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Sunday, 22nd August 2004

Porn filters expose flaws

Professional Reading Shelf
Internet Filters--Public Libraries
Source: Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
Porn filters expose flaws
From the article, "When John Mihelcik clicked on GasBuddy.com, a Web site that tracks retail gasoline prices across the country, a message popped up on the Mt. Lebanon Public Library computer: "Access Denied -- the site you have chosen has been categorized as a sex site." ...In the seven weeks they have been mandatory, filters have disrupted hundreds of routine searches in public libraries, according to librarians and patrons. They say the filters have become a counterproductive hassle at best and, at worst, an impediment to the free flow of ideas, information and speech."
See Also: Library will be checking in with public on Internet filters (via The Oregonian)
"A Multnomah County proposal requires filters for those 12 and younger but not for users 13 to 16 unless parents say otherwise."
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Citation Analysis
Source: In-Cites.com
The Top 5 Library & Information Science: High-Impact U.S. Universities, 1999-2003
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Scholarly Publishing
Source: Houston Chronicle
Lawsuit alleges fraud in sale of subscriptions
From the article, "A federal judge has frozen the bank accounts of a Houston subscription company in a lawsuit involving multimillion-dollar fraud allegations and the arcane world of the $6 billion-per-year scientific publishing industry. "Some of the biggest companies in the international scientific publishing business are accusing Scholarly Publications Inc. of fraudulently purchasing individual subscriptions at low rates and reselling them at institutional rates that can be as much as 10 times higher. Bringing the lawsuit are the American Chemical Society, a nonprofit publisher; London-based Elsevier Inc.; Sage Publications Inc. of Thousand Oaks, Calif.; and three companies owned by New York-based John Wiley & Sons Inc." Thanks to Sherry A. for the news tip.
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Libraries--Use
Source: Newsday
Library fits any budget but its own
From the editorial: "We don't have any additional data," Larra Clark, the association's spokeswoman, said last week. "But from what I've heard from around the country, many libraries are still reporting increases in circulation. That good news is complicated a bit by all the cuts in library funding." In other words, making an apples-to-apples comparison of the present and recent past is tricky. Even if more people continue to show up at libraries, tightened budgets have yielded reductions at many locales in library personnel and purchases of books, CDs, videos and other materials. Operating hours have been slashed."
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Libraries
Source: Christian Science Monitor
Something new to check out at the mall: library books.
From the article: "Typically, people go to malls to shop and to socialize. They may meet a friend for a quick lunch and then hunt for a new outfit. But at two malls in the greater Seattle area, they can also pick up a copy of the latest bestseller, do a computer search for a new job, and listen to a Spanish- language CD - all for free. The freebies aren't some enormous give-away by the malls, but typical library services in a not-so-typical location."

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