of practical issues, you will receive a copy of the final report (and be invited to attend a webinar on information governance, which we'll be hosting later this month).

As our Director of Research discussed in her VIP LiveWire post, early results already reveal some significant issues. Not surprisingly, governance is most advanced in areas that have the most stringent regulatory or legal framework, such as records management and data protection. However, the results also demonstrate an opportunity for organisations to deal with these legal requirements not just as a costly undertaking but, more broadly, as part of a strategy that can help them build the value of their information assets.

We should not fail to govern resources effectively simply because they are plentiful, particularly when - as in the case of information - it is the stuff that fuels our survival. Let's take a deep breath and brace ourselves against the difficulties we face as we seek to define and address the issues it raises.

That's best accomplished if we work together. Please take 10 minutes to complete the Survey on Information Governance, particularly if you manage information functions on behalf of an organisation. We look forward to exploring the new opportunities offered for information value along with you.

Best regards,
Michelle Manafy,
Director of Content
FreePint


FreePint is a Registered Trademark of Free Pint Limited (R) 1997-2011

 My Favourite Tipples

Kristin Whitman By Kristin Whitman

My work as a librarian supports many patent "prior art" searchers: researchers who frequently use obscure sources of scientific and technical information to support patent filings or patent litigation. To do my job well, I need to be aware of as many scientific and technical literature resources as possible - even the ones nobody is blogging about. There are many directories of subject-specific databases on the web that make my job so much easier. Here are a few of the sources I find myself going to almost every day.

  • Open Directory Project/DMOZ: Maybe you remember this site from the early days of web search. It is still a valuable resource. I have found many arcane, obscure sources of information, including society websites and company product catalogues, from snooping around on DMOZ.

  • Library of Congress eResources: If you want to pick an excellent database on your topic, why not check the subscription holdings of one of the biggest and most visible libraries around? I've found many hints about good search products by peeking over the shoulder of the LoC librarians.

  • WorldWideScience.org: The US Department of Energy's Office of Scientific and Technical information, or OSTI, has done a great deal of work putting together searchable web databases to promote wider access to scientific research.

  • Zotero: When I'm on a long-term research project, I need something to capture the sites and documents I run across the web - including those that only seem marginally useful at first glance. Zotero lets me capture, save and annotate everything I'm seeing with a single click and saves the content to my local directory so I never lose out if a link breaks. There are other free reference manager programs out there that I'm interested to try, but Zotero was my first love!

  • USPTO Search Templates: When a sci/tech literature search absolutely has to be comprehensive, the first thing you need to know is where the baseline lies. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) examiners, who are experts in their technical fields, have created "search templates," or lists of databases that they regularly use. The templates are organized by patent class and subclass, helping users zero in on the exact topic they are interested in.

  • Intellogist Resource Finder and Intellogist Blog: Yes, these were created by my company. However, I want to include them here because I know from personal experience how useful these tools are. Resource Finder is a granular subject directory for scientific and technical databases, publications, and websites. The Intelloglist blog, to which I have contributed to in the past, is a rare find for the patent searcher.

Kristin Whitman is a librarian at Landon IP, a global provider of prior art search and analysis, patent information retrieval, and translation services. She is one of the original authors of Intellogist, a website providing free in-depth resources and educational materials for patent searchers, and contributed to Patent Searching: Tools & Techniques, a well known handbook in the field. Kristin has a Master of Library and Information Science from Rutgers University, and is currently a co-chairman of the Private Law Libraries - Intellectual Property group of the American Association of Law Libraries. She contributes to the Intellogist blog and is on Twitter @Intellogist.


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 submit them to support@freepint.com.

Have a single tip to share? Post it to the FUMSI Forum.

View the guidelines at: <http://web.freepint.com/go/family/contribute>.

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FreePint Surveys

Is information strategic or tactical in your organisation?

Participate in FreePint Research: Survey on Information Governance

Copyright risk management, data protection, records management and information workflow can be costs... or opportunities. FreePint Research is investigating how savvy information managers are helping raise the value of information assets through strategic information governance.

