Free Pint Newsletter 128 - Sale, IT Resources and Digital Libraries Free Pint "Helping 55,000 people use the Web for their work" http://www.freepint.com/ ISSN 1460-7239 9th January 2003 No.128 > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = IN THIS ISSUE EDITORIAL MY FAVOURITE TIPPLES By Veronica Bezear FREE PINT BAR In Association with Factiva a Dow Jones & Reuters Company JOBS Information Officer Consumer Industry Sector Specialist Product Trainer Records Manager TIPS ARTICLE "Keeping IT Simple" By Alison Scammell BOOKSHELF "Attracting, Educating and Serving Remote Users Through the Web" Reviewed by Mark Kerr FEATURE ARTICLE "Digital Libraries" By Anjlee Bhatt EVENTS, GOLD AND FORTHCOMING ARTICLES CONTACT INFORMATION ONLINE VERSION WITH ACTIVATED HYPERLINKS ADOBE ACROBAT VERSION WITH NEWSLETTER FORMATTING > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = > = = = = = = = = = = = = = ADVERTISEMENT = = = = = = = = = = = = = = Sue Hill Recruitment - jobs every day - good candidates needed! Flexible, adaptable, individuals with recognised library, information or records qualifications / for all sectors. We offer interesting permanent & temporary assignments. Our clients are throughout the UK. They want the best & trust us to provide it. Be part of our success! Tel: 020 7378 7068 jobs@suehill.com www.suehill.com > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = [XX1281] > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = >>> ABOUT FREE PINT <<< Free Pint is an online community of information researchers. Members receive this free newsletter every two weeks packed with tips on finding quality and reliable business information on the Internet. Joining is free at and provides access to a substantial archive of articles, reviews, jobs & events, with answers to research questions and networking at the Free Pint Bar. Please circulate this newsletter which is best read when printed out. To receive a fully formatted version as an attachment or a brief notification when it's online, visit . > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = EDITORIAL We've certainly experienced some extremes over the last few weeks. There's been extremes of weather, with flooding on the river Thames and the evacuation of my family from our house since last weekend. Now we have snow and ice surrounding the flooding, but at least I've managed to wade out and come into the office to write this. We've been cheered by the seasonal greetings cards that have been coming in from Free Pinters in extreme corners of the world. From the West of Canada ("soggy Vancouver") to the East (Singapore and Hong Kong). We've been greeted in many languages, from Estonian -- "Rahulikke joulupuhi ja edukat Uut Aastat" (Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year) -- to Finnish -- "Joulutervehdys" (Season's Greetings). So, I hope you've had a slightly less extreme start to 2003 than we have here, and thank you for your festive cards. To brighten things up a bit the Free Pint Sale is now on, with 'buy one get one free' on UK company and director reports, and 'buy two get two free' on newsletter and banner advertising. Snap up a bargain by visiting . We're also looking forward to our new Exchange workshops which start at the end of January. They're all in central London, and the first few cover topics like 'Communities of Practice', an introduction to financial information sources, and 'Electronic Copyright'. The price of these afternoon sessions has been subsidised, which should make them very accessible to anyone interested in these hot topics. Do check out the full details at . We bring you a very 'information-oriented' issue of Free Pint today. The articles and book reviews cover information technology resources, digital libraries, and how to identify and service users remotely. If you're yearning for more resources after reading this issue, then check out the ResourceShelf . The site has just been named 'Best Search Engine Weblog' in the latest search engine awards. It is updated every day with new resources of interest to information professionals, educators, journalists, etc., and you can sign up for the free weekly update. Happy new year to all Free Pinters. Let's raise a virtual toast to a 2003 without extremes. Cheers William William Hann BSc(Hons) MCLIP, Founder and Managing Editor Email: Tel: +44 (0)1784 420044 Free Pint is a Registered Trademark of Free Pint Limited (R) 1997-2002 > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = > = = = = = = = = = = = = = ADVERTISEMENT = = = = = = = = = = = = = = DATA PROTECTION TRAINING FOR THE PUBLIC SECTOR Do you know what legislation applies to information handling? Data Protection Act, Freedom of Information Act, the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act, Article 8 of the Human Rights Act - all these impact on how you handle information. Are you processing lawfully? Will you comply with the Freedom of Information regime? Sign up for our free newsletter at www.actnow.org.uk or see our courses in information management at www.actnowtraining.co.uk > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = [an1282] > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = >>> Free Pint Communities of Practice Exchange <<< Thursday 30th January 2003, Central London, UK "Understand what CoPs can do, and the organizational, managerial and technical issues of supporting them" Find out more at > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = MY