Book Review — “World Without Mind,” by Franklin Foer
Franklin Foer’s new book is a bracing account of the current information economy, the monopolies and motivations at its heart, and the weakening of democratized knowledge.
The Illicit Love Affair between Open Access and Traditional Publishing
At the recent PSP conference there was a panel on the cost of complying with the many new open access mandates from funding bodies. The panel explored the cost of compliance and how to reduce those costs. The current regulatory regime is complicated and administratively expensive, but the mandates will continue to be promulgated because the people calling for them are not the ones that have to implement them.
Getting Beyond "Post and Forget" Open Access
Even open access advocates should support the commercialization of materials that are OA, as such commercialization can lead to enhanced discovery of scientific materials.
More Creative Commons Confusion: When Does NC Really Mean "Non-Commercial"?
A recent non-controversy once again shows how much confusion exists around what exactly Creative Commons licenses actually mean.
Going APE — Thoughts and Insights with a European Perspective
The Academic Publishing in Europe (APE) meeting in Europe is 10 years old, but feels as fresh and frisky as some of the meetings in the US used to. This report touches on some of the most interesting threads of two days’ worth of interesting presentations and conversations.
Creative Commons Confusion Continues to Confound Content Creators
Flickr users were enraged when the company tried to reuse their CC BY licensed photographs by selling prints. This once again points out the confusion that content creators have regarding copyright and what the various CC licenses really mean.
Does Creative Commons Make Sense?
Axiomatically more complicated than copyright, built to provide no legal cover, and possibly put in place by the technocrats in Silicon Valley, does Creative Commons make sense for the creative class?
Is There Anything More Slow-moving than a Publisher?
Publishers are always said to be slow-moving, but the pace of development at the CHORUS organization belies that.
Copyright in a Digital Era: The Rise and Rise of CCC
What is the role of the Copyright Clearance Center in a digital age?
Interview With Mike Rossner: On Scientific Integrity, Making Research Data Publicly Available and Routes to Open Access
An interview with MIke Rossner, former Director of Rockefeller University Press.
It's Not 1995 Again — Why the Threats from the New Big Players May Be Much More Significant This Time
Eighteen years ago, Mosaic ushered in the potential for a sea-change in publishing based on technological prowess and scale. Today, the “open” label covers a set of disparate incentives under a single blanket, one that funders, government, and technology companies are all under, each for its own reason.
Licensing Controversy — Balancing Author Rights with Societal Good
The CC-BY license is assumed to be an open access standard, but the situation is complex — for funders, authors, universities, and publishers of all types. Perhaps a less dogmatic approach would serve all parties better.
CC-Huh? Fundamental Confusions About the Role of Copyright and the Reuse of Data
A fundamental confusion between articles and data leads to a call for more CC licenses and less copyright. But why are data being closed down while articles are being opened up? Is there a fundamental misunderstanding of copyright, licensing, and rights?
Review: "Free Ride: How Digital Parasites are Destroying the Culture Business, and How the Culture Business Can Fight Back"
A recent book tells the story of how technology companies — in the guise of advocates of “open” — have gutted content and culture businesses and the creative ranks that depend on them.
An Interview with Cameron Neylon, PLoS' New Director of Advocacy
An interview about open access, funding of science, publishable works, profit motives, and other topics of interest, with one of the more thoughtful advocates of OA publishing, Cameron Neylon.