Participate in our survey, and receive a copy of the resulting report to learn:

  • Where policy and practice are most mature
  • What priorites drive development in information governance
  • What job titles and departments are part of the evolution

This project is generously sponsored in part by Burrelle's-Luce, Copyright Clearance Center and Moreover.

Infotrieve events

New Trends in Content Curation and Group Collaboration

Learn from new media expert and adjunct Harvard professor Nicco Mele about the newest trends in content curation and how implementing secure group collaboration within your organization brings products to market faster and improves the bottom line.

FREE Webinar -- Thursday, October 13 @ 10:00 am ET (4:00 pm CET)

Click here to register »

 FreePint Bar

The FreePint Bar is where we publish information about the latest content from across the FreePint Family of resources.

The FreePint Bar is sponsored by:

Dialog

Factiva

Financial Times

Latest posts at the FreePint Bar:

  • [DocuTopic] The Ubiquitous PDF in the Time of the Mash-up

    Here at DocuTicker, we specialise in digging up valuable research reports that organisations have sponsored and made available on their websites for free. We find reports that, pre-Internet, might have been printed in limited runs and made available by request until the supply ran out.

    Organisations now make their new reports available instantly on a worldwide network but, because of the document format they select, they may limit the usefulness of their reports in an online world. The format of choice for so many of the report-issuing institutions is Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF). Why PDF?
    Read posting online »

  • [VIP] Latest popular LiveWire posts

    There's a lot of valuable comment at the VIP LiveWire. The following are the most popular posts from our contributing editors over the last 30 days:

    * Conferences are social?
    * Who is influencing the social web?
    * Social media - no knee-jerks needed
    * Computers predict sentiment -yeah, right
    * Getting strategic with information governance

    Subscribe to the free VIP Wires Weekly to stay informed. Your comments on any posting are always welcome.
    Read posting online »

  • [Research] Getting strategic with governance

    FreePint Research has launched the Survey on Information Governance. Read about early results on the VIP LiveWire, and then take 10 minutes to participate.

    Your anonymous input will contribute to industry knowledge, and you'll receive a free copy of the resulting report upon publication.

    This project has been generously sponsored in part by Burrelles-Luce, Copyright Clearance Center and Moreover.
    Read posting online »

Visit the FreePint Bar »

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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 »

Follow FUMSI on Twitter »

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:

Powering up with predictive search

Tasha Bergson-MichelsonBy Tasha Bergson-Michelson
FUMSI: Find

One of the most difficult aspects of searching for information on an unfamiliar subject is knowing the appropriate vocabulary to use. Each sector and industry has its own terminology which can cause a search barrier for the uninitiated. Tasha Bergson-Michelson shows how to overcome this barrier through the use of predictive search which involves visualising what the answer might be.

WHAT'S INSIDE: 'One of the most crucial skills in searching for electronic information, whether in free or proprietary sources, is simply to stop and think. I envision the likely author/publisher/poster of the information, and the format or medium in which I expect it to appear. I then use these clues to determine which operators and filters are available to help me match the picture in my head with a source on the web. The process of discerning what your answer will look like in order to strategise how to find it is called "predictive search". Beyond developing a sense for language, however, predictive search is about drawing on what one knows about how and where different types of information are commonly communicated.'

Read, print, save or forward this article now »

In the thick of it: Why information professionals should be at the heart of government digital engagement activity

Lesley ThomsonBy Lesley Thomson
FUMSI: Use

As government strives to create two-way communication with people, librarians are ideally placed, and equipped, to be at the heart of this digital engagement. Lesley Thomson describes the perfect skills government librarians have to facilitate this engagement and the value breaking into this new "information territory" would bring.

WHAT'S INSIDE: 'Good use of social media can help governments better attract, understand and respond to the attention of specific audiences. However, the ability of civil servants to use social media and the growing demand for these channels is causing tension as government departments update pre-digital processes which do not work as effectively in the digital era. Digital engagement is about changing the mentality of government so that we are driven by people's needs - librarians know that information doesn't equal power; rather, information sharing amplifies power.'

