Blog – Page 152

Not enough library e-books to feed your new gadget properly? Well-stocked national digital library systems could help

On December 31, 2012 more than 100 patrons of the District of Columbia Public Library were lined up electronically for 10 e-book copies of John Grisham’s new novel about the murder of a federal judge. Some 400+ D.C. library users awaited 60 electronic copies of Gillian Flynn’s new book, the best-selling fiction title on the New York Times list. In light of consistent demand across the country, David H. Rothman continues to champion the case for affordable, wide spread access to e-books through public libraries. These institutions continue to struggle with dwindling budgets, increased demand for services and copyright/licensing laws impacting e-book cost and distribution.

Subjects: E-Books

Conclusions from the National Inventory of Legal Materials

Hays Butler and Emily Feltren document the process and successful implementation of dynamic, extensive project conducted over the past three years by the American Association of Law Libraries (AALL) working with law librarian volunteers around the country to build the first-ever National Inventory of Legal Materials, an inventory of print and electronic legal materials at all levels of government. More than 350 volunteers have added nearly 8,000 legal titles to the inventory so far.

Subjects: American Association of Law Libraries, Features, Law Librarians, Law Library Management, Legal Research, Legal Technology, Libraries & Librarians, Library Software & Technology, Online Legal Research Services, Surveys

FOIA Facts – What Ive Learned

Scott A. Hodes’ New Year’s commentary is both an overview and a roadmap to the FOIA process. Scott’s experience has taught him that requesters do not realize that their biggest obstacle to having their requests processed in a timely manner is not usually FOIA offices. The biggest obstacles tend to be the program offices that have equity in the records sought and the agency executives who see FOIA offices as an expense they don’t want to fund.

Subjects: FOIA Facts, Legal Research, Public Records

Legal ethics and retention of electronic data

Lawyers are increasingly shifting their day to day operations to applications and operations that leverage the convenience and affordability offered by the concept of a paperless office. Attorney Nicole Black talks about how doing so can raise an assortment of ethical issues, since the confidentiality of client information must always be maintained, regardless of the format in which it is stored or distributed.

Subjects: E-Discovery, Features, Law Firm Marketing, Legal Ethics, Legal Profession, Software

2012: The year of the mobile lawyer?

Attorney Nicole Black discusses the rise in the number of lawyers using mobile devices, the growing number of apps developed specifically for lawyers, and how these apps increasingly support lawyers at every stage of the litigation process.

Subjects: Case Management, E-Discovery, Email, Features, Gadgets/Gizmos, Law Firm Marketing, Legal Profession, Legal Technology, Litigation Support, Mobile Technology

Googles powerful Nexus 10 Android tablet as a library patrons delight: The hardware and the apps that shine on it

David H. Rothman reviews the Android Nexus 10, which he considers a standout from among the well known group of available e-book readers. David documents key reasons to choose this e-reading machine, including the 10-inch screen, which can easily display 500 or 600 words of text. He also highlights a wide range of essential apps available for researchers, librarians, knowledge managers and of course, book lovers.

Subjects: Features, Gadgets, Gadgets/Gizmos, Internet Resources - Web Links, Internet Trends, Library Software & Technology, Mobile Technology, News Resources, Search Engines, Search Strategies, Technology Trends

The risks if the DPLA wont create a full-strength national digital library system: Setbacks for K-12, family literacy, local libraries, preservation, digital divide efforts?

David H. Rothman maintains that the Harvard-originated national digital library initiative is an underachiever in K-12 matters and identifies other areas where the DPLA could better serve America’s libraries and their users. These areas range from family literacy to the content creation needs of local libraries, preservation and digital divide efforts. Rothman details specific remedies to these challenges consistent with his strong advocacy on behalf of strengthening national digital library systems.

Subjects: Digital Archives, Features, Libraries & Librarians, Virtual Library

Deep Web Research and Discovery Resources 2013

Marcus P. Zillman’s research reveals the facets of The Deep Web, comprising in the vicinity of 1 trillion pages of information located in various files and formats that the current search engines cannot find, or have difficulty accessing. Some of the more comprehensive search engines have written algorithms to search the deeper portions of the world wide web by attempting to find files such as .pdf, .docx, .xls, ppt, .ps. and others. These files are predominately used by businesses to communicate within their organization or to disseminate topical information and work product to customers and potential clients. Searching for this information using deeper search techniques and the latest algorithms allows researchers access to a vast amount of actionable corporate information and intelligence. Research has also shown that even deeper information can be obtained from these files by searching and accessing the “properties” information on these files.

Subjects: Features, Internet Resources - Web Links, Search Engines, Search Strategies

New Economy Web Guide 2013 Under Obama

Internet research guru Marcus P. Zillman’s new guide is an essential resource for researchers in all sectors for whom identifying and leveraging economic data, news and scholarly publications is a requirement. It identifies comprehensive, accurate knowledge available through reliable and current sources from government, NGOs, advocacy groups and the private sector that is critical to effective and actionable work product.

Subjects: Blogs, Business Research, Features, Government Resources

Hurricane Sandy and the national digital library issue: Could we have stopped or slowed down global warming?

David Rothman’s commentary maintains it is imperative that civic matters, including those that resulted in the aftermath of hurricane Sandy, not become lost opportunities to find and share information, and to make best use of lessons learned. Accountability, effective communications, access to actionable information, building reliable infrastructures, and providing dynamic access to agile solutions during times of national crisis provide opportunities to leverage the evolving Digital Public Library of America.

Subjects: Features, Internet Resources, Internet Resources - Web Links, Libraries & Librarians