Dept of Health uses Science well, but review finds it needs to improve joint working / Public Technology, 9 October 2008
http://www.publictechnology.net/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=17469
"The Government Office for Science review published today commends the Department of Health on good practice in the way it commissions, manages and uses science. The report highlighted examples of good practice including the 'Best Research for Best Health' strategy in setting direction for NHS research and development, the role of the Policy Liaison Officers in the Policy Research Programme to support evidence based policy, and the role of the Scientific Advisory Committees in providing advice. However, the GO-Science Review also found that given the importance of science to the Department of Health policies there could be more consistency in the effective management of science, joint working (both across disciplines and with stakeholder groups), developing mechanisms to share and manage knowledge effectively, and the use of external scientific advice and expertise."

Lancashire strives to cut digital divide using library web access / Public Technology, 23 September 2008
http://www.publictechnology.net/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=17367
"West Lancashire District Council and Lancashire County Council have teamed up to launch a new campaign to encourage people to use free internet access in their local library if they want to get in touch with their local council. The campaign will be launched on Tuesday 30 September. The six libraries in West Lancashire run by the county council – in Tarleton, Burscough, Ormskirk, Parbold, Skelmersdale and Up Holland – offer people the chance to use the “People’s Network” computers to get internet access."

EU's Criminal Records Information System needs solid infrastructure says European Data Protection Supervisor / Public Technology, 22 September 2008
http://www.publictechnology.net/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=17359
"On 16 September 2008, the European Data Protection Supervisor (EDPS) adopted an opinion on a proposal for a Council Decision on the establishment of an electronic European Criminal Records Information System (ECRIS). The Decision is part of a package designed to help EU Member States to share the criminal records of their citizens and exchange information on past criminal convictions."

Cabinet Office plans to to de-duplicate and classify its departmental electronic information / Public Technology, 19 September 2008
http://www.publictechnology.net/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=17349
"Active Navigation, the data discovery company, has been selected by the Cabinet Office to de-duplicate and classify the electronic information held across the department. Active Navigation was chosen after an extensive review of software products and manual alternatives, and following a pilot project in one unit of the Cabinet Office. The software will be used to analyse, categorise and organise the information currently residing in the Cabinet Office’s Microsoft NTFS (New Technology File System) prior to its transfer to the department’s new records management system."

Writing on the wall / The Guardian, 20 October 2008
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2008/oct/20/leadersandreply-libraries-andy-burnham
"The town library, byword for mousy respectability and decent endeavour, is at last showing a capacity to fight to escape from a deathly decline. At a conference in Liverpool last week Roy Clare, boss of the formerly invisible Museums, Libraries and Archives Council argued for libraries' role in lifelong learning from school to senescence, now rebranded as "Find Your Talent". Earlier this month the culture secretary, Andy Burnham, announced a review to consider how best to modernise libraries, hinting not merely at rebranding but also at a radical rethink of their contemporary purpose."

Google strikes deal over online library / The Financial Times, October 28 2008
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/93574d3e-a52d-11dd-b4f5-000077b07658.html
"Google is to pay $125m to settle lawsuits filed in 2005 by authors and publishers that charged the group with “massive infringement”, challenging its book scanning project that digitised and offered excerpts without the permission of copyright holders. The settlement with authors and book publishers paves the way for the creation of a legal and financial framework for the digital distribution of millions of books online in the US."

Government web pages to enter archive / Kable , 19 August 2008
http://www.kablenet.com/kd.nsf/Frontpage/A1714971033E3064802574AA0045B4AA?OpenDocument
"The National Archives will start copying and making available online all central government website content from November. The organisation will expand its existing arrangement with the not-for-profit European Archive in Paris, so it will take copies of the content from 1,800 central government websites approximately three times a year."

Information overload: Is it time for a data diet?
Computerworld, 25 August 2008
http://digbig.com/4xphc
"The recent growth of information sources such as blogs, social networks, news aggregators, microblogs like Twitter, instant messaging and e-mail has been exponential. And with broadband penetration among active Internet users expected to break 90% this year, according to Internet marketing firm Website Optimization LLC, there aren’t many people today who haven’t experienced some form of information overload."

OCLC pilots WorldCat Copyright Evidence Registry / OCLC, 25 August 2008
http://www.oclc.org/us/en/news/releases/200832.htm
"The Worldcat Copyright Evidence Registry is a community working together to build a union catalog of copyright evidence based on WorldCat, which contains more than 100 million bibliographic records describing items held in thousands of libraries worldwide. In addition to the WorldCat metadata, the Copyright Evidence Registry uses other data contributed by libraries and other organizations."