Read, print, save or forward this article now »

FUMSI Forum

The latest recommendations and tips from our editors, contributors and community:

Visit the FUMSI Forum »

FUMSI - Forthcoming Topics

  • Where the jobs are: listings and resources for LIS professionals
  • Using and understanding Online influence and social captital - some general lessons and tips from the pharma sector
  • Reinventing librarians Part 2
  • Presenting better presentations - Running a conference "predux"

If you have a suggestion for an article topic, or would like to write, then please contact <support@freepint.com> or read the notes for authors at
<http://web.freepint.com/go/family/contribute/>.

Browse all FUMSI articles »

Subscribe to the free FUMSI Focus to receive a weekly update of the latest FUMSI Forum discussion.

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Financial Times Web App

Financial Times Web App

FT news and analysis available through a browser based app at app.ft.com. No app store download is required.

Initially optimised for iPad and iPhone, the app is faster, updates automatically and allows offline reading.

With an FT corporate subscription, you can access FT content across multiple devices and 3rd party platforms with just one subscription payment. Find out more at www.ft.com/corporate.

First Street

Learn more about First Street(TM) today

No other resource provides you with more accurate, comprehensive or actionable lobbying and policy intelligence than you'll get in First Street(TM).

With multiple, integrated databases combining up-to-date contact, lobbying, and organizational information and a research-friendly intuitive interface, you'll be given an instant window into Washington.

Learn more about how you can use First Street(TM) to build your business in the beltway.

 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 94VIP Magazine: The Competitive Intelligence Toolkit - A VIP Editorial

By Estelle Metayer

Ever since companies discovered the concept of Competitive Intelligence, analysts have struggled with one key question: how best to organise the information and the vast amount of data that has been collected, synthesise it and spot emerging patterns, then share the insights so that decision-makers have the data they need when choosing a strategic or growth path.

At Competia, we have for many years been following the trends and are very excited by the recent changes in the market: the Invisible Web is finally getting structured, social media offer a new path to identify information and best practices, and the Cloud allows even smaller organisations to store data in a way that was previously not economically viable.

This month's VIP product reviews provide a good illustration of the solutions that are now coming to market. Intelligence Plaza is tackling the difficult task of obtaining and manipulating multiple, vibrant sources of information and, in particular, newsfeeds. It is allowing users to organise the information and access it remotely. It is tapping into all the relevant trends today: mobility, crowdsourcing and curation. With dashboards and alert systems, it will allow users to make the best use of their time, and focus on what is important - getting the insight from the data collected.

The second part of this article can be found in VIP No. 94. Purchase VIP No. 94 in the FreePint Shop or subscribe today »

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 Financial Times.

Financial Times

Most Read Postings on the LiveWire Recently...

  • Conferences are social?

    I was at a day conference recently when I was asked to turn off my smartphone. I gasped - the event was on participation using online technology!

    On the LiveWire many of my colleagues report from conferences on a regular basis. This type of event is seeing many changes in terms of the traditional approach that it has held for many years.
    Read posting online »

  • Social media - hand-holders wanted

    Bosses and new recruits seem to be of one mind when it comes to social media according to one recent survey, while another highlights some of the qualities these newcomers will need. There's going to be no shortage of touted solutions for them to assess - or advice either.
    Read posting online »

  • Who is influencing the social web?

    Social media metrics is one of those topics we get asked to write and comment on all the time on the LiveWire, and Tim Buckley Owen has commented very recently. In FUMSI we have commissioned specifically with this in mind. Being social is not about the numbers of followers, it is about what is being said and by whom - your measure of influence.
    Read posting online »

  • Moreover repackages Newsdesk

    While some news aggregators such as Meltwater have been making the headlines with their battles against the UK's NLA, others like Moreover have decided to work with the major publishers. In June this year Moreover joined the NLA's eClips service, enabling them to provide their customers with content from newspapers with online paywalls, such as The Times. This, they argue, avoids the need to scrape the web for this particular content and offers their customers a more direct and therefore quicker service.
    Read posting online »

  • Plain speak about social media

    Social media seem to have a knack of constantly finding their way back into the news - most recently in the context of the riots in British cities. But there are also hints that some people may be getting a bit tired of them - social media, that is, not just riots...
    Read posting online »

Always feel free to comment on any item on the LiveWire, and if you do not yet have a free subscription to the VIP Wires Weekly, you can sign up now »

VIP LiveWire »

VIP Wire

Information-related product and news announcements. Post your releases and subscribe to the free VIP Wires Weekly for regular alerts.

