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RE: EPA Set to Close Library Network and Electronic Catalog [PMC and digital preservation thread]
Federal stewards of government information share the concerns of
the library community.
Government agencies are actively sponsoring and engaging in a
number of initiatives to enable permanent public access to the
information in their custody. Examples include NDIIP
http://www.digitalpreservation.gov/, Sec 108 Study Group
http://www.loc.gov/section108/, the Interagency Committee on
Government Information http://www.cio.gov/documents/icgi.html and
CENDI http://www.cendi.gov/proj_dig_elec_arch_new.html.
Government information stewards do not place trust in any single
method nor want to be the sole repository. We know all too well
funding can be cut or totally eliminated depending on politics
and priorities. However, government is not alone in facing an
uncertain future. I have seen this happen in state government,
academic institutions and corporations. The commercial publishing
and A&I industry faces the challenges of changing markets,
mergers and acquisitions, and financial downturns.
Libraries, no matter what sector, are seen as expendable
administrative overhead. We are easy targets for short-sighted
managers looking to reduce spending and demonstrate immediate
cost savings. These managers do not understand the value of
information nor care about the return on investment. In the end,
gutting library and information services winds up costing the
organization more. Take a look at the Nov 2005 findings and
recommendations of the EPA Library Network WorkGroup
http://www.peer.org/docs/epa/06_9_2_library_network.pdf. They
tried.
Bonnie Klein
-----Original Message-----
[mailto:owner-liblicense-l@lists.yale.edu] On Behalf Of David Goodman
Sent: Thursday, March 02, 2006 6:43 PM
To: liblicense-l@lists.yale.edu; liblicense-l@lists.yale.edu
Subject: RE: EPA Set to Close Library Network and Electronic Catalog [PMC
and digital preservation thread]
We worry for two good reasons, and I think it is not only
libraries who should worry:
First, it is unwise to trust any single method. Present day
analysis is inherently unable to predict all future conditions.
Second, it is unwise to trust any agency of a single government.
(Even a government not known for its removal of published
material may later change. )
A possible third, which I personally do not consider reasonable,
is that some do not trust the NIH in particular. Those for whom
this is the important objection should say so.
There may also be some who do not trust the NIH method because of
technical considerations. I am not sufficiently knowledgeable to
judge.
Dr. David Goodman
Associate Professor
Palmer School of Library and Information Science
Long Island University
dgoodman@liu.edu
-----Original Message-----
From: owner-liblicense-l@lists.yale.edu on behalf of Anthony Watkinson
Sent: Wed 3/1/2006 7:03 PM
To: liblicense-l@lists.yale.edu
Subject: Re: EPA Set to Close Library Network and Electronic Catalog [PMC
and digital preservation thread]
... why do the libraries mentioned worry so much and spend so
much money in researching long-term preservation techniques?
Anthony