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Editorial
By Robin Neidorf
In the last issue of FreePint, I focused on new tools that have 'made it' and are now part of the resources businesses rely on for productivity. But for every success story, there are just as many also-rans and half-baked ideas that are still in the process of evolution.
The two FUMSI articles featured in this issue of FreePint provide a glimpse into tools-in-evolution. First, from the Googleplex, we have Google Wave, promoted by Google as 'what email would look like if it were invented today.' Malcolm Coles and Martin Belam provide their expert opinion of Google Wave, based on trial and error. Malcolm and Martin bring a positive predisposition to their test: They want Google Wave to support better collaboration. Yet the experience is not quite there yet, as they explain.
A more familiar (perhaps) tool is RSS, which Brian Westra uses as the centrepiece of his helpful article on creating and pushing out specific feeds for specialised purposes. As Brian points out, RSS has not realised the breadth of adoption of, say, Twitter. He provides several recipes for success. Will more info pros add them to their menus?
Experimentation is not restricted to technologies and tools by any means. January's VIP Magazine offers up two reviews that showcase products that challenge the status quo. VIP's review of Moreover's Newsdesk explains how the product puts the latest news at the fingertips of subscribers, not through the traditional method of licensing the news from other resources, but from scraping information into its search engines and then redirecting users to the original publisher to read the article. A fascinating comparative review of executive staff databases shows three approaches vendors have taken to overlaying social networking information over biographical, making the proverbial 'six degrees of separation' even easier to visualise.
This is incredible stuff... and only a fraction of it will probably still be on our desktops in five years' time. (Will we even have 'desktops' in five years' time? Hello, iPad: That's the subject of a whole other editorial...)
The pace of change and evolution has accelerated. One of the most challenging -- and exciting -- aspects of our work as information practitioners is the need to stay up to date, test new tools, try new products, and advise others on how these resources can improve our work. It's one of the reasons FUMSI has made a commitment to conducting surveys regularly -- the current survey on your favourite widgets and gadgets is surfacing all kinds of tools many of us have barely heard of. When we publish the results later this month, respondents and FUMSI subscribers will have in their hands a snapshot overview of what tools their peers around the world find useful. Don't miss out on this valuable resource: Your survey response gets you a copy of that report for your reference, so contribute now.
While you're in a mood for thinking beyond your current resources, why not request samples of VIP and FUMSI resources? If you find FreePint useful, you'll definitely find that our premium resources will contribute to your ability to make better decisions, faster. They just might turn out to be the missing ingredient in your own recipe for information success.
Robin Neidorf
General Manager
FreePint
FreePint is a Registered Trademark of Free Pint Limited (R) 1997-2010
My Favourite Tipples
By FUMSI and VIP contributing editors
We're now adding Tipples regularly to the Bar as well as posting them in the FreePint Newsletter. Do you have a single Tipple to share? Post it to the Bar. Or submit your list of up to five favourite tipples to support@freepint.com for publication with your byline and photo in the FreePint Newsletter.
Recent Tipples:
UK Government Publications Week 1 2010 Food 2030 - DEFRA (Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs) and Going for Growth - BIS (Department for Business Innovation and Skills) are amongst the early highlights (submitted by Joanna Ptolomey, contributing editor for FUMSI and VIP).
Fantastic IA/InfoDesign/UX Resource!
Found this fabulous resource for all things IA, Information Design and User Experience - everything you need from one jumping-off-point (submitted by Kate Simpson, contributing editor for FUMSI)
Improve your Communications Skills No matter what kind of work you do, business communication skills have become as important as technical skills - if not more important. Mind Tools, a career and leadership development company, offers some excellent free articles on improving your communication skills (submitted by Marcy Phelps, contributing editor for FUMSI).
Twitter User Names - Bun Fight If your username has been inactive for 6 months or has been deleted, twitter will release these names back to the public - no date given as yet.
So if you signed up for twitter, got a username but then have not tweeted be aware that your username will become available to the public (submitted by Joanna Ptolomey, contributing editor for FUMSI and VIP, aka @chibbie).
Would you like to add your Favourite Tipples suggestions for the FreePint Newsletter or write an article for FUMSI (Find, Use, Manage or Share Information?).
FreePint is still collecting data for our survey on regulatory compliance. Learn more about this important project, and participate (or invite your financial analysts to do so). (Free copy of results summary to participants.)
[RS] Resource of the Week: (We Love) Lists & Rankings
Sometimes even we find it hard to believe that ResourceShelf is entering the eighth year of its existence. (My, how time flies when you're having fun.) Well, those of you who have been 'around' as long as we have just might remember a venerable resource created and maintained by Gary, called Price's List of Lists...
[FUMSI] Report: Folio on Accountability and Governance
Information plays an essential role in business. Therefore, the attention we pay to how we control information, as well as rely on it for decisions, is also essential...
We add new articles to the FUMSI database in each practice area every month, which are free to read, browse, email, print or save. Here are the most recent additions:
There's lots of buzz about Google Wave, but is it a technological solution to a real problem, or a technology looking for a problem to solve? Co-authors Martin Belam and Malcolm Coles point out the advantages and opportunities of the new Wave.
