Library Juice 4:19, May 23, 2001

Contents:

1. What are you reading?
2. Publishers Looting the Library
3. Tu Bibliotecario Electronico: Una Guia al Internet
4. Independent Publishing Matters
5. BLIND-SIDED BY AMAZON.COM
6. Bibliofind-Amazon Data Grab
7. Book Reviews for Sale at ForeWord Magazine
8. Call for ALA to respond to the Marriott Boycott
9. 10th Annual Free Speech Buffet
10. Annual Street Newspaper Conference Set for San Francisco
11. Zines: A Librarian's Short Guide to the World of Self-Publishing
12. IFLA PROTESTS CLOSURE OF BRITISH COUNCIL LIBRARY IN ZIMBABWE
13. Observations on SIMS and Librarianship
14. How to subscribe to ALAOIF, IFACTION and other ALA lists
15. Color Matters

Quote for the week:

"One distinguishing feature of contemporary culture in America is that
information is consumed for diversion rather than for consequential
purposes.  Paradoxically, in other words, information of all kinds is
processed as low-level cognitive distraction, a form of mass entertainment.
The collapsing of news, data, broadcast, and leisure media has resulted in
an entertainment culture where the act of consuming information is as
diversionary as watching a variety show or a situation comedy...  The
simple term "information" may no longer be adequate to describe the
spectrum of input available to human beings in their capacities as data
processors."

Joseph Urgo, _In the Age of Distraction_, University of Mississippi Press,
2000

Homepage of the week: Beth Hinrichs
http://www.bethamy.com/

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1. What are you reading?

I'm interested in knowing what Library Juice readers are reading.
Please send me a few words about what books (or periodicals) you are
reading and why you would recommend them (or not).  If I get enough
responses I will compile them into a feature in an upcoming issue.
Thanks!

Rory Litwin
Rory[at]libr.org
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2. Publishers Looting the Library

Subject: Important Story
Date: Wed, 16 May 2001 09:55:02 -0700
From: "Blake Carver" <btcarver[at]lisnews.com>

I just wanted to make sure that no one misses this story, seems to me to be
very important.

http://www.techreview.com/magazine/jun01/shulman.asp
TechReview has This Amazing Story by Seth Shulman on what he calls "Looting
the Library" by publishers.
He says publishers new greedy "pay-per-use model" for information content
that will largely shut libraries out. No kind words for Pat Schroeder who he
quotes as saying that publishers have to "learn to push back" against
libraries.
He points out Peter Chernin, president and chief operating officer of Rupert
Murdoch's News Corporation is calling for legislation that "guarantees
publishers' control of not only the integrity of an original work, but of
the extent and duration of users' access to that work, the availability of
data about the work and restrictions on forwarding the work to others". You
can see what that would do.

I agree with him when he says:
"Too much is at stake to let the publishing industry undo the careful
copyright balance we have all come to rely upon."

---------------------
Blake Carver
LISNews.com
http://www.lisnews.com
Librarian and Information Science News

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3. Tu Bibliotecario Electronico: Una Guia al Internet

http://skipper.gseis.ucla.edu/students/bjensen/html/sol/bibliotecario2.htm

        At last there is a comprehensive guide to the Web in
        Spanish. Bruce Jensen, a bilingual library school
        student, has compiled a series of links to Web tutorials,
        search engines, dictionaries, encyclopedias, translation
        services, indexes, news services, and government
        information. He also includes links to Spanish-language
        libraries, e-mail providers, and Web page hosting
        services. This is a very useful resource for Spanish
        speakers and those who assist them. - bb

From Librarians' Index to the Internet - http://lii.org
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4. Independent Publishing Matters

Beth Schulman

Vital public discourse starts small. That's why independent periodicals
with modest circulations - exemplified by the members of the IPA - matter
just as profoundly in 1999 as they did a century ago. The practice of
democracy, everywhere in the world, depends on media outlets like these.

Despite the proliferation of all-news cable channels, talk radio and the
now ubiquitous internet, print persists as the medium where we begin to
describe and name public problems, where we undertake the first discussion
of issues that shape the daily lives of ordinary people.

And, while mainstream newspapers and magazines may participate in this
process, feisty independent publications generate the most innovative
reporting, analysis and debate. Investigative reporters, academics, policy
specialists and other advocates for change do their most original work in
these pages. There they know they can expect to engage the readers they
encounter - even through the smallest of these publications - in the kind
of spirited exchange necessary to refine and sharpen a new idea. These
conversations, all too often ignored or pushed to the margins, can grow to
become the cornerstones essential to building new public policies and new
ways of thinking.