FAVOURITE TIPPLES By Veronica Bezear * Omniglot - For lovers of language, a simple and clear guide to the alphabets, writing systems and logographic systems of the world. Basic contexts included and representation of each letter, as well as links to related sites. Includes modern languages such as Georgian, ancient languages such as Mayan (!) and Ancient Egyptian, and alternative writing systems such as braille. * - Another linguists dream - a collection of links to dictionaries for 150 languages. European, African, American and Asian languages are all there, including many you will not have heard of. Also includes grammar and language courses for 70 languages and some language-based games. * HTML Goodies - For beginners with technical ambitions - a collection of tutorials, primers and newsletters on HTML, Ad Banners, Javascript, Perl & CGI, ASP, Database-SQL, XML, DHTML. A lot of useful instruction, well organised, and free. Also gives recommendations of related books. * Political Sciences Resources Web Page - For politically aware global citizens. Particularly impressive are the collections of government, local government, and political party websites from around the world (diverse countries from Azerbaijan, to Lesotho, and Bikini Atoll all included). Also links to international relations and political-thought resources. * CitizensConnect.net - UK based resource site for potential world changers - information on setting up charities, campaigning, how society works, leadership opportunities, getting funding, the law and you, and a searchable directory of resources to further challenge and inspire. Veronica Bezear currently works as an Information Officer for Surrey County Council Adults and Community Care Service. Submit your top five favourite Web sites. See the guidelines at . > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = > = = = = = = = = = = = = = ADVERTISEMENT = = = = = = = = = = = = = = *Hear all about it - Factiva.com Short Learning Topics now available* Factiva Learning Programs now offers short online multimedia learning topics, solving your just-in-time learning needs with eight to ten minute topics. Led by a Factiva expert, each one provides an overview of a selected Factiva.com area and focuses on specific features and functionality. Register for your free headphones to help you with your Factiva eLearning http://www.factiva.com/redirects/learning/topics > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = [fa1283] > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = FREE PINT BAR In Association with Factiva a Dow Jones & Reuters Company Need help with a research question? Many questions posted at the Bar are answered in a very short time. Why not give it a go. It's a free service for Free Pinters . If you're a student on an information-related course, then do make use of the Student Bar. Get help with dissertations, and tap into the knowledge of experienced Free Pinters . To get a digest of postings twice a week, modify your account online at or email . > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = FREE PINT JOBS As well as the selected listings below, check out the weekly Bar postings which list the latest additions to Free Pint Jobs. This week's can be found at and before that at . Here are some of the latest featured jobs: Information Officer Junior information officer required to join busy city law firm. Should be qualified and have between 12 and 36 months experience. Recruiter: Recruit Media Consumer Industry Sector Specialist Qualified Information Specialist with knowledge of Retail/FMCG/Media industries for specialist Consultancy. 45,000 pounds plus Bonus. Recruiter: Glen Recruitment Product Trainer Put your information, training and French skills to use at this leading vendor in exchange for good salary & overseas travel Recruiter: Sue Hill Recruitment Records Manager Develop & maintain records management service. Promote new business opps, manage external contracts & develop records management policy. Recruiter: BBC [The above jobs are paid listings] Free Pint Jobs is THE place to find and advertise information-related vacancies. Job seekers can search the database for free, and set up a profile to be notified weekly of relevant new vacancies. Recruiters will receive significant publicity for listed vacancies, and jobs will be matched against the 800+ stored job seeker profiles. Find out more today at > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = >>> Free Pint Tour of the City Exchange <<< Thursday 6th February 2003, Central London, UK "This Exchange aims to provide an overview of the City and an introduction to some of its key information sources." Find out more at > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = TIPS ARTICLE "Keeping IT Simple" By Alison Scammell With such a huge amount of IT material on the Internet it is not surprising that the right information is hard to find. This is not helped by the fact that there is a morass of different forms of information: news reports, business summaries, journalistic comment, academic journals, analyst research, white papers, vendor material, events information, product reviews, software and hardware resources. Using a search engine, even one as good as Google, is unlikely to match your exact requirements. Most researchers rely on a small number of tried and tested sites to deliver the most appropriate information for their needs. The following is a selective round up of the