A couple days ago I heard an interview with James Boyle on NPR that reminded me of a lot of information related issues that I have previously discussed with other librarians (and my father). See Boyle bring up the issue that current copyright laws are actually a disservice to the general public. While no one wants the author of any piece, be it in writing, audio or visual format to be robbed of their intellectual products, we also need to think of the needs of the general public.

Copyright is supposed to give the intellectual author of a piece credit and when appropriate, income from their work. All this is great, the problems begin when people begin extending these rights for increasingly long periods of time, and passing these rights down through the generations. In effect this creates a scenario where an increasingly larger amount of information is under copyright, but out of print, and therefore out of reach to most users.

For a little historical background, the Copyright Term Extension Act (CTEA) dates back to 1998, when copyright in the USA was extended by an additional 20 years. Before copyright would last the lifetime of the author, plus an additional 50 years, 75 years in the case of a corporate authorship. Fair enough, but now the extended term says the copyright holder has copyright for a lifetime plus 70 years, and 120 years for corporate authorship. These extended dates are making more and more information inaccessible to users.

I’ve discussed these issues with my father because he works as a scientist in a third world country and he is often frustrated by finding so much intellectual material inaccessible. The organization where he works has little money to buy access to the large (and expensive) journal databases, the fact that he lives outside the USA means that mailing documents back and forth is difficult, costly and timely. So how is he supposed to get current information to keep up to date in his field? He’s been forced to increasingly rely on Google Scholar, which he thinks is a great source to find useful citations, but often doesn’t provide full text article. And we’re back to large amounts of information being out of the reach of users.

All this brings me back to the issues of copyright, and in Boyle’s case to the Public Domain. As a people it is in our collective best interest to be educated. There are plenty of books, pieces of music, movies and the like that have become part of our collective understanding of the world, and we should all be able to use these works. And I’m not advocating that authors get the short end of the stick and not be able to claim copyright. Everyone who produces intellectual material of some kind or other should be given full credit for their work, and should be allowed to profit from it when appropriate, but I don’t see why this person’s offspring or trust holder should continue to make money off their work when they are not the authors. Likewise it bothers me that this situation prevents people like my father from being able to access material in an inexpensive and timely manner.

Fortunately a few things are changing. For one people are starting to publish in the public domain, making their work available under licenses such as Creative Commons. (Even president elect Obama has begun using them!) Universities such as Harvard are encouraging their faculty to embrace open access and sites such as the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ) are helping us find more and more information that is freely available to us.

Coming back to that NPR interviews, you should check out James Boyle’s book The Public Domain: Enclosing the Commons of the Mind. He will give you much more detail on the subject, and true to his word, you can either purchase the book, of download the entire thing for free from his website!

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A couple weeks ago Google come out with one more impressive online collection. This time it’s the LIFE Photo Archive. Most of us have probably seen the powerful images that have been printed in LIFE Magazine over the decades. Google’s press release explains that only a small percentage of this archive has been made public, but now we get to see a much larger portion of the collection.

From the front page of the collection you can browse images by decade, as well as use the search box to find more specific images. Some of the options include searching for individual people, places, sports, cultures and events. The site also suggest we add “source:life” to searches to make sure the images we get are the ones from this collection.

While looking through some of the images, I’ve found that results show you a variety of images, but if you open an individual image, you’ll find tags related to the image, information as to where the photograph was taken, the date, and size of image (You have the option of two sizes for all images). When available, you are also given a few “related images.”

The images you’ll find are for the most part photographs, although there are a few posters, and pieces of art work as well. Currently the collections begins back in the 1860s, and reaches the 1970s. The plan is to eventually catch up with current times.

The collection is really great, so happy browsing!

Image: “Cats Blackie & Brownie catching squirts of milk during milking at Arch Badertscher’s dairy farm” by Nat Farbman.

Hace un par de semanas Google salio con otra impresionante colección. Esta vez se trata de la colección LIFE Photo Archive. Muchos de nosotros probablemente hemos vista algunas de las impactantes imágenes que han salido en la revista LIFE a través de las décadas. El comunicado de presa de Google explica que solo una pequeña parte de esta colección alguna vez se ha puesto a la disposición del público, pero ahora tendremos la oportunidad de una porción mucho más grande.

Desde la página principal de la colección podrá ojear por década, al igual que usar la caja de búsqueda para conducir una búsqueda más específica. Algunas de las opciones de búsqueda incluyen buscar por persona individual, lugares, deportes, cultura, y eventos. El sitio también nos sugiere que agreguemos “source:life” a nuestra búsqueda para asegurar que los resultados realmente sean parte de esta colección.

Mientras miraba algunas de las imágenes me he dado cuenta que los resultados nos muestran una variedad de imágenes, información sobre donde se tomo la foto, fecha, y el tamaño de la imagen (tendrá opción de dos tamaños diferentes). Cuando haya imágenes relacionadas con esta, también le serán disponibles.

Las imágenes que encontraran son en su mayoría fotografías, aunque también encontrara algunos afiches, y obras de arte. Actualmente la colección empieza en el año 1860 y llega hasta 1970. El plan es eventualmente ponerse al día con el presente.