Many of the periodicals in the IPA take it as their mission to move
readers beyond conversation to action. The independent, "alternative" press
is organically connected to social movements. Publications rise, fall or
subsist in circumstances that parallel the movements they represent. Such
periodicals serve as forums for debating strategic approaches, for finding
common cause among seemingly disparate, often geographically diffuse,
constituencies, and, in hard times, for relentless critiques and attempts
to resolve factional quarrels.

When, in the spring of 1776, Thomas Paine used a self-published pamphlet
called Common Sense to argue that rebellion against the crown was a
legitimate response to oppressive conditions, he directly challenged the
prevailing public sentiment that acts of rebellion were beyond the
boundaries of responsible civic behavior. By the summer of 1776, Paine's
radical argument had evolved into a new conventional wisdom.

In a series of 1862 articles in his small circulation Douglass Monthly,
Frederick Douglass argued that the best way to disrupt the Confederacy was
to take southern blacks out of slavery and put them into Yankee uniforms.
Douglass' arguments crystallized new but growing recognition throughout the
Union leadership that slavery had become an obstacle to preserving the
Union. The Douglass Monthly and Frederick Douglass himself deserve much of
the credit for persuading Abraham Lincoln to sign the Emancipation
roclamation.

Ida Tarbell, Ray Stannard Baker and the other muckrakers exposed "the
underside of American capitalism" in the pages of Colliers', McClure's and
other popular magazines. Before these crusading journalists were silenced
by new, industry-friendly, magazine owners, they had facilitated the
passage of some of the Progressive era's most effective regulatory reforms.

Writing in The Revolution, a nineteenth century journal whose circulation
never exceeded 2,500, Susan B. Anthony began a critique of gender-based
civil discrimination that galvanized the movement for universal suffrage. A
century later, her successors, in the pages of still-extant periodicals
like Feminist Studies and Off Our Backs, offered the analysis that has
expanded the definition of feminism to include militancy against rape,
domestic violence and the poverty of single mothers.

In the Cold War era, analysis appearing in the pages of Monthly Review,
Latin American Perspectives, The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists and
dozens of other journalistic and scholarly titles fundamentally informed
organized efforts to influence US policy on nuclear weapons, Vietnam, and
Nicaragua.

Challenging conventional wisdom. Speaking truth to power. Exposing
unpleasant realities. Giving voice to the silenced. These are the sacred
priorities of advocacy journalism. Throughout the twentieth century,
oppositional and minority movements, including people of color, the
disabled, gays and lesbians, workers and welfare mothers, have used
small-circulation periodicals to develop the vision and power their
struggles have required. Beth Schulman is the IPA Education Director and
publisher of charter IP member In These Times.

Beth can be reached at the IPA's Chicago-area office at (815) 756-6656 or
via e-mail at bethschu[at]indypress.org.

Excerpted from the introduction to Annotations: A Guide to the Critical
and Independent Press, new from the IPA and the Alternative Press Center.
IPA: http://www.indypress.org
APC: http://www.altpress.org

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5. BLIND-SIDED BY AMAZON.COM

By Barry Hoffman

...published here by permission of the author.

I am the publisher of Gauntlet Press, a specialty press that publishes
signed limited editions of classic titles (Ray Bradbury's SOMETHING WICKED
THIS WAY COME, Richard Matheson's SOMEWHERE IN TIME to name just two) and
the works of contemporary authors (F. Paul Wilson, Poppy Z. Brite, Peter
Straub). We publish 6 signed limiteds per year and sell our books to
individuals through our website and mailing list, specialty dealers and on
Amazon.com. That was, until last week. In the past several months prior to
a new title's publication I would go to the Publisher's page on Amazon.com
and fill out a form to list our title as a Special Order. I would also
forward a .jpg of the cover art. Once the book was listed (within a week) I
could provide additional information (publisher's comments, reviews,
interviews and author's comments). I decided the discount. Amazon.com paid
for shipping. Orders came directly to me and I would ship the very next
day. Aside from exposing the book to the world (we've received emails from
Poland, Israel, Japan and Australia regarding books purchased on
Amazon.com) a major benefit was getting paid up-front. With the purchase
order was Amazon.com's credit card. No paperwork. No waiting thirty, sixty
or ninety days for payment. It seemed almost too good to be true.

It was.

When I went to register a forthcoming title last week I wasn't able to
list the title. Instead (and with no notice whatsoever) Amazon.com changed
their policy. To be listed your title had to be carried by Ingram or Baker
and Taylor (two of the largest distributors in the country). Or, you could
opt for Amazon.com's Advantage Program.