sites I have found most useful in researching for IT clients. Meta site --------- Cyberatlas is a good starting point for market data on Internet related technology (and quite a bit more). As a meta site it brings together market research from the big analysts such as Forrester, Gartner, IDC and META Group. It provides useful page-size summaries giving a business perspective to developments in the sector. Cyberatlas has links to a range of channels covering markets and sectors (advertising, B2B, broadband, education, finance, healthcare, professional, retailing, small biz, travel and wireless) as well as channels covering specific technology subjects. These are provided via its parent site, Internet.com. A particularly useful facility is the Cyberatlas Statistics Toolbox. This provides an easy way to find statistical data on the site, offering convenient digests by subject. Cyberatlas has everything for the first stage of your research: a quick round up of the most relevant analyst research, a manageable spread of channels, easy to access statistical data and ecommerce links. Magazines --------- My second port of call is usually CW360 (Computer Weekly's online site) at . It provides a useful round up of business news and articles as well as access to an impressive archive of material. The quality is extremely good: high standards of research and writing on the most recent developments in the IT industry. CW360's journalistic feel nicely complements the sometimes bland analyst output supplied at Cyberatlas. CW360 is billed as a portal but its appeal for me is that it avoids the flickering overload associated with most portals and offers a simple, easy to navigate magazine layout. This lets you get straight to what is really important: high quality comment on the business application of IT. BYTE magazine strips out the torrent of news normally encountered on computing sites and offers a range of articles on computing science written in a lively and off-beat style. These offer readable and entertaining essays on the many different ways technology is changing our lives. BYTE is useful when you have reached saturation point with the usual hype and need a different take on a well worn subject. Portals ------- ZDNet is a premium site offering a refreshingly uncluttered homepage. You can find just about any IT subject here and the full range of IT resources is covered. I particularly like the way it has organized its white paper collection in sensible categories and sub headings (so much easier than having to guess at keywords in a subject search). ZDNet has a truly international coverage (useful in a sector dominated by the US market). You can log straight onto the UK channel at < http://www.zdnet.co.uk/>. Datamation at is a well established site providing more technically oriented resources as well as the usual crop of white papers and industry news. Newspapers --------- Newspapers, particularly the broadsheets, are a useful source of commentary and analysis on the IT industry, providing an independent insight and usually a broader view of developments. This information used to be free on the web but now the papers are starting to charge. The Guardian is still free (but the paper is hinting at introducing charges) and, with one of the better IT supplements of the broadsheets (its Online section appears in print on Thursday), it is well worth a search. Articles from the Online supplement can be searched via the paper's archive at . The Times is now charging for articles from its archive but the last seven days of the paper can still be accessed for free at . The other broadsheets are at The Independent and The Telegraph (listing a technology column). There is also the Financial Times, at , with good coverage of IT news and some hefty IT supplements, but you will be charged. Company Data ------------ A New Guide to UK Computer Companies is a site I have recently started to compile mail shots. It is otherwise surprisingly difficult to find all the contact details you need for computer companies based in the UK. You can search by company name, products and services or area. Bibliographies -------------- For some painless research it's worth abandoning the search engines for a good bibliography. Current Sites is 'an annotated bibliography of selected articles, books and digital documents on information technology'. Actually the emphasis is on library and information technology but it does index good quality literature on a broad range of developments in IT. The real value of this site is that it provides the link to the full text of an article, not just the bibliographic record (which can be so tantalising). You can also create tailored bibliographies and annotations to receive on a monthly basis. The Directory of Computing Science Journals is a no frills but extensive list of journals on computing science, by subject and title. Glossary --------- Webopaedia is the glossary/encyclopaedia I use most often although many of the sites listed above also feature glossaries. The definitions do seem to be updated quite regularly and there are links to related terms and articles. You can also see a list of terms that have been added that week, useful if you really want to be ahead of the game. Subject Gateways ---------------- When you need to do a comprehensive trawl of the literature, EEVL's section on computing science offers an extensive list of quality resources . Sites that are particularly recommended are