Recent VIP Wire announcements...

  • Meridith Webster to Join Bloomberg

    Bloomberg L.P. has announced that Meridith Webster will join the company as Director of Communications and Public Affairs. She will join Bloomberg's senior communications team and will oversee the expansion of Bloomberg's communications and public affairs efforts in Washington, New York and globally to support the company's continued growth worldwide.
    Read Press Release online »

  • Springer digitizing entire book collection

    Springer Science+Business Media has started its extensive digitization project, Springer Book Archives (SBA). The SBA initiative will include nearly all books that have been published since the 1840s. Springer expects that the book archives will contain around 65,000 titles. Titles include academically and historically unique works by Albert Einstein, Niels Bohr, Sir John Eccles, Lise Meitner, Werner Siemens, and Rudolf Diesel, to name just a few. The works in the digital archives will be available on the company's platform SpringerLink just like all other Springer books, which have routinely been published in electronic and print versions since 2005. When this mammoth project is completed at the end of 2012, Springer will be able to offer more than 100,000 eBooks on www.springerlink.com.
    Read Press Release online »

  • Webinar: Evaluating Information Services

    The latest FreePint Webinar is now open for registration: Evaluating Information Industry Services & Vendors: Best practices for info pros and IT staff

    The information industry is again changing rapidly. First-time and replacement solutions offer many benefits, but moving forward involves a certain leap of faith. Before working with a new vendor or implementing a new product for you and your own customers, you cannot truly know how things will unfold. Yet without taking these risks and re-evaluating, progress stagnates.
    Read Press Release online »

VIP Wire »

VIP - Subscribe and Back Issues

Start a trial subscription today for only £84 for three months. Visit http://web.freepint.com/go/shop/vip/volume/trial/ to start your trial. You can also purchase back-issues of VIP from the FreePint Shop.

VIP Archive »

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 - Forthcoming Topics

  • Factiva
  • LexisNexis
  • StrategyEye
  • Highline Financial

If you have a suggestion for an article topic, or would like to write, then please contact <support@freepint.com> or read the notes for authors at
<http://web.freepint.com/go/family/contribute/>.

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FreePint Webinars

FreePint Webinar: Evaluating Vendors and Products

Start relationships on the right foot by learning to evaluate products and vendors according to value and outcomes. Our expert panel includes Armand Brevig, Perrin Kerravala and Tim Buckley Owen, who will share tips and discussion on:

  • Creating a process and structure for evaluation
  • Scoring solutions based on value outcomes and total cost of ownership
  • Mapping existing processes and identifying benefit of improvements
  • Creating and communicating the business case.

Register for free; seating is limited »

This session is generously sponsored by Reprints Desk.

Online Information International Conference 2011

Online Information Exhibition

29 November - 1 December 2011, National Hall, Olympia, London

More than 150 international vendors and comprehensive seminar programme covering:

Content Resources; ePublishing; Library Management; Content Management; Social Media and Search Solutions

Register free »

 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 Executive - LIS Systems
    Professional body is recruiting for an information professional to join their team in a newly created...
    Recruiter: Sue Hill Recruitment and Services Limited
    Country: United Kingdom

  • Senior Research Analyst (6 month contract)
    Senior Analyst / Researcher required for initial 6 month Maternity Leave to work for global organisation based in Central London.
    Recruiter: Glen Recruitment
    Country: United Kingdom

  • Client Training Manager
    A leading law firm is seeking to recruit a Client Training Manager.
    Recruiter: TFPL
    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 £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 DocuTicker

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.

Become a fan of DocuTicker on Facebook.

Recent postings:

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 Highlights from ResourceShelf

ResourceShelfThe editors of ResourceShelf add web-based resources to support business and professional research by the dozens. Get weekly highlights via email by subscribing to the ResourceShelf Newsletter.

Become a fan of ResourceShelf on Facebook.

Recent postings:

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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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 Contact Information

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