Does it pay to beat your head against the traditional publishing wall?

I just submitted this title to the Science Online 2012 conference.  What do you think of it?  If it gets approved, who would like to see speak at this session?

Does it pay to beat your head against the traditional publishing wall?

Most academic scientists are still concerned with publishing in "traditional" journals because they are rewarded the most for publishing articles in those outlets. However, many scientists are beginning to see the advantages of publishing in new venues and Open Access journals. Should one argue with traditional publishers and their backers concerning the unsustainable scholarly communications model we are currently in, or will that exercise be futile? John Wilbanks noted: "So don’t waste breath fighting with people on the internet. Keep driving train tracks into the ground, relentlessly. Never stop building infrastructure, never stop using existing standards, never stop creating new businesses and projects that recognize open as infrastructure. That’s how we win."

Suggested by Joe Kraus (@jokrausdu)

"We are people of the screen."

This is from "TOC 2011: Kevin Kelly, 'Better than Free: How Value Is Generated in a Free Copy World'".  Found this via Patricia Anderson and this blog post.

This Internet thing is just a fad...

Maybe someday people will put music and their home movies on the net.  Nah.

Thanks to Guy Kawasaki for the link.

My library day

This should be a short little piece about #libday7.  I've taken part in #libday in the past, but only back to Libday4.

On Monday, July the 25th, I got into work a little late, since I needed to drop my 11 year old kid off at a summer camp.  It is just a week long camp at the Littleton Town Hall Arts Center.  He is learning about comedy and improvisation.

Of course, email is the first thing that I slog through, and I had a lot of it to slog through.  I was off work last Thursday afternoon and Friday.  (We went out camping with the Boy Scout Troop at the Wilderness on Wheels camp about an hour SW of here.  One of the kids designed a bench [we helped him build it] and ran a fishing and camping workshop as an eagle scout project.)  Over the weekend, I read some of the more important messages, but I left the non-essential messages till Monday.

Soooooooo, here are some of the topics of emails that I responded to.

• I let the reference faculty and staff know that the new interface of the Web of Knowedge (WoK) doesn't work very well with IE9.
• Last week, we changed all of the URLs for the databases we have in the WoK interface except for the Journal Citation Reports which hold the impact factor data.  I requested that someone from our E-Resources team change that URL as well.
• The Penrose Library is going through a huge renovation project.  I tweeted a little bit (from the Penrose Library account) about the fact that a big fence is going around the old library on Tuesday the 26th.
• I received the final signed version of the Governing Document for the Sci-Tech Division of SLA.  I posted the document on the DST website the following day.
• I worked with some people concerning an article that was submitted to the journal, Collaborative Librarianship. This took quite a bit of time to get resolved, with many emails back and forth.  I also write small blog posts for Collaborative Librarianship News.  I didn't write anything on Monday, but I did on Tuesday.  We now have over 500 blog posts!
• Got an email concerning the Handheld Librarian Conference (which is going on as I write), but I have too much other work to do today to register for it. (Such as: finish this blog post; work on an article for the Sci-Tech News; begin work on a section of the Reference Department Annual Report; continue work on an article concerning Open Access Resources with a colleague in Egypt.)
• I registered for a webinar concerning the Mendeley service on Tuesday. The presentation was captured on YouTube.  (Read that Beth also attended!)
• Saw this announcement about a free online conference, Library 2.011, and I might try to present something at it.
• I also marked three items in my delicious account.  They were: Social media find place in classroom - USATODAY.com; British Research Libraries Say No to ‘Big Deal’ Serials Packages - Wired Campus - The Chronicle of Higher Education; and The Future of Universities and Their Libraries - Committee Report - June 2011 | ALA Connect
• Investigate a problem with the footer of the library website.
• Swap a consultation shift with a colleague.

After lunch, I listened to some of this online workshop session concerning how our admissions office is using social media to interact with prospective and new students.  I often attend the WebEd workshops in person, but I didn't today.

During the rest of the afternoon, I worked as a peer reviewer for the journal, Practical Academic Librarianship.  This is a great new journal from the Academic Division of SLA.  I read most of the paper last week, but it took me a little while to write the reviewers report concerning the article that was assigned to me.  This is the first time that I have been a peer reviewer for a journal, so I wasn't sure how much feedback to provide, so it took me a while to write out my response and thoughts about the article.

That was pretty much my day.  Exciting, huh.

Presentation on "Open Access: Like free kittens, not free beer"

Open Access: Like free kittens, not free beer

View more presentations from Joseph Kraus

This particular presentation is CC BY-SA 2.5 to match the image license.

My prelim schedule at SLA in Philadelphia

Prelim schedule for me at the SLA Conference in Philadelphia.

---- Saturday, June 11, 2011 -----

Frontier flight 448
Depart: 10:33am Denver, CO Denver International (DEN)
Arrive: 4:04pm Philadelphia, PA Philadelphia International (PHL)

Take the train to East Market Station
4:00 PM-6:00 PM
446 or 4348 train to East Market Station.
4:39pm or 5:09pm
http://www.septa.org/schedules/rail/s/AIR_1.html

PAM Early Bird Dinner
6:30 PM-8:30 PM (Lee How Fook, 219 North 11th Street)
Lee How Fook, about one block north of the Convention Center. This family owned eatery is located on 11th Street between Race St and Vine St at 219 North 11th Street.