So, what's the problem? Ingram, Baker & Taylor, as well as the Amazon.com
Advantage Program takes a 55% cut (plus the publisher pays for shipping) on
all titles. Ingram and Baker & Taylor have a return policy (they can return
any book for any reason. Baker & Taylor can do so for six months, Ingram
for as long as the title is in print). Ingram pays in 90 days, Baker &
Taylor in 60 days.

The ramifications of this change in policy can be enormous not just for a
specialty press like Gauntlet. Almost all small presses (whether their
focus is on poetry, literary fiction the mass market won't touch,
publishing new authors who have little name recognition or controversial
material) will suffer and have to decide how to deal with this new dynamic.

The small/specialty press loses an incredible amount of money as a result
of this policy change. When we could list as a Special Order the publisher
determined the discount, whether it be zero, 10%, 20% or 30%. You looked at
your costs and determined what discount to provide. Now, you automatically
have to allocate 55% for the distributor. Take a book that sells for $40.
With the discount you take in $18 per book. Not $18 in profit, mind you.
There's the cost of printing (which can be steep for small print runs),
shipping charges required by Ingram and Baker & Taylor, cover and interior
art, advertising and . . . oh, yes, the author's royalty. If a publisher
clears $5 profit per book, they're lucky. Yes, those of us in the specialty
press do so more for the love of books than money. But, we do have rent to
pay and food to put on the table. With this new policy we're almost giving
books away. Some publishers will be squeezed out with the reader the
ultimate victim.

How does this change the way I evaluate a project? Well, I can't take a
chance on an unknown author, nor many mid-list authors we've published in
the past. And you can forget about anthologies unless a big name is
attached. They are more expensive to produce (in a signed limited format).

How does this change book publishing in general? The mid-list author has
already been squeezed out of the mass market. Many reinvigorated their
careers through the small or specialty press. The late-Richard Laymon was
extremely prolific, but until the specialty press began publishing signed
limited editions of his novels he was virtually unknown in this country. As
a result of both critical and commercial success with his specialty press
titles he had finally landed a mass market paperback contract. The
specialty press will be reluctant to take on such projects if their
profit-margin is cut to almost nothing. New, unknown authors will be hurt
even more. They don't yet have a fan base. Price a book at $20 and before
expenses you have to give the distributor $12. The publisher could well
lose money on such titles.

But what about Amazon.com's Advantage Program, some will ask? With the
Advantage Program Amazon.com basically acts as a distributor, like Ingram
and Baker & Taylor. Check their guidelines. They take a 55% non-negotiable
cut. They say the advantage is you can list publisher's comments, author's
comments, reviews and interviews. But, when the Special Order option was
available I could do that without paying 55%. Amazon.com will scan and
display cover art. I scanned and forwarded Amazon.com cover art and it cost
me nothing as a Special Order title. Look at the fine print and you see
that a book won't be displayed until it's actually published under the
Advantage Program. As a Special Order I was able to list a book six months
prior to publication. Even Ingram and Baker & Taylor provide better service
in this regard. They encourage you to list a book prior to publication.
They list the book and then then post it on Amazon.com. So, the publisher
is stabbing himself in the foot by going with the Advantage Program. If a
book generates pre-publication buzz (via galley proofs, reviews,
advertising) numerous orders can be pending prior to the book's
publication. One of the books we published received orders for over 100
copies from Amazon.com the day it saw publication as it had been listed for
months on Amazon.com as a Special Order title and orders had already been
taken. Being paid immediately allowed us to pay a good portion of our
printing bill. With the Advantage Program you must wait until the book is
physically available before it is listed. The Advantage Program doesn't pay
for shipping. Again, the publisher must absorb this cost along with the 55%
discount. And the publisher gets paid once a month through the Advantage
Program. Better than the others distributors, but not as good as with a
Special Order title.

So, what can and should be done? In the best of all worlds, there would be
a great outcry from libraries and the specialty press, buttressed by
organizations that provide services for this segment of the book community.
The adverse publicity will force Amazon.com to rethink their decision and
Special Orders will be reinstated.

There's also the compromise. When I spoke with a representative at
Amazon.com I was told the reason for the change was the bottom line.
Amazon.com wants to generate profits. I can sympathize. I want to generate
profits for Gauntlet Press. Why not agree to allow listing of Special Order
titles at a 20-30% discount? I could live with that. Amazon.com would
profit, as well.

