---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Wed, 23 Dec 1998 12:15:04 +0100
From: GreyNet <Dominic.Farace@INTER.NL.NET>
Subject: GreyNet Newsletter Volume 7, Number 4, 1998
GREYNET'S NEWSLETTER ------------------------------------------------------
WE NewsBriefNews
WISH Vol. 7, No. 4, 1998
YOU A.. ISSN 1389-1812
Bonne Annee Electronic Version
Gott nytt ar
HAPPY NEW YEAR
Felice Anno Nuovo
Gelukkig Nieuwjaar
Prospero Ano Nuevo
Gluckliches Neues Jahr
1999
YEAR
OF THE
DATABASE
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CONTENTS: COLUMN:
GreyNet, a New Branch of MCB University Press 1
FID Presidential Roundtable 2
GL'99 Conference Goals and Objectives 3
GL'99 Sponsors and Program Committee 4
Special GreyNet Subscription Offer 5
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EDITORIAL ADDRESS:
GreyNet, Grey Literature Network Service
Koninginneweg 201, 1075 CR Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Tel/Fax: 31-20-671.1818
Email: GreyNet@inter.nl.net
URL: http://www.konbib.nl/infolev/greynet
ANNUAL SUBSCRIPTION: NLG. 40 | US$ 25
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[1] G r e y N e t - A NEW BRANCH OF MCB UNIVERSITY PRESS
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Final agreement has been reached by MCB and GreyNet for the merger and
integration of their activities. GreyNet will proceed with its operations
in Amsterdam, The Netherlands as a Branch of MCB University Press with
headquarters in Bradford, United Kingdom. The merger was effective as of
October 30, 1998.
GreyNet brings a new, yet highly compatible dimension to MCB's approach
to the publication and dissemination of knowledge. Dr. Dominic J. Farace,
founder of GreyNet, will continue to head operations in Amsterdam with the
technical and administrative assistance of Jerry Frantzen.
This merger secures the Fourth International Conference on Grey Literature
(GL'99), which is scheduled for October 4-5, 1999 in Washington D.C., USA.
Furthermore,GreyNet will be able to maintain its network of contacts
worldwide with (corporate) authors and research institutes built-up since
its establishment in 1992.
With GreyNet as facilitator and MCB as (electronic) publishing body, new
information resources will be made available both in print and electronic
formats. The launch of an International Journal on Grey Literature is but
one example. It is believed that such endeav-ors will be widely applauded
by the producers and users of grey literature. Not to mention libraries
and information centers that would readily tap such new and innovative
resources.
From the Editor, December 1998
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[2] FID P R E S I D E N T I A L R O U N D T A B L E
International Federation for Information and Documentation
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Although we are still trying to understand the full implications of the
innovations, challenges, and impact associated with the new information
society, it is interesting to note that as the year 2000 approaches, our
vocabulary already has begun to change.
In many of our communities, the Knowledge-based Society concept is now of
primary concern to our policy makers, and a significant level of resources
is being allocated to ensure that an appropriate infrastructure exists to
support this new Knowledge-based society rather than what we have become
comfortable in calling the new information society. And while this new
concept may drive our agenda for the coming millennium, there are several
critical issues that have not been satisfactorily addressed, relating to
the technological, the social, economic, and cultural components of what
we refer to as the new information society. Even more importantly,
I believe, insufficient attention has been directed to examining the
relevance or impact of these components of this new information society
on the citizenry.
It is my wish, over the next several months, to enter into a comprehensive
dialogue, in the form of the FID Presidential Roundtable to discuss some of
these outstanding issues.
For it is my strong opinion that we, as information professionals, cannot
enter the new millennium without bringing closure to what many regard as
obstacles to the present era of this information society.
INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGIES
On one hand, there has been much progress in the areas of research and
development of new information and communication technologies, and a
global shift has been seen in the utilization of these new technologies.
While on the other, the development of the creation of a new category of
information haves and have nots' is much more difficult to address.
It has, in fact, forced the formulation (or consideration of formulation)
of public policies to ensure universality and equity of information to
citizens within national boundaries. So, although information and
communication technologies are still being developed and applied to the
problems of our new information society, the obstacles do not rest here.
There is no fear that technologies can not be developed to facilitate the
movement of information for ease of access, and therefore for me, this is
not a serious obstacle that has to be overcome for it is then no longer an
issue of innovation and development of new technologies. The obstacle has
become one of changing the mind-set of national decision-makers and the
creation of country-specific Public Policy.