Four new Web 2.0 offerings for those new to the wiki game / itbusiness.ca, 28 August 2008
http://www.itbusiness.ca/it/client/en/Home/News.asp?id=49693
"What if about the only thing you know about wikis is how to spell the word? Fear not. Here are some free - and fantastic - offerings to help you get your wiki feet wet without installing software on a computer. "

[USA] New Media vs. New Censorship: The Authoritarian Assault on Information / Broadcasting Board of Governors, September 2008
http://www.bbg.gov/ondemand.cfm
"The increasing sophistication of web censorship by authoritarian governments creates significant challenges to unleashing the Internet’s potential for information freedom, according to panelists speaking at a Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG) workshop on Sept. 10, 2008."

Did we say you can read that?: When the police replace librarians / The Register, 15 August 2008
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/08/15/nott_uni_update/
"An issue that refuses to go away is whether some academic research now needs a license from the local police."

Naked CIO: Fishing for data / silicon.com, 8 September 2008
http://hardware.silicon.com/storage/0,39024649,39283609,00.htm
"Saving all your data all the time is not always smart. The Naked CIO explains how to turn your organisation's information into knowledge."

The Google Domination / Global Politician, 9 September 2008
http://www.globalpolitician.com/25174-google-internet
"Frankly speaking, stop the guesswork and open heartedly accept that it’s Google’s turn now, as the next decade clearly belongs to Google, best not to resist and go with the flow. As a company, it’s amazing how it started and what it’s done and where it’s now headed."

Developments in the field of information and telecommunications in the context of international security: Report of the Secretary-General / United Nations General Assembly, 18 July 2008
PDF - http://www.un.org/ga/search/view_doc.asp?symbol=A/63/139

A Panacea for Mobile Data Headaches / 24dash.com, 15 August 2008
http://www.24dash.com/rss/feed.rss/2008-08-15-A-Panacea-for-Mobile-Data-Headaches
"What's the best approach to protecting the confidential patient data on mobile devices? Check Points technical director, Caroline Ikomi, covers the three essentials that help you load and lock. Newtons first law of motion states that a moving body will want to keep moving. The same law also seems to apply to confidential patient data. The problem is trying to stop that data getting mobile and moving further than you want it to. Data on the move is an issue that has caught out a..."

A Panacea for Mobile Data Headaches / 24dash.com, 15 August 2008
http://www.24dash.com/rss/feed.rss/2008-08-15-A-Panacea-for-Mobile-Data-Headaches
"What's the best approach to protecting the confidential patient data on mobile devices? Check Points technical director, Caroline Ikomi, covers the three essentials that help you load and lock. Newtons first law of motion states that a moving body will want to keep moving. The same law also seems to apply to confidential patient data. The problem is trying to stop that data getting mobile and moving further than you want it to. Data on the move is an issue that has caught out a..."

British Library delivers an innovative online annual report / Public Technology, 31 Jul 2008

http://www.publictechnology.net/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=16848

"The British Library’s annual report for 2007/08 has just gone live and it's a very different kind of experience from previous years, at www.bl.uk/knowledge.
It features a best-selling novelist, a nanotechnology expert, a nit and head lice ‘assassin’ and a South African sound archivist, all talking about how the Library’s resources have supported their work in the past year."

Privacy: Agencies Struggle to Redact Personal Data from Online Public Documents / govtech.com, July 2008
http://www.govtech.com/gt/articles/375540?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=GTEN_2008_7_11
"The Internet is forcing state and local governments to re-evaluate how they handle public information. Agencies are attempting to balance privacy concerns with the convenience and efficiency of online public documents."

Intellectual Property: New EU initiatives should improve IP in Europe / Public Technology, 18 Jul 2008
http://www.publictechnology.net/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=16675
"The European Commission has adopted two initiatives in the area of copyright. First, the Commission proposes to align the copyright term for performers with that applicable to authors, in this way bridging the income gap that performers face toward the end of their lives. Secondly, the Commission proposes to fully harmonise the copyright term that applies to co-written musical compositions. In parallel, the Commission also adopted a Green Paper on Copyright in the Knowledge Economy. The consultation document focuses on topics that appear relevant for the development of a modern economy, driven by the rapid dissemination of knowledge and information. Both of these initiatives comprise a unique mix of social, economic and cultural measures aimed at maintaining Europe as a prime location for cultural creators in the entertainment and knowledge sectors."

consultation http://ec.europa.eu/internal_market/copyright/docs/term/proposal_en.pdf