Although many people condemn Amazon.com for a variety of reasons, the
company's relations with alternative and small press publishers until now
have been very positive.  They opened the world to books offered by small
and specialty press publishers. They prepaid. There was no need to generate
time-consuming paperwork. Now they've become just another distributor out
to make a buck. Without immediate action the impact on specialty and small
presses, as well as mid-list and unknown authors may well be devastating.
And that is the bottom line.

Barry Hoffman is the publisher of Gauntlet Press (www.gauntletpress.com),
editor/publisher of Gauntlet magazine, the only mass market publication
focusing on censorship and is the author of four published novels, HUNGRY
EYES, EYES OF PREY, BORN BAD and JUDAS EYES. Gauntlet Press won the 1999
HWA award for Best Small Press. Hoffman was a nominee this year for the
PEN/Newman's Own First Amendment Award for censorship of his novel BORN
BAD.
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6. Bibliofind-Amazon Data Grab

Date: Mon, 14 May 2001 20:04:11 -0700 (PDT)
From: Bill Hale <holdout[at]shell12.ba.best.com>
To: Undisclosed recipients: ;

RIP Bibliofind

Amazon, who not long ago purcahsed Bibliofind, has gone and done it. Cut
buyers off from sellers unless the data runs through them. On looking for
used, you are shown only the barest essentials and, initially, only the
"first?" with a price -- nevermind the others.

Now, your search is labeled for used by title and author and you get
jammed into Amazon's new at full retail [on one I just ran] which will
total more than buying locally with tax.

Check out the privacy policy. It's time for an alternate to this late,
great, used book buying site.

Bill Hale
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7. Book Reviews for Sale at ForeWord Magazine

[SRRTAC-L:6193] Book Reviews for Sale!
Date: Mon, 14 May 2001 15:16:52 -0400
From: "Casey Hill" <chill[at]newpages.com>
To: SRRT Action Council <srrtac-l[at]ala.org>

ForeWord Magazine has started a new web site and business. For $295 per book
they will review any book -- new or old. They anticipate reviewing 1,000
books a month by January 2002.

I have written several times to a publishing mailing list about how I find
this to be an awful idea & one that will ultimately trash any reputation
ForeWord Magazine has built.

My question to you is this: How many of you now consider ForeWord Magazine a
"highly respected" review magazine, and how many of you would ever trust any
review that was paid for by the publisher? Would you select titles for your
libraries from a website of paid-for reviews?

These paid-for reviews will also appear on several databases such as Baker &
Taylor and Ingram. No distinction will be made between free reviews from
ForeWord Magazine and the paid-for "reviews" from their new website.

Would this carry over to your trust for the integrity of the print magazine
where there will still be some reviews done the old-fashioned way... for
free.

Casey
http://www.newpages.com

.. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. ..

[SRRTAC-L:6194] Re: Book Reviews for Sale!
Date: Mon, 14 May 2001 12:43:04 -0700
From: "Diedre Conkling" <dconklin[at]OregonVOS.net>
To: SRRT Action Council <srrtac-l[at]ala.org>

My answers:

1.    I have never used ForeWord Magazine as a review source (though I have
   looked through it to find out about new titles).
   
2.    I would never trust that a review that someone bought was a reliable
   review.  I would think that they would only want to pay for good reviews, so
   to make money the review source would only have good reviews.
   
3.    So, no, I would not select materials from a site of paid reviews.

Diedre Conkling         Lincoln County Library District
                                  P.O. Box 2027, Newport, OR  97365
                                  Phone & Fax:  (541) 265-3066
                                  E-mail:  dconklin[at]OregonVOS.net
.. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. ..

[SRRTAC-L:6195] Re: Book Reviews for Sale!
Date: Mon, 14 May 2001 16:39:52 -0400
From: Mark Rosenzweig <iskra[at]earthlink.net>
To: SRRT Action Council <srrtac-l[at]ala.org>

This is a very interesting matter Casey has brought to our attention. A
while ago  I wouldn't think any responsible librarian would justify using
paid-for reviews as a selection guide, but then I have heard more & more
about how the personal review material (even though you usually have no
idea of who these people are or where they're coming from) and the company
reviews (obviously promotional) themselves attached to Amazon.com items
have been praised even by some SRRT librarians as 'useful bibliographic
tools,' so I suppose anything is possible. some even link their OPACS to
Amazon using that justification, an odious trend.

