This week’s 4cast:
1. WorldCat Local’s Out of the Bag
OCLC has announced a new pilot service called WorldCat Local, which aims to integrate portions of the WorldCat service (and interface) into local library catalogs. Is the traditional OPAC on the way out?
- More on the OCLC WorldCat Local Project (LibrarianInBlack)
- WorldCat: Think locally, act globally (Thingology)
- How WorldCat solves some problems and creates others (librarian.net)
- More on Worldcat Local (Panlibus)
2. As the Social Network Turns…
The debate over the perceived dangers of social networking sites like MySpace seems to be taking a turn, as some recent studies suggest that MySpace is actually a pretty safe place for the kids to visit. Two LIS students in Illinois are conducting their own Library MySpace Study.
- List of literature on MySpace and Libraries (Library MySpace Study)
- Is MySpace Safe for Kids? (Electronic Frontier Foundation)
- Why MySpace Is SafeSpace (Forbes)
- Teens, Privacy and Online Social Networks (Pew Internet & American Life Project)
3. The Vista is Not Nearly As Beautiful As Had Been Anticipated
Windows Vista continues to inspire invective from both users and security experts. Dell’s decision to go back to Windows XP on some of their computers, taken together with several other recent developments, does not seem to bode well for Vista’s eventual acceptance by the marketplace.
- Is Windows Vista in Trouble? (Slashdot)
- Users force Dell to resurrect XP (BBC)
- Honest, Vista’s not selling THAT badly (Real Tech News)
- Don’t be misled by these 10 Windows Vista myths (TechRepublic)
4. FCC Finally Notices the Digital Divide
According to the Telecommunications Act of 1996, the FCC is required to keep tabs on broadband deployment in the US and make sure that as it progresses, the competition is fair and the rules are followed. But some parties (including the Government Accountability Office on several occasions) have criticized the FCC’s methodology in defining and determining what broadband access looks like. The FCC is now admitting that as this country continues to fall behind the rest of the world in broadband access, there may have been some problems with fudgy numbers and misinformation.
- FCC bows to criticism, updates broadband data collection policy (Ars Technica)
- FCC to Investigate Broadband Deployment (eWeek)
- FCC Admits It Sucks At Measuring Broadband Competition (Techdirt)
- What Would 100% Broadband Look Like? (Stephen’s Lighthouse)