flagged. Sometimes though, less is more, especially if you are in a hurry. Dutchess at provides a manageable list of computer science topics to browse. The IEEE Computer Society is worth listing as a professional society with a learned approach to IT developments. There is access to journal articles via a Digital Library, news of events and networking opportunities (sign up for free membership of a number of committees, councils or task forces). Directory search ---------------- Lastly, when a broader Internet search is called for, use the superb computing directory listing at Yahoo . You can specify UK listings and choose to search from within specific categories. > - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Alison Scammell specialises in writing white papers and other 'thought leadership' collateral for clients in the IT sector. She also offers a range of editorial services for financial services clients such as articles, briefing papers, web content and copy writing. Contact Alison at . > - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Related Free Pint links: * 'Computer Industry' resources and articles in the Free Pint Portal * Post a message to the author, Alison Scammell, or suggest further resources at the Free Pint Bar * Read this article online, with activated hyperlinks * Access the entire archive of Free Pint content > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = >>> Free Pint Electronic Copyright Exchange <<< Thursday 13th February 2003, Central London, UK "Looking at how copyright protects works in the electronic environment, and considering the implications of copyright for websites and intranets, including the issues to take into account when deep linking" Find out more at > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = FREE PINT BOOKSHELF "Attracting, Educating and Serving Remote Users Through the Web" Edited by Donnelyn Curtis Reviewed by Mark Kerr The sub-title is "a how-to-do-it manual for librarians". This is what the book sets out to deliver, and it does that very effectively. By taking a practical approach to solving the problems of serving users who may not only be 'distant' but unknown, unseen and unaware of the services available, this book should help librarians meet the needs of this growing user segment. The ten chapters are each taken by a different author, and the book falls into three main sections. The first four chapters cover the fundamentals of supporting distance learners, looking at the role of the library, understanding and attracting the users and their needs. The second section is on the practical processes of developing and delivering: providing electronic reference services; maximizing current awareness and document delivery services; providing library instruction for remote users and integrating library resources into inline instruction. The final two chapters cover the technical aspects of supporting the remote user of licensed resources, and that of fundraising and public relation in the electronic environment. The fundraising section is perhaps the least likely to be useful to a UK reader from the Higher Education sector, but the Public Relations activities still offer relevant ideas that can be adapted to local conditions. The authors are colleagues from the University of Nevada, Reno, libraries, and there is inevitably an American emphasis in tone and language in many places. However the issues discussed (and solutions suggested) are increasingly relevant globally - particularly with remote users themselves now more likely than ever before to be international, rather than 'merely' national users. The publishers have compensated for this by providing a companion Web site for UK and European users which provides localized references and supplementary information. This is the best of both worlds - current thinking from the forefront of user services development, with regionalized support and background material. Comprehensive references at the end of each chapter are supplemented by those on the companion Web site. This enables the reader - especially one who is concerned as to how the American options will fare on this side of the Atlantic - to check and assess many of the sources used by the authors, and then compare that data and research with the extra references and links provided by Ian Winship on the UK site. The large format and generous use of white space on the page makes this book a comfortable read, and at GBP 34.95 it represents excellent value for the librarian who needs to get to grips with the needs of remote users, both on a practical and on a strategic level. > - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Mark Kerr is Centre Manager of London Aspect, South Bank University's external IT Training unit, which delivers training in a wide range of IT topics to over 1,000 people each year from small businesses, charities, academic and local government organizations. Mark has written 'How to Promote Your Web Site Effectively' and 'Tips and Tricks for Web Site Managers', both published by ASLIB, as well as a number of articles and book reviews for publications such as Managing Information, Program and Library Technology . > - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Related Free Pint links: * Find out more about this book online at the Free Pint Bookshelf * Read customer comments and buy this book at Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com * "Attracting, Educating and