There's no way to stop something like ForeWard. But we shouldn't let their
ad hype about their services just hang there dangling. Like Casey I think
the idea stinks (and I also don't think it will work). But it seems hard to
underestimate the willingness of people to convince themselves of things
like that the "end" of promoting books, some of them non-mainstream"
somehow justifies the means, embracing a commercially driven model of
review. However the latter is different and not the equivalent of vanity
publishing.  It will be, as Casey suggests, much more destructive: blurring
yet another line between the commercial and non-commercial between
reviewing and advertising,  all reviewing will ultimately suffer for the
pollution of the well of information about books such services as ForeWord
will provide.

Mark
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8. Call for ALA to respond to the Marriott Boycott

[SRRTAC-L:6214] How much is it costing to celebrate while workers demonstrate?
Date: Tue, 15 May 2001 20:48:49 -0400
From: Mark Rosenzweig <iskra[at]earthlink.net>
To: SRRT Action Council <srrtac-l[at]ala.org>
Reply to: srrtac-l[at]ala.org

Dear fellow Councilors & members of the Executive Board,

We've just received material from Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees
Union Local 2 regarding the boycott of the Marriott in San Francisco. It
follows these brief  remarks.

I think ALA has made a big mistake in not (to my knowledge) reponding,
positively, in an official way, to the organizers of the San Francisco
Marriott boycott.

Except for some provision of information to attendees who suport the boycott
about how if they wish to they can make alternative hotel reservations and
some help in this respect by ALA, nothing really has been done. And
organized labor in SF is not unaware of this. Perthaps we don't care what
trade unionists think of the Association?

It is one thing to have made the mistake in the first place of making the
Marrriott the Conference Hotel.

It is another not to have issued an official statement of support for the
union, perhaps a pledge not to book at any Marriott's until the dispute is
settled.

Or at least moving something like the Past President's Banquet out of the
Marriott.

This is a purely ceremonial affair the money for which surely, as with so
many other such things at the Conferences, could have been put to better
use.

How much is it costing to celebrate while the supporters of the food
workers demonstrate? I think members might want to know.

That is an example of an official ALA event which COULD have been relocated
as a dramatic gesture of solidarity. Instead, it seems that, unless the
organizers of the banquet make provision for speakers from the coalition
supporting the Food Workers Union to speak at the affair, and to distribute
literature,  the event will be a sign of indifference to working people in
San Francisco.

I have been told of a number of instances of members talking of quitting
ALA because of its indifference to labor. I know of prominent people, life
members who, ordinarily present at such affairs, out of conscience will not
attend the banquet at the Marriott.

We have done virtually nothing. With ALA's preoccupation with PR, this is a
story which wil blacken the image of this conference, of the association
and the profession. I know many of you haven't had this in the forefront of
your thoughts about the upcoming conference, but I feel an obligation to
remind you, fellow Councilors, members of the Exceutive Board,  that there
is stil time to do something representing active support for the workers
and public regret for choosing the Marriott.

Mark Rosenzweig

Here are some pertinent facts the boycotters want you to know:

• this labor struggle has been going on for 20 years
  
• US gov't has NLRB cases against Marriott for severe violations
  of US labor laws
  
• San Fran. Mayor Willie Brown called for boycott of the hotel on
  Labor Day 2000; boycott endorsed by Jesse Jackson and numerous Calif.
  politicians, labor and religious leaders
  

Since the boycott began:
 1. former Labor Sec'y Robert Reich, pulled out as keynote speaker
at a convention being held in the hotel;
 2. the Am. Political Sci. Assoc.cancelled 300 rooms 7 months prior to
their convention;
 3. the Calif. Alumni Assoc. pulled out its annual banquet 1 month prior
to the event prompted by author Maxine Hong Kingston;
 4. the Nat'l Assoc. of Insurance Commissioners cancelled meeting at San
Fran Marriott and went to New Orleans.
 5. Local 2 members stage 2-day, round-the-clock pickets every time the
hotel is full.
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9. 10th Annual Free Speech Buffet

The SRRT Alternatives In Print Task Force is sponsoring the 10th
Annual FREE SPEECH BUFFET during the ALA annual conference in San
Francisco.

This free event features dozens of local alternative and independent
publishers of books and periodicals displaying their wares to local
and visiting librarians.  It is a great opportunity to find out about
significant and interesting new publications that won't be on display
in the exhibit hall.  It is also a perennial networking opportunity
and a lot of fun.

This year's event will take place on the lower level of Saint Mary's
Cathedral (the modern one) on:

• Monday evening, June 18th, from 6 to 9 pm.

