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Peer-to-Peer Networks as a Distribution and Publishing Model
No full textContent publishing and distribution often occurs in a costly and inefficient manner via client/server networks. Client/server models exhibit negative network externalities in that each additional user causes additional costs by increasingly congesting the system through the consumption of scarce resources. In an era of increasing demand for and size of content, the traditional client/server model produces evidence of its restrictions in terms of cost efficiency and scalability. Content providers - such as publishers, the media industry and users - are exploring new distribution or publishing models that might address the flaws of client/server models. An increasing amount of user generated content, open access and open content initiatives offer content for free, in spite of the fact that the distribution and storing of this content is not free of charge. This reasoning explains the importance of examining innovative distribution models that possibly provide answers to the shortcomings of client/server systems. In some cases, peer-to-peer systems might provide solutions for the flaws of client/server models in that they are characterized by cost efficiency and scalability. The facts that users spend more time online, have an increasing amount of resources (e.g. bandwidth, CPU cycles, content, and storage capacity) at their disposal, store and consume more content and bandwidth, is the basis of the viability of peer-to-peer systems. Peer-to-peer is still associated with illegal copyright infringing activities, although there are several companies exploring new ways for legal and secure content distribution through peer-to-peer networks. In this paper, we try to offer a broad analysis of the opportunities and challenges of several peer-to-peer applications and architectures. We further elaborate criteria in order to understand when the implementation of a peer-to-peer system might be appropriate. These criteria go further than merely technical criteria in that they include social criteria as well, which are as important as the technical ones. If peer-to-peer systems turn out to be a success for content publishing, it may lead to new business models that change the way content is distributed
DCMI-Tools: Ontologies for Digital Application Description
No full textThe growth in electronic and digital publishing on the World Wide Web has led to the development of a wide range of tools for generating metadata. As a result, it can be difficult to select the appropriate type of application and the best metadata tool to support a project\u27s metadata needs. The Dublin Core Tools (DCMI Tools) Community recognizes this need and is developing an application profile and a taxonomy of tool functionalities for describing metadata applications. The community will use the application profile and the taxonomy to standardize access to information on metadata via the DCMI Tools and Software program. This paper reports on the DCMI Tool Community\u27s activities to develop an application profile for describing the wide range of applications (algorithms; metadata templates, editors, and generators; and other software) fitting this rubric. The paper begins with an introduction to metadata application challenges, and introduces the DCMI Tools Community in order to provide important historical context. Next, the paper reviews the concept of application profile and emphasizes the importance of this approach for describing metadata tools. The paper reviews procedures to develop the application profile and presents the DCMI Tools application profile. The paper also presents a metadata tool functionality taxonomy (to be used with the application profile), a glossary (to assist people in learning about metadata tools), and the DCMI Tool Community\u27s implementation plans. The final part of the paper presents several conclusions and highlights next steps
Technical Infrastructure and Policy Framework for Maximising the Benefits from Research Output
No full textElectronic publishing is one part of a much larger process. There is a research lifecycle from creation of a programme for funded research through research proposals, projects, outputs (including publications), exploitation (both for further scholarly work and for commercial or quality of life benefits) and creation of the next programme. Throughout this lifecycle information is the lifeblood; publications are used and created at all stages.The vision proposed brings together electronic research publications with associated datasets and software all contextualised by a CRIS (Current Research Information System) which provides information on projects, persons, organisational units, outputs (products, patents, publications), events, facilities, equipment and much more. Via the CRIS, research output can be linked to financial, project management and human resource data: indeed finally the cost of production of a publication can be compared against its benefit. Realising the vision requires advanced IT architectures including GRIDs and ambient computing.Against this vision current debates about subscription-based publishing and gold author-pays open access publishing, about grey literature and green open access self-archiving can be regarded with clarity and objectivity. The way ahead is clear: funders of research should mandate green self-archiving for the benefit of research and of the twin beneficial consequences: wealth creation and improvement in the quality of life. These benefits far outweigh any short-term benefits from the publishing industry in profits or tax-take. There is still plenty of market opportunity for publishers and their doomsday predictions are unsustainable.