Serving Remote Users Through the Web: A How-to-do-it Manual for Librarians" ISBN 1856044610, published by CyberAge Books, edited by Donnelyn Curtis * Search for and purchase any book from Amazon via the Free Pint Bookshelf at * Read about other Internet Strategy books on the Free Pint Bookshelf To propose an information-related book for review, send details to . > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = >>> FREE PINT SALE NOW ON FOR A LIMITED TIME <<< * 'Buy one, get one free' on UK company and director reports * 'Buy two, get two free' on newsletter and banner adverts Find out more today, visit > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = FEATURE ARTICLE "Digital Libraries" By Anjlee Bhatt Question: What is a digital library? Answer: It is the first question I asked myself, when I began to think about writing this article. A 'digital library' means so many different things to so many different people that it is very difficult to pin down and it has been the cause of some discussion within the information community. However, most of the definitions are based on the idea of a library or information service that provides electronic access to documents and/or services. This idea allows for most of the different variants that use the 'electronic', 'virtual', and 'hybrid' prepositions in varying combinations with library, collection, repository and archive. For example, a virtual library will usually describe a traditional 'bricks and mortar' library's presence on the web, in terms of library opening hours, web-based catalogue, subject links pages, etc.. Whereas, the usual description of a 'digital library' will include direct user access to electronic collections, such as research papers or video clips across a local area network or the Internet. Unfortunately, because all the different phrases have slightly different connotations and can be used quite subjectively, it can get very confusing. How did digital libraries happen? --------------------------------- Way back in the mists of time, someone somewhere had a bright idea! Digital libraries are a natural progression from electronic document sharing that was already happening in the public and private sectors, and the ideas and developments that have come out of schemes like the European Telematics for Libraries Programme and 'Project Gutenberg' -- "the brainchild of Michael Hart, who in 1971 decided that it would be a really good idea if lots of famous and important texts were freely available to everyone in the world" . In the UK Higher Education sector, the driving force for the development of digital libraries came out of the Joint Funding Council's Libraries Review Group Report in 1993, also known as 'The Follett Report' . One of the key findings of this report -- "The exploitation of IT is essential to create the effective library service of the future" -- led to the UK Electronic Libraries Program (eLib) . More of a historical context can be gained from "Towards the Hybrid Library" by Chris Rusbridge and the conference proceedings of 'Beyond the Beginning: The Global Digital Library' . In the US, the Digital Libraries Initiative of the National Science Foundation was set up in 1994 with 6 key projects: The Environmental Electronic Library at the University of California at Berkeley ; The Alexandria Project at the University of California at Santa Barbara ; Informedia at Carnegie Mellon University ; Federated Repositories of Scientific Literature at the University of Illinois at Urbana- Champaign ; Intelligent Agents for Information Location at the University of Michigan ; Infobus at Stanford University . The main benefit of implementing a digital library is the ability to provide 24-hour, remote access to high-demand or restricted materials for multiple concurrent users, and the best way of finding out about the potential application of such a service is to look at actual examples. The ARL Digital Initiatives Database, a collaboration between the University of Illinois in Chicago and the Association of Research Libraries, provides an online registry for descriptions of digital initiatives in, or involving, libraries . Bibliotheca Universalis is a collaborative project between 13 national libraries "to put major works of worldwide cultural and scientific heritage comprising text, images and sound, at the disposal of the general public ... via electronic networks". Annotated links to Digital Library Collections provided by DMOZ - the Open Directory Project (ODP) can be found at and . What are the nuts and bolts? ---------------------------- Setting up a digital library can be as easy or as difficult as any other new service and will depend on any number of the usual suspects: money; staff time; ICT support; network capability and so on. One of the earliest comprehensive papers on designing a digital library was "The Digital Library Tool Kit" by Dr. Peter Noerr; the 2nd edition was published in March 2000 . Today, there are a great many 'off-the-shelf' products and solutions, either specifically designed to do the job or adapted from document management systems. Here are a few of the more significant examples, most of which still require a certain amount of customisation for individual library and information services: Blue Angel Technologies ; CONTENTdm ; Crossnet Systems Ltd ; Endeavor Information Systems ; Epixtech ; ESP ; Ex Libris ; Fretwell-Downing Informatics ; IBM ; Sirsi ; SydneyPlus International . An alternative