Saint Mary's cathedral is at 1111 Gough Street at Geary.  Take the 38
bus on Geary, (2 blocks from the Convention Center at Kearny and
Market).  It runs every 5 minutes and is a 15 minute ride to Geary &
Gough.  The entrance to the lower level of the Cathedral is on Gough
underneath the main entrance.  Take a left to get to Room A. Free
parking is also available if you are driving.

Social Responsibilities Round Table: http://libr.org/SRRT/
Alternatives In Print Task Force: http://libr.org/AIP/

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10. Annual Street Newspaper Conference Set for San Francisco

July 26-29

The 6th Annual Conference of the North American Street Newspaper
Association (NASNA) will be held July 26-29 in San Francisco.

The conference will be hosted by Street Sheet, Poor Magazine, and
Street Spirit, the street newspapers of the Bay Area.  One hundred and
fifty attendees representing over 45 street newspapers are expected to
participate.  Workshop sessions on all aspects of street newspaper
operations will be held along with keynote speakers and a business
session for NASNA.

Founded in 1996, NASNA is a coalition of street newspapers from the
U.S. and Canada.

For more information about the conference, please contact: Michael
Stoops at the National Coalition for the Homeless (202-737-6444 x19),
mstoops[at]nationalhomeless.org
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11. Zines: A Librarian's Short Guide to the World of Self-Publishing

http://64.81.48.24/chad/sjsu/262/zines/

        A basic primer on the world of print and electronic
        zines, a wide variety of self-published creative work.
        Includes a few brief reviews of some basic books on
        the craft, links to a few e-zines, a look at bookstores in
        the San Francisco Bay region that sell zines, and some
        sample pages. A good starting resource for any
        librarian or book store owner who has been asked
        about zines. - ht

From Librarians' Index to the Internet - http://lii.org
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12. IFLA PROTESTS CLOSURE OF BRITISH COUNCIL LIBRARY IN ZIMBABWE

For immediate release
21 May 2001
The Hague, Netherlands

The International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions
(IFLA) has protested to His Excellency Mr Robert Mugabe, President of the
Republic of Zimbabwe about the closure of the British Council Library and
Information Service in Harare on 8 May 2001 and until further notice.

Mr Alex Byrne, Chair of the IFLA Committee on Free Access to Information
and Freedom of Expression, said "Librarians around the world are dismayed
to learn of the closure of the British Council library service in Harare as
a result of intimidation.  We understand that this is part of a pattern of
intimidation of international non-governmental organisations."

"The security of the premises no longer allow the staff to safely carry
out their daily duties in a satisfactory manner, nor can it guarantee free
and unhampered passage for the clients."

The consequence of the closure of a facility such as the British Council
Library will deny a great number of citizens of Zimbabwe free access to
information and to the services normally provided by the Library for an
indefinite and, we fear, long period of time. Mr Byrne noted "It removes a
facility which has been of tremendous educational, social and economic
benefit to Zimbabwe for many years."

IFLA has called on the Government of Zimbabwe to take measures instantly
to ensure that the British Council Library and Information Service can be
reopened very soon and that the safety of its staff, clients and premises
can be safeguarded and free access to information restored.

Contacts:
Mr Alex Byrne, Chair, IFLA Committee on Free Access to Information and
Freedom of Expression, Sydney, Australia.
Tel: +61 2 9514 3332,
Fax: + 61 2 9514 3331
Email: alex.byrne[at]uts.edu.au

Ms Susanne Seidelin, Director, IFLA FAIFE Office, Copenhagen, Denmark.
Tel: +45 3258 6066 est 532 4637
Fax:  +45   Email: sus[at]db.dk
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13. Observations on SIMS and Librarianship...

Date: Tue, 15 May 2001 13:07:34 -0700
From: Lincoln Cushing <lcush[at]sims.berkeley.edu>

SIMS graduation speech 5/12/2001
Lincoln Cushing

Hello. I'd like to thank the student body for asking me to speak today.

Many years ago I was driving my mother and my kids to see the movie "The
Lion King". My mother was at a stage of Alzheimer's where reality and
fantasy become one big poetic blur. I asked her how things were going
inside her head; she was quiet for a moment, and just when I thought she
had missed the question entirely she looked straight at me, and in a
matter-of-fact tone said "My marbles, they've all rolled away."

At SIMS our job is to keep marbles together. We learn the tools needed
to skillfully save and retrieve data. Because this is a new program with
an exciting future, I'd like to take this opportunity to talk about our
mission and core values. I come from a family of journalists, where, as
H.L. Mencken once said, our mission is to "Comfort the afflicted and
afflict the comfortable." Nearby on campus is the Goldman School of
Public Policy, whose slogan is "Speaking truth to power." This campus is
world-reknown for keeping the flame of Free Speech alive during a
difficult time. Why are we here?

