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Digital repositories and the future of preservation and use of scientific knowledge

Posted on by Hans Dillaerts

Information and communication technology has a great influence on scientific communication and work of scientists. Ways in which research is conducted have changed; science has become more highly collaborative; network-based, and data-intensive. The existing system of scientific publishing is experiencing pressure for change under the influence of the exponential growth of information production, the dramatic increase in subscription fees, the increasing storage cost of printed documents, and the increasing power and availability of digital technology.

To conduct their research more effectively scientists need modern resources of digital information which would support their endeavor. Digital repository is one such type of information resources. Digital repository is an institutional digital archive of the intellectual product created by the faculty, research staff, and students of an institution and accessible to end users both within and outside of the institution.

Digital repositories carry a great potential for the advancement of scientific research. Digital repositories can store different file formats and types of content. An institutional digital repository can contain e-prints of scientific papers, research data, but also e-learning materials and other forms of institutional intellectual outputs. As the number of open access digital repositories grows, it has become evident that institutional repositories are now clearly and broadly being recognized as essential infrastructure for scholarship in the digital world.

URL : http://hrcak.srce.hr/index.php?show=clanak&id_clanak_jezik=99976

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The evolving role of the school library and information centre in education in digital Europe

Posted on by Hans Dillaerts

« The purpose of the research is to study the evolving role of the school library and information centre (SLIC) in primary and secondary education in digital Europe, not only in countries where schools have reached an advanced stage of usage of digital technology in education, but also in less advanced schools. This international research provides a bridge between two different disciplines – Comparative Education (Sociology) and Library and Information Science (LIS) – and attempts to provide information to both the educational and library communities throughout Europe regarding the role which SLICs play in the emerging educational global landscape and to determine whether or not these traditional, digital or virtual SLICs, and the work of the school librarian and information specialist, influence the quality of education and improve children’s learning outcomes at different levels. First of all, the study examines a sub-matrix known as the KILM (Kalsbeek Information Literacy Matrix), which was developed as part of an educational matrix between 1997 and 2008 at the Kalsbeek College in Woerden, the Netherlands. The educational matrix attempts to introduce and implement educational reforms, ICT (Information and Communication Technologies) usage, educational technology and new forms of learning throughout the school in a orderly fashion while maintaining a high level of educational quality. This sub-matrix (KILM) identifies the role of the SLIC during the application of the educational matrix. The study then looks at success criteria which became apparent during the application of the sub-matrix and asks whether or not it would be possible to apply similar strategies to other schools libraries and information centres, firstly at Dutch national level and then in school libraries throughout Europe. The staffing, facilities and conditions in school libraries and information centres which were studied vary greatly, however, thanks to the willingness of teachers, school librarians and (school) library associations to share information and data, it has become possible to identify common problems and present some solutions. »

URL : http://eprints.mdx.ac.uk/7329/

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Le fossé numérique en France Adopté à…

Posted on by Hans Dillaerts

Le fossé numérique en France :

« Adopté à l’initiative du Parlement, l’article 25 de la loi n° 2009-1572 du 17 décembre 2009 relative à la lutte contre la fracture numérique dispose que : « Dans les six mois suivant la publication de la présente loi, le Gouvernement remet au Parlement un rapport sur le fossé numérique afin d’apporter des précisions quant aux différentes catégories de la population n’ayant ni équipement informatique, ni accès à Internet dans leur foyer. Ce document étudie également le rapport qu’entretiennent les “natifs du numérique” avec Internet dans le but d’améliorer les connaissances quant aux conséquences, sur le travail scolaire notamment, de l’usage d’Internet. Il dégage aussi les pistes de réflexion pour les actions de formation à destination de ces publics et veille également à identifier les acteurs associatifs œuvrant pour la réduction du fossé numérique. Enfin, il établit les conditions de mise en service d’abonnements Internet à tarif social. »

Le présent rapport répond à cette demande. Il s’attache d’abord à préciser la nature des différents fossés numériques qui existent en France, puis envisage les comportements propres aux « natifs du numérique » et fait le point sur les actions en cours ou à prévoir pour tirer parti de toutes les potentialités des technologies de l’information et de la communication pour l’éducation (TICE) mais aussi pour répondre aux comportements de la nouvelle génération. Il aborde la question du traitement social de l’Internet et présente, en annexe, des exemples d’associations qui s’emploient à réduire le fossé numérique.