WHAT'S INSIDE: 'Perhaps the biggest challenge facing Wave is that the initial experience of the service doesn't really answer 'What is it for?'. Even if people struggle to initially grasp what they can do with Twitter, the opening instruction on the homepage - 'See what people are saying about...' is clear.'
RSS feeds hold the promise of personalised news alerts, but getting full value from the technology isn't always easy. Brian Westra shares tips and tools for making sure that the value of RSS doesn't get lost in the shuffle.
WHAT'S INSIDE: 'Teaching about a web application while everyone was logged into their own account made it easy to do hands-on training in configuration and feed subscription that would then be accessible for the participants from their own desktops. It is critical to actively engage attendees with the tools or resources in a workshop '.
Today's knowledge economy is powered by information but operates on Internet time. Knowledge workers have access to more information than ever, but less time for decision making.
Dow Jones Enterprise Media Group combines respected reporting with innovative technologies to drive additional value from news, data and information.
For our customers, this means increased productivity and competitive advantage, all of which lead to a more intelligent - and profitable enterprise.
Blogs for business intelligence and products for relationship management reviewed in VIP Magazine No. 74
Around 32,000 news sources and half a million blogs are available through Moreover's Newsdesk, providing business intelligence that can be customised several ways including being fed directly into a customer relationship management system. But Moreover doesn't license the content it provides; it simply links to it using a business model often called 'web scraping'. Reviewing Newsdesk for VIP, Anne Jordan is impressed by its range of search connectors and commands as well as its indexing filters, which reduce the level of irrelevant hits common in many web search applications - but the scraping model does mean that users have to register and subscribe separately to any sources that require it.
Three business relationship databases come under scrutiny in Penny Crossland's exhaustive comparative review of BoardEx, the Directors Database and Leadership Directories. The institutional leadership content and the search and report facilities they offer vary considerably, so her review concentrates on the business development components of each service. BoardEx may have fast and powerful search capabilities, but only provides basic biographical information; the biographies available in the Directors Database are much more detailed, but it's US-biased and offers no alerting service or automatic deduplication; Leadership Networks offers a very good personal networking tool and a wealth of private organisation content, but its search response time is slow.
Purchase the individual product reviews via the links above, or save money by purchasing the entire VIP 74, including the above features and insights, executive summaries of the product reviews and copies of the full product reviews.
VIP LiveWire
VIP contributing editors comment daily on what's happening in the industry. Visit the LiveWire for their insights, and subscribe to the free VIP Wires Weekly for regular alerts.
VIP Wires Weekly is generously sponsored by Dow Jones.
Most Read Postings on the LiveWire Recently...
Information managers are having to make hard choices between different products - identifying content overlaps and reducing the number of resources to the core 'must have's'. But products are rarely, if ever, true comparisons, so how can we make these decisions when it's like comparing apples and pears?
Read the full story at: http://www.vivavip.com/go/e27518
2010 will be a 'lose-lose-lose' year for content buyers, sellers and users as the gap between the price of information and buyers' ability to pay widens, predicts Outsell - while further reports from both Outsell and IRN foresee more difficult times ahead. But can customers use this opportunity to turn vendors' woes to their advantage?
Read the full story at: http://www.vivavip.com/go/e27544
Presentation after presentation at Online Information 2009 indicated that businesses were starting to pay serious attention to social media. Managing risk was the predominant theme - but have we thought of everything that could go wrong?...
Read the full story at: http://www.vivavip.com/go/e27391
The European Commission (EC) has recently announced initiatives aimed at facilitating access to company information across Europe. In November, it published a Green Paper outlining the current mechanisms for cooperation between company registries and requested input on the way forward.
Read the full story at: http://www.vivavip.com/go/e27552
Always feel free to comment on any item on the LiveWire, and if you do not yet have a free subscription to the VIP Wires Weekly, you can sign up now »
Edinburgh, UK, 26th January 2010, Edinburgh University Press has entered into a three year agreement with the Scottish Higher Education Digital Library (SHEDL) to provide access to all EUP journals for all of the nineteen SHEDL member institutions in Scotland... Read the full Press Release at: http://www.vivavip.com/go/w83960
Oxford and Boston, 26th January 2010 - Credo Reference, the award winning online reference library, has signed an agreement to include National Gallery images and information in the Credo General Reference Collection... Read the full Press Release at: http://www.vivavip.com/go/w83943
Maintaining regulatory compliance becomes more complex every year. The amount of time, money and effort that organisations put into due diligence, governance and reporting is enormous, and the number and type of resource to help them do so are constantly changing... Read the full Press Release at: http://www.vivavip.com/go/w83926
For a wide array of hands-on training and resource materials, turn to Quantum2, an innovative skills development programme provided *free* by Dialog. The programme helps information professionals:
Expand your services through strategic and business competencies
Improve flow of information in your organisation
Gain visibility and build value for your work
Discover best practices, *plus* the know-how to implement them.