We have the distinction of being the second class of U.C. Berkeley
students to graduate from this building having started in one century
and finishing in the next. The student tour guides describe us as "The
newest program on campus in the oldest building on campus." This is only
partially true. Our roots began soon after the First World War when this
was established as the Department, then later the School, of
Librarianship. From 1976 through 1995 it was the School of Library and
Information Studies, which included a broad range of courses similar to
today's SIMS. If we are to truly take a leadership role in this new
field I would suggest that SIMS must endorse a clear and progressive set
of core values. This program embodies much more than powerful search
engines and user-friendly interfaces. Since our roots lie in
librarianship, perhaps we can look there for guidance. Librarianship is
a profession emphasizing public service and open access to information.
We could do worse than begin with these goals.

These are truly wondrous times, but the eternal struggle between private
greed and social need continues unabated. The commodification of
information is the contested terrain that we face in this new
millennium. Almost all of the stock photographs in the world are now
owned by two companies, Corbis and Getty One. Consumer data is routinely
bought and sold with little regard for personal privacy. Even genetic
codes, the mother of all life data, are now corporate currency. These
are but a few examples of the ethical challenges we will have to deal
with in the years to come. Whose information? Managed for what purpose?
These are the questions we must not be afraid to ask. Information
management can be an honorable and proud profession. It is up to all of
us here to make it so.

Thank you.

Lincoln Cushing
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14. How to subscribe to ALAOIF, IFACTION and other ALA lists

[IFACTION:1497] Subscribing to ALAOIF, IFACTION, and Other Lists REVISITED
Date: Wed, 11 Apr 2001 16:45:19 -0500
From: "Don Wood" <dwood[at]ala.org>
To: Intellectual Freedom Action News <ifaction[at]ala1.ala.org>
Reply to: dwood[at]ala.org

Subscribing to ALAOIF and Other Lists
http://www.ala.org/alaorg/oif/elists.html

ALA DISCUSSION LISTS

ALADNOW is a discussion list of the ALA Library Advocacy Network for
idea sharing, updates and
legislative alerts of special interest to library advocates. To
subscribe, send a message to listproc[at]ala.org. Leave the subject line
blank. In the body of the message, type: subscribe aladnow yourfirstname
yourlastname.

ALANEWS is a subscription service to obtain news releases online,
issued by the ALA Public Information Office. To subscribe, send a
message to listproc[at]ala.org. Leave the subject line blank. In the body
of the message, type: subscribe alanews yourfirstname yourlastname.

ALAOIF is an unmoderated discussion list of the Office for Intellectual
Freedom. To subscribe, send a message to listproc[at]ala.org. Leave the
subject line blank. In the body of the message, type: subscribe alaoif
yourfirstname yourlastname.

ALAWON is a free, irregular publication of the American Library
Association Washington Office. To
subscribe, send a message to listproc[at]ala.org. Leave the subject line
blank. In the body of the message, type: subscribe ala-wo yourfirstname
yourlastname. To unsubscribe, send the message: unsubscribe ala-wo to
listproc[at]ala.org. Find ALAWON archives at
tp://www.ala.org/washoff/alawon.

IFACTION is a news-only, no-discussion e-list of the Intellectual
Freedom Action Network (IFAN) and the Office for Intellectual Freedom.
Several intellectual freedom news items are posted daily. To subscribe,
send a message to listproc[at]ala.org. Leave the subject line blank. In the
body of the message, type: subscribe ifaction yourfirstname
yourlastname.

Digest Mail

To receive ALA e-lists in digest form, send the following command as
the only text in an e-mail message to listproc[at]ala.org:

     set NAMEOFELIST mail digest

FYI

OTHER LISTS

ACLU CAMPUS MAILING LIST is maintained by the American Civil Liberties
Union. For a description,see ACLU MAILING LISTS. To subscribe to the
ACLU Action List, send a message to
majordomo[at]aclu.org with "subscribe campus" in the body of the message.
To end your subscription, send a message to majordomo[at]aclu.org with
"unsubscribe campus" in the body of the message.

ACLU CYBER-LIBERTIES UPDATE is maintained by the American Civil
Liberties Union. For a
description, see ACLU MAILING LISTS. To subscribe to the ACLU Action
List, send a message to
majordomo[at]aclu.org with "subscribe cyber-liberties" in the body of the
message. To end your subscription, send a message to majordomo[at]aclu.org
with "unsubscribe cyber-liberties" in the body of the message.