Les recommandations du Centre d’analyse stratégique :
1 – Plusieurs fossés numériques existent : les combler suppose une action politique vigoureuse et pérenne ainsi que de larges campagnes d’information
2 – Le fossé numérique au sein de la population la plus jeune mérite une attention particulière
3 – Un traitement social de l’Internet est nécessaire
4 – Intégrer les personnes âgées dans la société numérique les aide à rester plus longtemps chez elles et à correspondre avec leurs proches
5 – Les natifs du numérique adoptent de nouveaux comportements reposant sur une plus grande interactivité
6 – Accompagner le « Plan de développement des usages du numérique à l’École » et en relever les défis
7 – L’utilisation des technologies numériques à l’étranger dans le domaine de l’éducation met en évidence un certain nombre de bonnes pratiques
8 – Les technologies numériques permettent d’atténuer les inégalités devant l’école
9 – La formation continue et l’enseignement à distance devraient trouver un nouvel essor dans le développement des technologies numériques

Pour rédiger ce rapport, le Centre d’analyse stratégique s’est appuyé sur un travail du cabinet BearingPoint identifiant les bonnes pratiques dans les six pays de l’OCDE qui utilisent le plus les technologies numériques. »

URL : http://www.strategie.gouv.fr/article.php3?id_article=1402

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Interlinking journal and wiki publications through joint citation…

Posted on by Hans Dillaerts

Interlinking journal and wiki publications through joint citation: Working examples from ZooKeys and Plazi on Species-ID :

« Scholarly publishing and citation practices have developed largely in the absence of versioned documents. The digital age requires new practices to combine the old and the new. We describe how the original published source and a versioned wiki page based on it can be reconciled and combined into a single citation reference. We illustrate the citation mechanism by way of practical examples focusing on journal and wiki publishing of taxon treatments. Specifically, we discuss mechanisms for permanent cross-linking between the static original publication and the dynamic, versioned wiki, as well as for automated export of journal content to the wiki, to reduce the workload on authors, for combining the journal and the wiki citation and for integrating it with the attribution of wiki contributors. »

URL : http://www.pensoft.net/journals/zookeys/article/1369/abstract/interlinking-journal-and-wiki-publications-through-joint-citation

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Accessible Publishing Best Practice Guidelines for Publishers …

Posted on by Hans Dillaerts

Accessible Publishing, Best Practice Guidelines for Publishers :

« Today at the London Book Fair, EDItEUR, the International standards organisation, launched “Accessible Publishing”, a set of best practice guidelines and advice to support publishers around the world in their endeavours to make their books accessible to people with print impairment.

It is estimated that at least 10% of people in the developed world and 15% in the developing world have some degree of print impairment. These may be visual impairments, dyslexia, motor disabilities or age related macular degeneration any of which can seriously affect the ability to read. The publishing landscape is increasingly user-oriented; ensuring published content is accessible by all potential readers is more and more important. Today’s readership needs to be able to consume content using a variety of different technologies and publishing’s metamorphosis from a print-dominated into a mixed and inexorably into a digitally-led industry presents an unprecedented opportunity to offer publications to the widest possible audience. These guidelines encourage publishers to make their mainstream publications as accessible as possible so that full access becomes the norm.

This straightforward document explains how publishers can tackle both the organisational and technical aspects of accessibility. Sarah Hilderley, the author of the guidelines and herself an experienced publisher, points out “We are closer than we sometimes think to being able to make all our publications accessible to a much wider audience. Already, ebook reading devices are making a much wider variety of titles available in “large print” than have ever been available in the past. We can use the flexibility of interface that digital publishing offers us to make mainstream content much more widely accessible than it could ever be in print.”

YS Chi, President of the International Publishers Association, said “While giving priority to accessibility is an important way for publishers to be socially responsible, it can lead to business opportunities as well. It just makes sense.”

The guidelines form part of a joint project, the Enabling Technologies Framework, which EDItEUR is delivering in collaboration with the DAISY Consortium. The framework project is funded by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) under its visually impaired persons (VIP) initiative to facilitate access to copyrighted works for people with print disabilities. The Guidelines have been endorsed by the International Publishers Association, the Federation of European Publishers and the International Association of Scientific, Technical and Medical Publishers (STM). »

Press Release : http://www.alpsp.org/ForceDownload.asp?id=1837
Guidelines : http://www.editeur.org/109/Enabling-Technologies-Framework/