----- Sunday, June 12, 2011 -----

SLA Leadership Development Institute
7:30 AM-12:00 PM (Convention Center 201ABC)
Continental networking breakfast at 7:30 a.m.; program starts at 8:00 a.m.

DST04SU Sci-Tech Newcomer's Lunch
11:30 AM-1:00 PM (Rangoon Burmese Restaurant, 112 North 9th Street)

Meeting with Caroline Rives 1:15-1:30pm
1:15 PM-1:30 PM (Marriott 401)

DST03SU Sci-Tech Division Board Meeting
1:30 PM-3:00 PM (Convention Center 204C)

EXHSNR INFO-EXPO "Historic Philadelphia" Networking Reception
3:00 PM-5:00 PM (INFO-EXPO )

OGSNEW SLA General Session and Awards Presentation
5:15 PM-6:15 PM (Convention Center Ballroom AB)

OGS1 Opening General Session Speaker: Thomas Friedman
6:15 PM-7:15 PM (Convention Center Ballroom AB)

SLAAwards SLA Salutes! Awards and Leadership Reception
7:30 PM-10:00 PM (National Constitution Center)

----- Monday, June 13, 2011 -----

DST01MO Sci-Tech Division Business Meeting
7:30 AM-9:30 AM (Convention Center 107B)

DST02MO Crime Scene Investigation Philadelphia: Forensic Science Explained
10:00 AM-11:30 AM (Marriott Salon J)

EXHMNL INFO-EXPO "Reading Terminal Market" Networking Lunch
11:30 AM-1:30 PM (INFO-EXPO )

DFAN04MO SPOTLIGHT SESSION - Collaborations Across Disciplines
2:00 PM-3:30 PM (Convention Center Ballroom AB)
 
DFAN05MO SPOTLIGHT SESSION - Visualizing Science
4:00 PM-5:30 PM (Convention Center Ballroom AB)

DST10MO Sci-Tech Division Open House
6:00 PM-8:00 PM (The Field House, 2nd Level, 1150 Filbert Street)

LSW meetup at the Field House
8-10pm

Elsevier Dessert reception, Marriott 1201 Market St.
7:30 PM-11:30 PM

----- Tuesday, June 14, 2011 -----

DPAM07TU PAM Vendor Update and Networking Breakfast
8:00 AM-9:30 AM (Convention Center 113C)

DCHE04TU Developments in Informatics
10:00 AM-11:30 AM (Convention Center 109B)

Lunch with 8 people at Lee How Fook Restaurant
12:00 PM-1:30 PM (219 North 11th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19107)
Lee How Fook Restaurant
http://www.leehowfook.com/
219 North 11th Street
Philadelphia, PA 19107
Has pretty good reviews, http://bit.ly/lNxUoj

Business Hours: Tues-Sun., 11:30am - 10:00pm
Phone Number: 215-925-7266

DST05TU The Science of Ice Cream
2:00 PM-3:30 PM (Convention Center 203B)

INFO-EXPO "Rittenhouse Square" Networking Reception
3:30 PM-5:30 PM

SLADCabinet SLA Division Cabinet Meeting
5:30 PM-7:00 PM (Marriott Salon I)

All-Sciences Poster Session and Reception
5:30 PM-7:30 PM (Marriott Salon AB)
Title: All-Sciences Poster Session and Reception Length: 90 Minutes Technical Level: Introductory Abstract: Learn about the interesting things your colleagues are doing as they seek to cultivate or enhance scientists' knowledge management skills and demonstrate the value of our services to our parent organizations or potential clients. The poster session provides an informal and lively venue for sharing innovative ideas about important topics.

SLAJoint SLA Joint Cabinet Meeting
7:00 PM-8:00 PM (Marriott Salon H)

IT Dance Party
9:00 PM-11:45 PM (Marriott Salon E)
Abstract: Get your groove on at the annual IT Dance Party!
Tuesday,14th June 2011 09:00 PM Marriott Salon E

----- Wednesday, June 15, 2011 -----

DST07WE Science 2.1: New Forms of Scholarly Communication in the Sciences
8:00 AM-9:30 AM (Convention Center 203A)

DST08WE Sci-Tech 101
10:00 AM-11:30 AM (Convention Center 203B)

DST06WE Data: The Next Generation—Sci-Tech Division Contributed Papers
12:00 PM-1:30 PM (Convention Center 112B)

CGSNEW SLA Closing General Session and Membership Meeting
2:00 PM-3:00 PM (Convention Center Ballroom AB)

CGS1 Closing General Session Speaker James Kane
3:00 PM-4:00 PM (Convention Center Ballroom AB)

Happy hour - McGillin’s Olde Ale House

1310 Drury Street, Philadelphia, PA

5-9pm

LSW Meetup Baseball game?
7-10pm Phillies stadium?