I believe that for the community of information professionals and
specialists in information resource management, this issue of public policy
poses one of the major challenges. For it is this community that must pose
and attempt to answer the question: What are the critical issues that must
be addressed to ensure equity of access to information by all regardless of
geographical locations? One of the exciting aspects of addressing this
question is that those engaged in this dialogue are no longer identified by
national boundary considerations. As I stated earlier, with respect to
information, its dissemination and its use, geopolitical boundaries are
becoming invisible. In this respect a level playing field has been created,
for there is today in every country a significant group of information rich
and information poor. Although the gap is ever present, and some say it is
widening, the stakeholders around the discussion table are working in
concert to solve the common problem of universal access, rather than
discussing this issue from a position of power on one side and weakness on
the other.
HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT
Human resource development also includes the information specialist who
serves as the intermediary between the information source and the
individual user, or group of users. The challenges, in this area are major.
For it is the information specialist who must be skilled in ensuring
universal access of information, regardless of the source, thus permitting
the user to make the necessary choices to secure a desired quality of life.
Achieving this goal is extremely difficult, for at the same time there must
be protection of the rights of those who create the information; and where
required, there must be protection of the privacy of both the creators and
users of information. It is evident, therefore, that understanding the
application of technologies in the manipulation and transfer of information
is overshadowed by issues of equity of access, fair use, ownership and
privacy protection. Having highlighted human resource development as a
critical challenge to the realization of the new information society, a
question still remains as to how to harness the new technological
developments to ensure that all individuals, within our respective
societies, have the information tools they require to make their own
quality of life choices.
THE IMPACT OF INFORMATION
The final issue that poses the greatest obstacle to achieving the goals of
a new information society is, what I have referred to in some of my earlier
papers, trying to answer the "So What?" question. Having invested massive
human and financial resources into the processes of information management,
design, manipulation, dissemination, and utilization, very little attention
has been paid to the impact that all of this has had on improving the
decision-making capabilities of the ultimate user. Personally, I find this
quite bizarre because of the bottom-line implications for increased
financial resource allocations to the information services sector.
Clearly, before entering the new century and trying to understand the
meaning and implications of a Knowledge-based Society, there must be a
clear understanding of what has this present new information society
achieved. There are those who are active researchers in the field of
information science who are asking difficult questions such as:
What difference has the availability of accurate and timely information
made to the quality of life of our citizens; how has the availability of
accurate and timely information made a difference to the decision-making
process of our policy makers; and is it possible to go beyond anecdotal
data to measure the impact of information and its abundant availability
on our societies' development?
The critical issue is that it is essential to understand and to document,
in universally accepted measures, the impact of information and
communication technologies on our global society. We must also understand
fully the impact of policy decisions taken to meet the challenges of this
new information society. And finally, we must understand how the
availability of this information, more abundant and at speed of access
far beyond the comprehension of most, will move forward the development of
society. All of this must be understood before we can proceed with clarity
of purpose into 21st century, the knowledge-based era.
In my comments this afternoon, I have attempted to highlight some of the
major issues, often viewed as obstacles, that I believe we, as information
professionals, face in contributing to the realization of the new
information society. In choosing these issues over others, I have exposed
my biases. The articulation of these will be reflected in the direction
of FID's program over the next two years. However, in order to ensure the
relevancy of our program, it is essential that I hear from you.
What do you see as the most important issues that must be addressed, in
full or in part, before we enter the new millennium?
Martha B. Stone, FID President
fid@python.konbib.nl
"Excerpts from the FID Presidential Roundtable held on 30 November 1998
in The Royal Library, The Hague, The Netherlands"
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[3] GL'99 CONFERENCE GOALS AND OBJECTIVES
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The theme 'New Frontiers' captures the real spirit of The Fourth
International Conference on Grey Literature, whose goals and objectives
are reflected in the topics comprising the main sessions. At the Third
International Conference in this series, not only was the definition of
grey literature redefined but also the direction research should take in
the 21st Century.
Grey Literature "That which is produced on all levels of government,
academics, business and industry in print and electronic formats, but which
is not controlled by commercial publishers" moves the field of grey
literature beyond established borders into new frontiers, where lines of
demarcation between conventional/non-conventional and published/unpublished
literature cease to obstruct further development and expansion. At the same
time, this new definition challenges commercial publishers to rethink their
position on grey literature.
The First Session at GL'99 confronts these and other issues. The papers
will demonstrate the value of grey literature for researchers, policy
makers, and information professionals in diverse disciplines and sectors
of the global information community. The Second Session will confront the
challenges facing librarians and information technicians in archiving
electronic grey literature for subsequent full-text retrieval and document
delivery. The Final Session will address issues of authorship, copyright,
and ownership of grey literature. Matters that affect the very processes
of knowledge generation and information dissemination.