THE ACLU LEGISLATIVE NETWORK (ACTION) is maintained by the American
Civil Liberties
Union. For a description, see ACLU MAILING LISTS. To subscribe to the
ACLU Action List, send a
message to majordomo[at]aclu.org with "subscribe action" in the body of
the message. To end your subscription, send a message to
majordomo[at]aclu.org with "unsubscribe action" in the body of the
message.

ACLU NEWSFEED is maintained by the American Civil Liberties Union. For
a description, see ACLU MAILING LISTS. To subscribe to the ACLU
Newsfeed, send a message to majordomo[at]aclu.org with "subscribe News" in
the body of the message. To end your subscription, send a message to
majordomo[at]aclu.org with "unsubscribe News" in the body of the
message.

ATTACKS ON THE FREEDOM TO LEARN ONLINE is published by the People For
the American
Way Foundation. To subscribe to Attacks on the Freedom to Learn Online,
sign up at
http://www.pfaw.org/activist/. Archives of Attacks on the Freedom to
Learn Online are kept at http://www.pfaw.org/issues/education/aflo/

EDUCATION ACTIVIST ONLINE is published by the People For the American
Way Foundation. To subscribe to Education Activist Online, sign up at
http://www.pfaw.org/activist/. Archives of Education Activist Online
are kept at http://www.pfaw.org/issues/education/activist/.

THE EPIC ALERT is a free biweekly publication of the Electronic Privacy
Information Center. To subscribe or unsubscribe, send e-mail to
epic-news[at]epic.org with the subject: "subscribe" (no quotes) or
"unsubscribe". A Web-based form is available at
http://www.epic.org/alert/subscribe.html. Back issues are available
at
http://www.epic.org/alert/.

FAIFE-L is a discussion list devoted to libraries, librarianship and
intellectual freedom. FAIFE-L is an electronic forum intended to foster
communications among IFLA members and others concerned with the issues
related to the work of FAIFE (Free Access to Information and Freedom of
Expression). The aim is to facilitate the exchange of information and
opinions. To subscribe or unsubscribe, send e-mail to
majordomo[at]list.dbc.dk. In the body of the message type: subscribe
FAIFE-L YourE-mailAddress. For more information, see
http://www.faife.dk/faife/mail/faife-l.htm.

FEN NEWSWIRE E-MAIL SERVICE is a free service of the Free Expression
Network.  Visit its Web site at
http://freeexpression.org/newswire/signup.htm

Digital Freedom Network.  Visit its Web site at
http://www.dfn.org/subscribe/index.htm

FINDLAW NEWS SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION. To subscribe visit the FindLaw
Legal News Page at http://LegalNews.FindLaw.com. To unsubscribe visit
http://www.findlaw.com/lists/newss.html. To receive legal news in
HTML e-mail with additional links, please go to the same page and check
the HTML mail option.

POLICY POSTS are reports on the latest public policy issues affecting
civil liberties online, maintained by the Center for Democracy and
Technology. To subscribe to CDT's Policy Post list, send mail to
majordomo[at]cdt.org. In the BODY of the message (leave the SUBJECT LINE
BLANK), type subscribe policy-posts. If you ever wish to remove yourself
from the list, send mail to the above address with NOTHING IN THE
SUBJECT LINE AND a BODY TEXT of unsubscribe policy-posts.

POLITECH * the moderated mailing list of politics and technology
reports many intellectual freedom news items. To subscribe, go to
http://www.politechbot.com/info/subscribe.html.

RIGHT-WING WATCH ONLINE is published by the People For the American Way
Foundation. To
subscribe to Right-Wing Watch Online, sign up at
http://www.pfaw.org/activist/. Archives of Right Wing Watch Online are
kept at http://www.pfaw.org/issues/right/rwwo/.

________________________________________________________________________top

15. Color Matters

http://www.colormatters.com/entercolormatters.html

        "It's all about the world of color" and its physiological
        and psychological effects. "This site explores how
        color affects appetite, vision, sexuality, energy
        conservation, and its relationship to architecture and
        interior design." A passion for color and its unique
        characteristics led the site's author to search for
        answers to some puzzling questions: Does pink make
        strong men weak? Can colors create accidents? What
        colors are predominant in different cultures? Do
        marketers use color to influence our decisions? Browse
        Resources and Interact for additional questions and
        issues on how color really matters. Searchable. - jh

From Librarians' Index to the Internet - http://lii.org
________________________________________________________________________top

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