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Monday, December 03, 2012
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The Fight for a Free and Open Internet
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by Paula J. Hane
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Vinton Cerf is worried. Cerf is credited with helping to develop the protocols and structure of the internet and the first commercial email system. Now he fears forces are at work that threaten to undermine the free and open nature of the net. He notes that, "The internet has become one of the motors of the 21st century economy, allowing all of us to reach a global audience at a click of a mouse and creating hundreds of thousands of businesses and millions of jobs." But he cautioned, "Today, this free and open net is under threat. Some 42 countries filter and censor content out of the 72 studied by the Open Net Initiative (ONI). This doesn't even count serial offenders such as North Korea and Cuba. Over the past 2 years, Freedom House says governments have enacted 19 new laws threatening online free expression." Cerf and many others worry that a meeting that starts today (Dec. 3, 2012, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates) could prove problematic.
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Publishers Partner With De Gruyter for PDA
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The idea behind Patron Driven Acquisition (PDA) is simple: to offer users access to all digital content but only charge for actual use. Beginning in 2013, two of De Gruyter's publishing partners—Harvard University Press and Böhlau Publishers—will offer their content globally through De Gruyter Online as part of the PDA distribution model. By participating in PDA distribution, these publishing houses will be able to provide customers with access to a greatly expanded range of academic content. The partnerships will particularly enlarge the range of publications available in the field of history.
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VOOK to Offer Interactive Ebook Publishing With WeJITs
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Democrasoft, Inc. and VOOK announced that Democrasoft's WeJIT technology is now available through VOOK's VookMaker program. WeJITs allow an ebook reader to communicate, from within the ebook, directly with the author, with other existing readers, and with new individuals outside the book who are not yet readers but who can start participating in book-based discussions. This expands a book's new readership and reach.
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JSTOR Announces Alumni Access Program
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JSTOR announced a new Alumni Access program, which enables participating higher education institutions to provide their alumni with access to their JSTOR archive collections. This is an important next step in its ongoing efforts to extend access to scholarship to individuals around the world.
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Wiley Enriches TED Studies for Instructional Use
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by Barbara Quint
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TED is a fascinating organization, powered by the internet, of course, but it's completely human in its goals and creations. It relies basically on good minds, often prestigiously good, to come up with really good ideas for achieving really good advances for humankind. TED is Third Millennium Cool. John Wiley & Sons, Inc. has more than 2 centuries of experience in recording and distributing solid, high-quality scholarship. Wiley is Second Millennium Authoritative. Now they are banding together. TEDTalks consist of 18-minute video presentations of new, intriguing ideas. TED has grouped subsets of its TEDTalks into TED Studies for integration into curricular presentations. Wiley will be adding text material designed to enhance instructional use and written by highly qualified experts. And all this, including Wiley's contributions, is still available free to anyone on the open web.
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