to commercial products is to develop a system in-house using 'open source' software. This can be a much more cost-effective approach, and has been successfully implemented by a number of organisations. The most celebrated example is the Greenstone suite of software from the New Zealand Digital Library Project at the University of Waikato. Other projects include the Advanced Library Collection Management Environment (ALCME) by OCLC and Eprints at the University of Southampton . A general directory of open source software for libraries is available at . Getting Help! ------------- Setting up a digital library is a great idea, but when it comes to implementation it is always good to get some practical help. In the UK Higher Education Community, there are a number of potential sources of help. HEDS, the Higher Education Digitisation Service, was established in September 1996, as part of the eLib Programme, and became a JISC Service in August 1998. They provide advice, consultancy and a complete production service for digitisation and digital library development . HERON is the UK HE copyright agency for book and journal extracts, a one-stop clearance and digitisation service, which also began as an eLib Project in 1998 but was acquired by Ingenta in March 2002. More recently HERON has expanded its client base to include Further Education Institutions and other types of organisation . TASI, the Technical Advisory Service for Images is another JISC service, which provides advice, training and resources on all digital imaging issues . There are also commercial companies and freelancers that can provide all-inclusive services or specialist consultancy such as Instant Library or John Kirriemuir . Evaluation ---------- Evaluation can often be a feared and highly underrated part of setting up a new service, but can be extremely useful to support funding mechanisms and demonstrate service importance and quality. Some of the key sources of information specific to Electronic Information Services are the ARL E- Metrics project , EQUINOX , and eVALUEd . E-Metrics is "an effort to explore the feasibility of defining and collecting data on the use and value of electronic resources". EQUINOX was a project funded under the EU Telematics for Libraries Programme to develop performance measures for the electronic library environment. eVALUEd is a project to develop a transferable model for e-library evaluation funded by the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) . Where can I find out more about digital libraries? -------------------------------------------------- DMOZ also has numerous annotated links relating to Digital Library Development . There are a number of key journals that focus on digital library issues: notably Ariadne ; D-Lib Magazine ; The Electronic Library ; and the Journal of Digital Information (JODI) . From the print perspective, there are also a number of key readings that have recently been published: 'Digital Futures - Strategies for the Information Age' by Marilyn Deegan and Simon Tanner (February 2002) Neal-Schuman,ISBN 1555704379; 'How to Build a Digital Library' by Ian H. Witten and David Bainbridge (August 2002) Morgan Kaufmann, ISBN 1558607900; 'Introduction to Digital Libraries' by G.G. Chowdhury and Sudatta Chowdhury (November 2002) Facet Publishing, ISBN 1856044653; 'Digitizing Collections: strategic issues for the information manager' by Lorna Hughes and David Green (December 2002) Facet Publishing, ISBN 1856044661. In terms of events, the main annual conferences are ECDL in Europe , JCDL in the US , RCDL in Russia , and ICADL in Asia . The following organisations are also good starting points for further information: The DELOS Network of Excellence on Digital Libraries was funded by the European Commission's Information Society Technologies 5th Framework Programme (IST-FP5) to actively promote and support work related to digital libraries ; The Digital Library Federation (DLF) is a consortium of US libraries and related agencies with similar aims and objectives to DELOS, and a strong focus on researching and promoting good practice; The IEEE Technical Committee on Digital Libraries (IEEE-TCDL) aims to promote research in the theory and practice of "all aspects of Collective Memories", including digital libraries, at an international level. And finally, possibly 'the' most important source of current awareness and contact with practising professionals is DIGLIB, the Digital Libraries mailing list, sponsored by IFLA . > - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Anjlee Bhatt is a Digital Library Officer for UCEEL and a Researcher on the eVALUEd project . She holds an MSc in Library and Information Studies and spends far too much time in front of a computer writing book reviews and editing for the ODP. Oh, and if anyone knows a new link for Digital Libraries, Digital Library Development or Library and Information Science: Research Organizations, she would really appreciate it if you would submit it to DMOZ through the 'add URL' link on the appropriate category page . > - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Related Free Pint links: * 'Information and Libraries' articles in the Free Pint Portal * Post a message to the author, Anjlee Bhatt, or suggest further resources at the Free Pint Bar * Read this article online, with activated hyperlinks * Access the entire archive of Free Pint content > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = >>> ASIAN