Using questions from creators and users of online information, the author explores the interface of copyright and new technology, explains how copyright works in the electronic…
Abstract
Using questions from creators and users of online information, the author explores the interface of copyright and new technology, explains how copyright works in the electronic environment, and identifies some areas of change needed to maintain the balance between the users and creators of electronic information. Overall, the author argues that existing copyright law can be applied to electronic information.
David Jemison and Robert Oakley
Mutual insurance companies will have to reform their corporate governance practices if they want to avoid new and excessive government regulation. Steps they can take include…
Abstract
Mutual insurance companies will have to reform their corporate governance practices if they want to avoid new and excessive government regulation. Steps they can take include: changes in board structure and composition, the addition of several committees, more open communication with policyholders, and greater involvement of the board in setting strategy.
Alastair Walker, Tom McBride, Gerhard Basson and Robert Oakley
The assessment of COBIT process maturity levels is fraught with a number of problems regarding the objectivity of the assessment results. Unlike ISO/IEC 15504, COBIT does not…
Abstract
Purpose
The assessment of COBIT process maturity levels is fraught with a number of problems regarding the objectivity of the assessment results. Unlike ISO/IEC 15504, COBIT does not define an assessment model. The purpose of this paper is to align the behavioural aspects of the six COBIT process attributes with achievement results defined for the nine process attributes associated with the ISO/IEC 15504‐2 measurement scale. The authors believe that this alignment permits a translation of the ISO/IEC 15504 assessment data into an objective COBIT process maturity rating.
Design/methodology/approach
The tables presented in the paper identify the COBIT process attributes, the applicable ISO/IEC 15504 process attribute achievement results and the aggregated rating that pertains to the selected achievement results. A final table lists the derived COBIT process maturity level in terms of the ratings for the ISO/IEC 15504 process attribute achievement results for an assessed process.
Findings
The objectivity of the aggregated result (COBIT process maturity level) appeals strongly to end‐users of this measurement result, particularly where contractual obligations must be satisfied.
Practical implications
The method is useful where measurement rigour must be demonstrated in the computation of the COBIT process maturity levels.
Originality/value
This assessment and computational method was developed and trialled in the second half of 2010 in the context of the assessment of 13 information technology (IT) service management processes at two different customer sites. The material is of special value to service managers in companies that have outsourced IT service management processes to external IT service providers.
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Copyright is integral to everything we do in digital publishing. This new column will examine a wide range of intellectual property issues using concrete examples from current…
Abstract
Copyright is integral to everything we do in digital publishing. This new column will examine a wide range of intellectual property issues using concrete examples from current projects. Since Internet‐based publishing is automatically international, the column will look at the British, European and other aspects, as well as US law. This first column deals with the question of whether a set of 1960s era Black Panther Party pamphlets are in the public domain under US copyright law. It also mentions the moral rights issues that would arise in a German context. The final section of the column reviews some of the information sources useful in answering questions of this sort.
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Donald T. Hawkins, Frank J. Smith, Bruce C. Dietlein, Eugene J. Joseph and Robert D. Rindfuss
Results of an in‐depth study of the electronic publishing (EP) industry, with particular emphasis on the consumer marketplace, are presented. EP was defined as the use of…
Abstract
Results of an in‐depth study of the electronic publishing (EP) industry, with particular emphasis on the consumer marketplace, are presented. EP was defined as the use of electronic media to deliver information to users in electronic form or from electronic sources. EP is contrasted to electronic‐aided publishing, which is the use of electronic means to format and produce a conventional information product. An “information chain” model of the information flows between publishers (or producers) and users was helpful in understanding the boundaries of EP and defining its markets. Following a review of the conventional publishing industry, a model of the forces driving the EP industry was derived. Although technology is the strongest driving force, it is by no means the only one; the others are economics, demographics, social trends, government policies, applications growth, and industry trends. Each of these forces is described in detail in a “cause and effect” scenario, from which keys to success in the EP marketplace are derived. Although there is some turmoil in the industry, with new services continuing to appear and disappear, the overall picture is one of optimism. EP should be a significant part of consumers' lives by the end of the decade.
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In the matter of food purity and control Hospital Catering Services have been outside the law, a privileged position where the general law of food and drugs have never applied and…
Abstract
In the matter of food purity and control Hospital Catering Services have been outside the law, a privileged position where the general law of food and drugs have never applied and the modern regulatory control in food hygiene has similarly not applied. In the eyes of the general public hospital catering standards have always been high above the general run of food preparation. As the NHS continued, complaints began gradually to seep out of the closed community, of dirt in the kitchens and prevalent hygiene malpractices. The general standard for most hospitals remained high but there were no means of dealing with the small minority of complaints which disgusted patients and non‐cater‐ing staff, such as insect and rodent infestations, and an increase in the frequency of food poisoning outbreaks.
This article reviews the present and expected future environments for network‐based electronic publishing and network access to bibliographic and journal databases. Emerging…
Abstract
This article reviews the present and expected future environments for network‐based electronic publishing and network access to bibliographic and journal databases. Emerging visions of “electronic libraries” are considered. The difficulties inherent in the development of full text and images as networked information are outlined. The growth and diversification of library collections in electronic form and the requisite network access systems are discussed, as are the prospect of increased resource sharing among libraries and the subsequent explosion of document delivery requests (and costs!). The issues of storage and format of electronic publishing are developed, and perspectives on electronic publishing are presented for all those involved: the author, the library, the reader, and the publisher. A change in the scope, and thereby in the definition, of the library is anticipated.
Library Exemption added to Software Rental Bill in U.S. Senate. In last month's issue, I briefly mentioned the existence of U.S. Senate Bill 198, The Computer Soft‐ware Rental…
Abstract
Library Exemption added to Software Rental Bill in U.S. Senate. In last month's issue, I briefly mentioned the existence of U.S. Senate Bill 198, The Computer Soft‐ware Rental Amendments Act of 1989, introduced on January 25 by Sen. Orrin Hatch of Utah. This Bill proposed in its original language to restrict the ren‐tal, leasing, or lending of computer software. I am happy to report that the library community responded to this potential restriction on their right to lend materials in any form; an exemption for non‐profit libraries will be included in a new version of the Bill. I think that it is appropriate to examine this issue in more detail as it is of interest to all computer users in libraries.
Few librarians think of U.S. documents as a source for professional reading, growth, and information, yet several agencies of the government are involved with library programs…
Abstract
Few librarians think of U.S. documents as a source for professional reading, growth, and information, yet several agencies of the government are involved with library programs, services, and research. This bibliography is a compilation of some of the most recent documents about libraries published by these agencies. It is an eclectic group, ranging from scholarly research studies to descriptions of model programs. Most of these studies are known only to a small segment of the library profession and have not received wide distribution in the field. The quality of the documents is quite good, particularly the research reports being done out of the Department of Education's Office of Educational Research and Improvement (OERI) Library Programs Office. Much of the information contained in the surveys and research reports is not available in any other form.