This month, we are launching a new Web site with a new look and feel and navigation that will make it easier to find the information you need. We hope you find this Web site to be an improvement over the old one.
The new site features a report of the recent meeting in Berkeley, Calif., of the NDIIPP project partners. This is the third meeting convening this group since the awards of nearly $14 million were made in September 2004. The partners have made excellent progress in their projects and came to Berkeley excited about the work they are doing and armed with new ideas for tackling issues related to the important work of digital preservation.
The Section 108 Study Group, an independent 19-person body of copyright experts from the public and private sectors, is holding two open roundtables next month, in Los Angeles on March 8 and in Washington on March 16. Those who are interested can participate either by requesting to attend either of the meetings or by submitting written comments. For more information, go to the group's Web site.
The Section 108 Study group was formed to study how section 108 of the Copyright Act may need to be amended to address the relevant issues and concerns of libraries and archives, as well as of creators and other copyright holders, when dealing with digital media. The group will provide findings and recommendations on how to revise the copyright law in order to ensure an appropriate balance among the interests of creators and other copyright holders, libraries and archives in a manner that best serves the national interest. The findings and recommendations will be submitted by mid-2006 to the Librarian of Congress.
The Office of Strategic Initiatives (OSI), which is leading NDIIPP for the nation, also oversees other digital initiatives for the Library, such as the award-winning American Memory Web site; THOMAS, the site for congressional information; and the Wise Guide, a monthly electronic magazine. The 2005 Annual Review for OSI (PDF, 11KB) is now available from this new Web site.
Out on the road, National Digital Information Infrastructure and Preservation Program, in particular, and the issue of digital preservation, in general, are generating lots of interest among information professionals. During the January American Library Association Midwinter Meeting in San Antonio, Texas, Guy Lamolinara, OSI's special assistant for communications, made three daily briefings to a standing-room-only crowd in the Library's exhibition booth on the convention floor. Attendees demonstrated through their questions that they are not only aware of the need for digital preservation, but also that they are keenly aware of the work the Library is doing to lead NDIIPP. Lamolinara also made a special presentation to a technology group of OCLC, which drew more than 100 attendees.