----- Thursday, June 16, 2011 -----

DMIL05TH Tastykake Factory Tour at Old Naval Shipyard
8:00 AM-12:00 PM (Tastykake Factory)

EPA Library Tour
10:00 AM-12:00 PM (1650 Arch Street (entrance to EPA offices is on 17th St.) 2nd floor)
http://epatour2011.pbworks.com

Frontier Airlines 449 back home. Leaves at 4:50pm
2:00 PM-7:15 PM
Depart: 4:50pm Philadelphia, PA Philadelphia International (PHL)
Arrive: 7:15pm Denver, CO Denver International (DEN)

Some videos of the e-G8 conference in France

What is the e-G8? This was a major conference looking at international policies concerning the control of the Internet and Intellectual Property.

Here are some good videos of some of my favorite speakers talking about the need to keep innovation on the Internet open to new advances and new types of publishers.




Keynote - e-G8 from lessig on Vimeo.

Video of John Perry Barlow—EFF co-founder. He starts around minute 29:30.

Another great video of Heather Joseph - "Setting the Default to Open"

"Setting the Default to Open: Using Research to Advance the Public Good"
www.bigideasfest.org
License: Creative Commons BY-NC-SA

UCLA talk by John Wilbanks - "The Fragmentation and Re-Integration of Scholarly Communication"

I've had the pleasure of seeing John Wilbanks speak once before. Here he is at UCLA talking about changes in scholarly communication.  Recorded May 11th, 2011.

Thanks Bora for the notice.

Here is the blurb from UCLA:

The UCLA Library is proud to share this presentation by John Wilbanks, VP for Science at Creative Commons, entitled "The Fragmentation and Re-Integration of Scholarly Communication."  The scientific paper has been the primary container and distribution vessel for scientific knowledge for centuries. It's a creative work subject to the same sorts of legal and technical pressures as other creative works: it's part of an industrial-creative complex built on artificial scarcity, distribution, and top-down decisions about what is going to be high impact. And it is subject to the same disruption by the internet as other industries with that attitude, like music. But unlike music, there was a set of intermediaries creating a lot of inertia that kept the network from being disruptive, including funding agencies, tenure and review systems, and general lack of incentives. But the revolution that broke apart the music industry is well under way in scholarly communication. The journal is fragmenting already into the article, but it's not going to stop there - the advent of assertion-enhanced publishing, nano-publication, data publication, and more are going to drive a rapid disintegration of traditional "container cultures" and business models for scholarly communication.  This talk examines the progress made to date by the internet in etching away at the traditional means of scientific knowledge transfer, the importance of the digital commons in a world where content is fragmented, and some future avenues for "re-integrating" fragmented scientific communication that build on open systems. The talk was recorded at the Charles E. Young Research Library on May 11th, 2011.

Academic Libraries can have it both ways

There has been a lot of discussion lately about the future of academic libraries and libraries in general.  These posts do a good job responding to the well-known marketer's post, Seth Godin.

He doesn't really address academic or special libraries in the post. These libraries provide access to content that is scholarly or business information or things that are not mostly mass-market material (or kids books or $20 DVDs, etc.) This morning, I got a request for us to purchase a book on urban transport in the developing world by Edward Elgar [Regular Price $280.00 Web Price $252.00]. Good luck finding that for $10 on your kindle. (It is available online through different sources and for well over $200, but I don't see it for sale at Google Books like they say it is.) This is why we spend millions of dollars to get about 25,000 books a year. They average well over $40/book. They are not going down in price.

What do I mean by having it both ways?

The library can have print books and transition to electronic resources at the same time.  It shouldn't be an either/or discussion.  We have been doing that for years, and we have been doing a great job building a fantastic electronic collection of resources. (And, we have been providing great services with a small faculty and staff.)  There should be no reason to keep most of our print materials in off-site storage about 10 miles away.  My university administration wants to put most of the collection into storage to make more room for seating.  We were going to do that with the compact storage so we could open up most of the third level.  I feel this is defeating some of our core purposes. (Particularly "save the time of the user" when they have to wait 3-4 hours for a delivery and "every book its reader" and the need for open shelving for browsing.)

Without a good-sized collection on the campus, the library may not be as much of a draw, and the need for seating may become mute.  Seth notes that we are "defending library as warehouse as opposed to fighting for the future, which is librarian as producer, concierge, connector, teacher and impresario."  Just because we are arguing to keep print books on campus does not mean that we can't fight for the future--as the producer, connector and teacher of information.  Seth's logic is simply flawed.

We often use physical print books to help our students learn, in addition to teaching our students how to use and find all of the ebooks and databases and ejournals and websites and such.  We do know that more and more people are using electronic resources, and we also know that people still use traditional books and printed media.  This is a collection that I have been building for the last 13 years, and that librarians here have been building for the last 147 years.  Yes, much academic content is not popular, and the books are not checked out very often, but it is important and useful for scholarly research.  To send much of it off campus because some of the material has not been checked out more than X times is painful for me to watch.  (I can understand sending off material that has not been checked out at all since 1997.)

What am I going to do?  I am still going to do my best to provide the best service for our students and faculty, that is for sure, but it will be more challenging in the new environment.