MARKETING DATA & STATISTICS - 10% DISCOUNT <<< Free Pinters get a 10% discount on featured titles from Euromonitor's business reference series. Find out more about the subjects covered, and the featured title "Asian Marketing Data & Statistics": > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = FORTHCOMING EVENTS In the next couple of months Free Pint have organised some exciting new exchanges taking place in central London. We will be covering: Communities of Practice on January 30th - Understand what CoPs can do, and the organizational, managerial and technical issues of supporting them. Tour of the City on February 6th - This Exchange aims to provide an overview of the City and an introduction to some of its key information sources. Electronic Copyright on February 13th - Looking at how copyright protects works in the electronic environment, and considering the implications of copyright for websites and intranets, including the issues to take into account when deep linking. Patent Information on February 27th - The session aims to define some basic ideas about patents, de-mystify some of the legal jargon surrounding patent information, explain how patent documents come to be published and examine how some of the major databases process this information for the user. Book now as spaces are limited. You will find more information at . The 'World eLearning Conference' organised by Scottish Enterprise will be taking place on 9-12th February in Scotland. It has been "designed to facilitate an open and honest discussion among practitioners, consultants, academics and government officials on global developments and promising practices and products in eLearning" . Submit details of your event today for free promotion. Simply complete the form at . Penny > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = FREE PINT GOLD Last year in our Tips article, Ron Kaminecki pointed out some of the various nuances of patent searching on the Web. Jane Inman's feature looked at livestock information in the UK, Europe and internationally. * Free Pint No.103 10th January 2002. "Searching Patents on Government Databases on the Web" and "Livestock" Two years ago James Hatts wrote about radio industry Web sites and Brian Nisbet covered online careers information in his feature article. * Free Pint No.78, 4th January 2001. "Radio Industry Web Sites" and "Careers Information Resources" Ex Free Pint employee Simon Collery looked at 'PanEris' - whose employees work from home and communicate through the site's set of sophisticated message boards. Also in 1999, Martin White shared some key trends and developments in the information business, and offered his predictions for the coming year. * Free Pint No.53, 6th January 2000. "PanEris: a model for the virtual establishment" and "Online Information - The past and the future" Four years ago Jonathan Eaton wrote an article about 'cookies' and Charles Oppenheim covered copyright issues on the Web. * Free Pint No.29, 7th January 1999. "Understanding 'cookies' on the Web" and "Internet, copyright and linking" Coincidentally, Martin White's feature in 1998 looked at finding IT resources on the Web, a topic which has been covered again in this issue. Also, Free Pint's William Hann asked five top information professionals what their favourite Web resources were. * Free Pint No.5, 8th January 1998. "Top Five Web Resources of 1997" and "Finding IT on the WWW" Penny > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = FREE PINT FORTHCOMING ARTICLES [Provisional] * Internet Resources on IT * Alternative Search Strategies * * Prospect Research * Scenario Planning * Children and the Internet * * Military History * Information Literacy in a Corporate Environment * * Deep Linking * Vendors * Selecting a Content Management System * * Patents * France: Business and Economic Sources on the Web * * Toxicology Sources on the Web * Information Literacy * If you have a suggestion for an article topic or would like to write for Free Pint then please contact or sign up for the Author Update at . > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = GOODBYE Many thanks for reading today's Free Pint. Don't forget to check out our Exchange workshops and sale . Happy new year. See you in two weeks! William Hann, Managing Editor (c) Free Pint Limited 1997-2002 Technology by Willco > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = CONTACT INFORMATION Address: Free Pint Limited 4-6 Station Approach Ashford, Middlesex TW15 2QN, United Kingdom Tel: +44 (0)1784 420044 Fax: +44 (0)1784 420033 Directions and maps: Contributors to this issue: William Hann (Managing Editor), Penny (Free Pint Administrator), Alison Scammell, Anjlee Bhatt, Mark Kerr, Veronica Bezear Advertisers/Sponsors: Factiva, Act Now, Glen Recruitment, Sue Hill Recruitment, Recruit Media, BBC Web Subscriptions Letters & Comments Authors Latest Issue Autoresponder Advertising > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your subscriptions or password, visit or email . For details about contributing, advertising or to see past issues, please visit the Web site at or email . Please note: Free Pint (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 William Hann for more details. Product names used in Free Pint are for identification purposes only, and may be trademarks of their respective owners. Free Pint disclaims any and all rights in those marks. 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