Esta colección es realmente asombrosa, así es que a diviértete ojeándola!
Imagen “Cats Blackie & Brownie catching squirts of milk during milking at Arch Badertscher’s dairy farm” de Nat Farbman.

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Google Earth has just created a new project which recreated Ancient Rome in all it’s glory. You can fly into the city, look into buildings and in general explore an entire city as it appeared in 320 A.D. The site offers about 250 sites which can be explored in a detail in a variety of languages.

Google Earth acaba de salir con un nuevo proyecto que reproduce la Roma Antigua en toda su gloria. Usted podrá volar por la ciudad, mirar dentro de edificios, y en general explorar la ciudad tan cual como era en el año 320 A.D. El sitio ofrece alrededor de 250 sitios para explorar en detalle, en una variedad de idiomas.

This detailed 3D model was based from a physical model housed in Rome’s Museum of Roman Civilization called Pastico di Roma Antica which was created between 1933 and 1974 by a number of archeologist and model-makers.

Este detallado modelo en 3D fue basado en un modelo en el Museo de Civilización Romana en Roma llamado Pastico di Roma Antica, el cual fue creado entre 1933 y 1974 por una cantidad de arqueólogos y fabricantes de modelos.

Just looking further in Google Earth I’ve found that there are a number of other creative projects like this one, some a product of Google’s work, while others have been created by others. Some of these include The Malaria Atlas Projectwhich was created by researchers in Kenya and the UK, and which maps out cases of mosquito borne parasite which cause the disease. There is also the Charlie Chaplin project which was put together by the British Film Institute and which maps out places significant to the actor.

Dándole una mirada mas profunda a Google Earth me doy cuenta de que hay una cantidad de proyectos creativos, algunos son producto de Google, los demás han sido creados por otros. Algunos de estos proyectos incluyen el Malaria Atlas Project creado por investigadores en Kenya y el Reino Unido. Este proyecto traza mapas de casos de parásitos llevadas por zancudos que causan la enfermedad. También esta el proyecto de Charlie Chaplin que fue creado por el British Film Institute, y donde se traza las lugares importantes en la vida del actor.

You can read more about the Ancient Rome project from an article in today’s BBC. Here is a second article from today’s Guardian. You can download Google Earth here.

Puede leer más sobre el proyecto de la antigua roma en un artículo de la BBC. Puede descargar Google Earth aquí.

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Mujer desnuda con espejo, Goya

Spain’s National Library has recently set the Biblioteca Digital Hispánica to highlight some of its most valuable items, including paintings, photographs, maps, and written texts spanning several centuries. The collection can be browsed through its main categories, or can be searched by keywords. The site also connects you to a number of other digital collections related to Spanish history and culture, such as the Biblioteca Cataluña, the Digital Library of the Royal Gardens, the Biblioteca Digital Vasca, the Memorias Digitales de Canarias, and the Colección Digital Complutenseamong many others.

La Biblioteca Nacional de España esta resaltando algunas de sus más valiosas pertenencias, incluyendo pinturas, fotografías, mapas y textos que cubren varios siglos, en la Biblioteca Digital Hispánica. La colección puede ser ojeada atreves de búsquedas por varias categorías ya establecidas, o se pueden conducir búsquedas por medio de palabras claves. El sitio también lo conectada a otra cantidad de colecciones digitales relacionadas con la historia y cultura Española. Estas incluyen la Biblioteca Cataluña, la Biblioteca Digital del Real Jardín Botánico, la Biblioteca Digital Vasca, las Memorias Digitales de Canarias, y la Colección Digital Complutense, entre muchas otras.

You can access the site here.

Puede entrar al sitio aquí.

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Google as set out with the ambitious goal of digitizing as many news papers (large and small, national and international), as they can get their hands on. These digital files are keyword searchable, and offer a closer look at newspaper headlines, advertisement and complete articles. The project started in 2006 with a partnership with the New York Times and the Washington Post, in which Google offered access to the indexes of both newspapers digital collections.

You can search for old newspapers through the Google News Archive.

You can reach the full news release on this story here.

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Turning the Pages is a great collection digitized books, at the British Library, that allow you to turn the pages and almost experience the real thing. The works included in this project include some very old books, such as the first atlas of Europe, Blake’s notebooks, sketches by Leonardo DaVinci, and the original Alice in Wonderland, among others. To actually see the books you will need Shockwave, but the site also has static, annotated, images of the same works that include audio.

Image; Blackwell’s Herbal – Female Peony and Iris, plates 65 and 69.

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360 Cities is a great site that allows you to see all 360 degrees of over 50 cities around the world. Well you don’t actually get to see every corner of the cities, but you do see major streets and attractions. Cities in this project are mostly European cities, with a number of places in Asia, and I’m sorry to say, hardly anything in Latin America (only Merida, Venezuela and La Havana, Cuba). Still the views you do get are very impressive, and it provides a great way to “travel” without leaving home.