*** Note: Dowload the powerpoint presentation and listen to the speech: http://info.tuwien.ac.at/elpub2007/sound/keith_jeffery.mp3 **
Use of Open Access Electronic Journals by Chinese Scholars, and an Initiative to Facilitate Access to Chinese Journals
No full textSurveys were carried out with two groups of Chinese scholars - one group working in China, and a second group working in the UK. The objective was to investigate usage of Chinese-language scholarly journals and the potential for them to use an Open Access business model. The results were compared with those published by the CIBER group at university College London, whose sample of scholars was international in scope. The overseas Chinese group made very little use of journals published in China, and one of the reasons for this was the difficulty of accessing the electronic versions of these journals from the West. We therefore proposed the construction of an English-language website to provide access in the first instance to the full texts of journals published by the members of the Society of China University Journals in the Natural Sciences (SCUJNS), and we created a pilot version of this website
A Lifeboat Doesn\u27t Do You any Good if it\u27s not There when You Need it: Open Access and its Place in the New Electronic Publishing Paradigm
No full textThis paper draws on the results of recent research into digital publishing in Latin America sponsored by the European Commission\u27s ALFA programme. It outlines the growth in publishing in the region. It aims to stimulate reflection on the impact of a system in which most of the publishing is supported by institutions rather than commercial companies, and considers authors\u27 aspirations for their work to achieve recognition, attitudes towards peer review and other aspects of journal quality, the indexing and availability of full text journals, and the sustainability of institutionally supported publishing. Examples are drawn from publishing in the field of librarianship and information sciences on which the original research project was focused
Scientific Publishing in the Digital Era
No full textThe new information technology developments change drastically our life. The same applies to scientific research in general and the publication of findings in particular. It offers the chance for faster dissemination of results and broader access to date.
The interests of scientists, financing organizations and libraries on one hand and publishers on the other do not overlap completely. Maximizing the speed of dissemination, broad access and securing quality and long time preservation are fields of overlapping interests. Mandatory deposit in open access repositories and pricing are still debated.
The lecture discusses the above issues based partly on the basis of the author?s motivation to maximize the benefits of public (and so EC) funded research in Europe, influenced by his experience both in European scientific organizations and advisory bodies of the EC
Libraries as Publishers of Open Access Digital Documents: Polish Experiences
No full textThis article presents the experience of Polish libraries in the field of electronic publishing. There have been described some solutions applied for creating digital libraries and institutional repositories. Nowadays, Polish libraries seem to be passing from the stage of digitalization of their own collections (usually of historic value) to publishing new digital-born documents in their own institutional or multi-institutional repositories. This activity should be (and is) developed in co-operation with university press companies
Digital Archives at the University of Pisa
No full textAt the end of the \u2790s, the Library System Centre of the University of Pisa began to create a system of digital archives in order to enhance and promote the Institution activities regarding teaching, research and administration: 1. ETD (Electronic Thesis and Dissertations); 2. UnipiEprints
The Open Document Format and its Impact on Accessibility for Persons with a Reading Impairment
No full textIt has become very common in the current information society to talk about ?open? and to use this term as a quality mark. Open standards, open source software, open archives, open formats etcetera are all very much promoted. In this contribution, we would like to focus on the file structure of documents such as texts, spreadsheets and presentations, and more specifically on the Open Document Format. ODF is becoming increasingly popular for many reasons, but it also is the first document format for use in office suites that has unique features built in (as of version ODF 1.1) for persons with a reading impairment such as low vision, blindness or dyslexia
A Bachelor and Master Theses Portal : Specific Needs and Business Opportunities for the DoKS Repository Tool
No full textA few years ago a portal for bachelor and master theses from Flemish university colleges was established by means of the open source repository software DoKS. At present approximately 3500 theses from Flemish university colleges are available online. The growing use of the portal has led to a new communication stream that requires supervision and maintenance. Social software components amongst others are or will be integrated in the portal to give users a platform to perform tasks such as communicate, annotate and advertise. Although different local DoKS repositories and the concept of the DoKS application are similar to repositories and tools within the scientific community, the scope and the aim of a theses repository for university colleges are different. The main part of the database consists of applied research and the majority theses comprise trainee reports. Thus, in addition to students and instructors, the portal is attractive to key players in industry, non-profit institutions and private users with a particular interest in a theses subject. This paper examines the different opportunities and specific needs of a bachelor and master theses portal, illustrated by real life examples. Social software components can breath new life into former static text documents. Users can add comments, create blogs, add tables, illustrations and suchlike. Content sensitive advertisements enhance the content and usage of our theses records and create revenues that can be used to make new improvements. In addition we will discuss the need for new and strict procedures with regard to content control, copyright issues and embargos when a bulk collection of industry related theses are published online