I’m always scanning for what the up and coming future trends are and new innovations in technology. If you are responsible for managing technology in an organization, this activity is essential. You will be better able to manage and even drive change, sound intelligent when speaking to senior management and communicate to peers, patrons and fellow employees the importance and relevance of technology-related topics.
5 Exciting Innovations That Will Change Computing in 2012 from Mashable
Managing Electronic Resources from iLibrarian
The Home 3-D Printer Is More Real Than Ever–And Costs As Much As An iPad from FastCompany
10 Changes to Expect from the Library of the Future from OnlineUniversities.com
onlineuniversities.com /blog/2012/04/10-changes-to-expect-from-the-library-of-the-future
The relationship between publishers and libraries on the issue of DRM and eBooks is of particular interest to me. My final paper in my Publishing class was on this very topic, with the issues varied and complex – licensing, pricing & ownership; access, availability & usability; DRM format and the many ways to add restrictions; privacy & confidentiality of user data; consortiums; and, preserving digital content (My reference list was 4 1/2 pages long!). The publishing industry is in such a state of flux right now with daily announcements from the library and publishing camps – its been fascinating to follow.
DRM
Retail DRM Is an Apple. Library DRM Is an Orange. from The Digital Shift
Publishers Starting to Reject e-Book DRM from ReadWriteWeb
Macmillan’s Tor Abandons DRM, Other Publishers Must Follow from Forbes
Note to Publishers: Your Addiction to DRM is Killing You by Matthew Ingram
Something Is Rotten In The State Of E-Book Publishing from FastCompany
Price Fixing
Don’t Believe the eBook Monopoly Ploy from Warren Adler/HuffingtonPost.com
Allegations of EBook Price Fixing Hit Canada from The Globe and Mail
Antitrust Primer for the Publishing Price Fixing Lawsuit from Dear Author
Other
The Sorry State of Digital Books from PCMAG.COM
Why Break/Abandon DRM from Corante: Copyfight
Today’s post is focused on comics. Disclaimer: I know next to nothing about comics or graphic novels so please forgive me for begin a total noob. I came across a Marvel announcement that I thought would be of interest to some of you SLISters that precipitated writing a GTA email on this topic.
The recent announcement by Marvel mentioned that the company will be including a code for downloading the *free* digital copy within every top-selling physical comic book purchased (those priced at $3.99). Here is an article by Fast Company’s expert blogger Rob Salkowitz, questioning whether Marvel’s Digital Comic Book Shift “Will Fly” published March 12, 2012. Note that there have been previous announcements by other comic book companies (such as DC Comics) previously regarding shifting to digital, so the announcement by Marvel is not that unique…excepting codes for downloading the *free* digital versions. Interesting times.
So, I was thinking, what are the reasons that libraries do not collect comic books? Pricing and acquisition, difficult to catalog, collection development and management concerns, theft concerns. Do comics offer no learning or educational opportunities? Others reasons?? Some commentary on this very issue: Egads! Comics! In the Library!
Maybe with the announcement by Marvel, and the development of e-comic databases, more libraries will explore offering e-comic collections to their users (as an extension to currently offered graphic novel collections). Then again, I could see libraries getting out of offering any e-content at all to patrons due to pricing, licensing and availability issues, etc.
Here is a link from the University of Florida listing US university libraries with physical comic book holdings.
Library of Congress: Comic Books
If you are interested in graphic novels/comics in libraries I came across this 2010 resource, which is a holding of the University of Alberta RHSS Library. Graphic novels and comics in libraries and archives: essays on readers, research, history and cataloging by Robert Weiner.
Ok, I think I have just proposed a great research project for one of you!
infophile 