Navigation is done through a combination of a Google map and images taken by VR (Virtual Reality) photographers. The site encourages VR photographers from around the world to become involved with the project in order to continue growing the site.

Image info here.

360 Cities (Ciudades 360) es un sitio fabuloso que nos permite ver 360 grados de más de 50 ciudades alrededor del mundo. Bueno, realmente no vera la ciudad entera, solo partes de ella, pero si podrá ver más calles principales, y grandes atracciones. Las ciudades incluidas en este proyecto son en su mayoría ciudades europeas, además de unas cuantas ciudades en Asia, y lamentablemente no tienen casi nada de Latinoamérica (Solo Mérida, Venezuela, y La Habana, Cuba). Sin embargo es un proyecto que impresiona, y uno que nos permite “viajar” sin dejar la casa.

La navegación dentro de las ciudades es una combinación entre un Google map y las imágenes tomadas por fotógrafos VR (Virtual Reality = Realidad Virtual). El sitio anima a fotógrafos VR alrededor del mundo a participar en el proyecto para así continuar creciendo el sitio.

Información sobre la imagen aquí.

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The Mali government has begun work to create a library that will house material from Timbuktu‘s golden age. Material consists of works of law, history, poetry, and science, much of which has been gathered from private collections, and storerooms, many having been in danger of decay for lack of proper care.

El gobierno de Malí ha empezado a recoger material para crear una biblioteca que guardara material sobre la época dorada el Tombuctú. El material a recoger consiste en tratador legales, historia, poesía, y las ciencias, gran parte del cual se la recuperado de colecciones privadas, bodegas; algunos estando en riesgo de descomposición por haberse guardado en malas condiciones.

The material is being made available on the web through Aluka, a project which works to make digital content from and about Africa available on the web. Aluka does require users to be members to access their content. The project also counts with the help of the Mellon Foundation and Northwestern University.

El material se esta haciendo disponible por medio del portal Aluka, un proyecto que recoger material digital proveniente o sobre el continente africano. El proyecto de Aluka cuanta con ayuda de la Fundación Mellon y la Universidad Northwester, Para usarlo debe ser miembro del proyecto.

You can read more about this story form an article in the NYT.

Usted puede leer más sobre esta historia por medio de un artículo (en ingles) del NYT.

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A few days ago OCLC and Google Books created a partnership that will allow uses of both services to benefit, and better locate library material. OCLC member libraries who already have agreements with Google Books will now be able to make their MARC records available through Google, which will increase the visibility of material. Basically this partnership will allow users of the web to search for books and other library material be guided towards specific library catalogs, which will then provide full access to books that are already part of Google Books. Ideally this set up will drive up traffic for libraries both online and in person. Web users will be able to access full text books from home, but those who wish to borrow the books will be able to see local libraries’ holding.

You can read OCLCs press release on the matter here.

Hace un par de días que OCLC y Google Book llegaron a un acuerdo por medio del cual se beneficiaran los usuarios de ambos sistemas, y será mas fácil encontrar material bibliotecario. Bibliotecas miembros de OCLC que ya tengan acuerdos con Google Books ahora podrán hacer sus registros en forma MARC disponibles por medio de Google, lo cual aumentara su visibilidad en la red. Básicamente este acuerdo ayudara a los usuarios de la red a buscar libros y fácilmente ser guiados hacia el catalogo en línea de las bibliotecas que tienen el material deseado, el cual a su vez dará acceso completo al libro por medio de Google Books. Bajo las mejores circunstancias este acuerdo incrementara el tráfico a las bibliotecas, tanto virtualmente como en persona. Los usuarios de la red podrán ver los libros digitalmente, pero quienes deseen prestar el libro podrán ver a que biblioteca ir.

Usted puede leer el artículo (en ingles) de prensa sobre el tema aquí.

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Microsoft Research just came out with a tool that allows you to see the galaxy up close. After downloading the free software, WorldWide Telescope will bring you to a wide range of images of the galaxy, which you can then explore. The interface is easy enough to use, just use your mouse to scroll across the sky and zoom into whatever catches your attention. As you zoom in and out, the browser allows you to access information which has been hyperlinked to provide more context to what you are seeing.

The WorldWide Telescope functions by gathering the best images of telescopes around the planet and in space, and it seamlessly knits them together to create a holistic image.

This is a video showing the program and describing what it can do.

Check out the WorldWide Telescope here.

Microsoft Research acaba de sacar un programa nuevo que le ayudara a ver la galaxia de cerca. Luego de descargar el programa gratis, WorldWide Telescope le proveerá un gran rango de imágenes de la galaxia para explorar. El programa es fácil de usar, simplemente pase su mouse sobre el cielo y luego acérquese a la sección que quiera explorar más a fondo. Mientras se acerque a aleje de estas imágenes el programa le permitirá ver información adicional que estará conectada con las imágenes que esta mirando.

El WorldWide Telescope funcional al integrar las mejores imágenes del planeta y el espacio, y creando una sola imagen con ellas.

El video muestra el programa y lo que este puede hacer.

Vea el WorldWide Telescope aquí.

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