Your intellectual contribution, either by way of a conference paper or as
a conference participant pursuing discussion and debate are both solicited
and welcome by the GL'99 Sponsors and Program Committee Organizations.
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[4] S P O N S O R S & P R O G R A M C O M M I T T E E
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GL'99 C O N F E R E N C E S P O N S O R S
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* BIOSIS Publisher of Biological Abstracts and Zoological Record
* JST Japan Science and Technolgy Corporation
* MCB University Press
New Age Electronic Publisher in Management and Engineering
* NASA National Aeronautics Space Administration
* NLE National Library of Education, U.S. Department of Education
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GL'99 P R O G R A M C O M M I T T E E O R G A N I Z A T I O N S
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* BIOSIS Publisher of Biological Abstracts and Zoological Record
* EAGLE European Association for Grey Literature Exploitation
* FID International Federation for Information and Documentation
* GreyNet Grey Literature Network Service
* IFLA International Federation of Libary Associations and Institutions
* JST Japan Science and Technology Corporation
* MCB University Press
New Age Electronic Publisher in Management and Engineering
* NASA National Aeronautics Space Administration
* NLE National Library of Education, U.S. Department of Education
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GL'99 P R O G R A M A N D C O N F E R E N C E B U R E A U
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GreyNet
Grey Literature Network Service
Koninginneweg 201, 1075 CR Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
Tel/Fax: 31-20-671.1818
Email : GreyNet@inter.nl.net
http://www.konbib.nl/infolev/greynet/GL'99.htm
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[5] S U B S C R I P T I O N T O G R E Y N E T
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* S p e c i a l O f f e r 1 9 9 9 *
For every new or renewed subscription for 1999,
the GreyNet Subscriber
will receive "free-of-charge" the publication of choice.
INDICATE YOUR CHOICE OF FREE PUBLICATION AND COMPLETE THE FORM:
[ ] Annotated Bibliography on the Topic of Grey Literature
3rd Edition. - ISBN 90-74854-20-6
[ ] International Guide to Persons and Organisations in Grey Literature
4th Edition. - ISBN 90-74854-23-0 (*) January 1999
G R E Y L I T E R A T U R E N E T W O R K S E R V I C E
The Grey Literature Network Service is established in order to promote
and support the work of authors, researchers, and intermediaries on the
topic of Grey Literature. This is achieved through the enhancement of
international co-operation, through training and conference organization,
through the publication of research findings, as well as the establishment
of a worldwide information referral base. In this capacity, GreyNet
actively compiles bibliographic,documentary, and factual information
on persons, organizations, and their respective products and services
in the area of Grey Literature.
B E N E F I T S F O R G R E Y N E T S U B S C R I B E R S :
* A flat 15% reduction on all conferences and seminars organized by GreyNet
* A flat 15% reduction on all information products published by GreyNet
* A flat 15% reduction on all printed advertisements and inserts, as well
as electronic postings on GreyNet's: www.konbib.nl/infolev/greynet
* A full subscription to NewsBriefNews a quarterly newsletter published
and edited by GreyNet. Delivery in both printed and electronic formats.
* Unlimited login and information retrieval in the GreyNet Website.
* Guarantee that all of GreyNet's products and services under development
will be offered at set reductions.
* Pre-payment waiver on product deliveries.
GREYNET SUBSCRIPTION FORM =================================================
Check one of the boxes below for the type of subscription:
[ ] Individual Subscription: 125 Dutch guilders per calender year
Registered under the person's name entered below.
[ ] Group Subscription: 300 Dutch guilders per calender year
Registered under the Organization's name entered below.
Indicate your Special Area of Interest in Grey Literature:
[ ] Curriculum Development
[ ] Electronic Archiving and Dissemination
[ ] Copyright and Property Rights
[ ] Technology Transfer and Innovation
[ ] Marketing and Publishing
[ ] Other:
___________________________________________________________________________
Title: (Mr) (Mrs) (Ms) (Dr)
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Signature: Date:
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CHECK ONE OF THE BOXES BELOW FOR THE METHOD OF PAYMENT:
[ ] Bank check/draft enclosed and payable to GreyNet.
With reference to GreyNet Subscription 1999 and Subscriber's name.
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RETURN ADDRESS:
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The Netherlands
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URL: http://konbib.nl/infolev/greynet
End of transmission.