Free monthly newsletter and further information at: http://quantum.dialog.com/
You Won't Know Until You Trial
Start 2010 with a FUMSI or VIP trial subscription, and find out how productive you and your team can be.
FUMSI: Helping everyone Find, Use, Manage and Share Information -- 3 month global trial for only £39.
'...the practical, tactical lessons-learned support professional development in an environment where none would be available...'
Jinfo is the central location for supporting your information career. The Jinfo Jobs database lists vacancies, and the Jinfo Events database lists workshops, conferences, training, webinars and other professional development opportunities.
Start a free subscription to receive the weekly Jinfo Update, with a complete list of the latest vacancies and events, or search the databases at any time (free).
Jinfo Jobs in the FreePint Newsletter are supported through our partnership with Quantum2, an innovative skills development programme offered by Dialog. Learn more at <http://quantum.dialog.com/>.
Jinfo Jobs:
Here is a selection of the latest featured vacancies in the Jinfo database:
6 X Information Specialists
An excellent opportunity has arisen for six Information Specialists to join a growing Information and Research Team...
Recruiter: Weekes Gray Recruitment
Country: United Kingdom
Research Manager - Outsourcing
Research Manager with overseas outsourcing experience for newly created vacancy in the financial sector in the City...
Recruiter: Glen Recruitment
Country: United Kingdom
Records Manager & Archivist
Our client, a historically unique organisation, is looking for a Records Manager & Archivist to...
Recruiter: TFPL Intelligent Resources
Country: United Kingdom
Information & Records Manager
Skilled at actually implementing RM practices? Can you align what staff do to match the policy docs?
Recruiter: Sue Hill Recruitment and Services Limited
Country: United Kingdom
Information Scientist
Work effectively within a team environment with Information Scientists, Health Economists, Systematic Reviewers and PMs
Recruiter: Royal College of Physicians
Country: United Kingdom
Here is a selection of the latest featured events in the Jinfo database:
Ignite the Web! Audio & Video in the Law
Tour how these tools are being used in areas such as litigation, training, marketing, PR, KM, and library staff development.
Organiser: Nina Platt Consulting, Inc.
Date: 10th Feb 2010
Country: Online
Writing an Effective Business Case
Determine if your project/action is worth doing and be a persuasive communication tool for management.
Organiser: Nina Platt Consulting, Inc.
Date: 18th Feb 2010
Country: Online
ICI-28 - Financial Analysis
Organiser: Institute for Competitive Intelligence
Date: 22nd Mar 2010
Country: United Kingdom
ICI-4 CI Secondary Research
Organiser: Institute for Competitive Intelligence
Date: 23-24 Mar 2010
Country: United Kingdom
TFPL Connect Conference 2010
Two-day event for knowledge and information management leaders; 10% discount with registration code...
Organiser: TFPL
Date: 24-25 Mar 2010
Country: United Kingdom
Working in a Wired World
Three one day training workshops looking at Working in a Wired World.
Organiser: Incisive Media
Date: 24th Feb - 24th Mar 2010
Country: United Kingdom
Evidence, Value and Impact: the LIS Research Landscape in 2010
Library and Information Science Research Coalition one day conference to consider the LIS research landscape.
Organiser: Library and Information Science Research Coalition
Date: 28th Jun 2010
Country: United Kingdom
Jinfo - the best place for information-related job vacancies and professional development opportunities.
RECRUITING? - Advertise a vacancy for just £195 - 10% discount for agencies - 50% discount for registered charities
RUNNING AN EVENT? List it on Jinfo to reach a targeted audience seeking professional development opportunities
- Get started at <http://web.jinfo.com/events/load/>
- Partner events listed for free; enquire at <support@jinfo.com>.
Sometimes even we find it hard to believe that ResourceShelf is entering the eighth year of its existence. (My, how time flies when
you're having fun.) Well, those of you who have been 'around' as long as we have just might remember a venerable resource created and maintained by Gary, called Price's List of Lists...
DocuTicker publishes citations of full-text, free reports available on the web. Visit daily for new postings, or subscribe to the weekly DocuTicker Newsletter.
A look back at what the FreePint Newsletter covered at this time in previous years:
FreePint No. 270, 5th February 2009 "If They Only Knew: Finding Competitive Intelligence from the Websites of Your Competitors and Their Friends" and "Internet Librarian International 2008"
FreePint No. 176, 10th February 2005 "Understanding Consumers through Online Competitive Intelligence" and "Child Rights: Is Information really free for all?"
FreePint No. 153, 5th February 2004 "Disintegrating Digital Fences: Finding Business Information in Ukraine and its Neighbouring Countries" and "10 things you should know about the UK's Freedom of Information regime"
Robin Neidorf (General Manager), Malcolm Coles, Martin Belam, Brian Westra, Nancy Davis Kho (Copyeditor), William Hann (Publisher), Douglas Brown (Proofreader).
Advertisers/Sponsors:
Dow Jones, Marketresearch.com, Incisive Media, Dialog, Sue Hill Recruitment and Services Limited, Glen Recruitment, TFPL Intelligent Resources Recruitment, Weekes Gray Recruitment, Royal College of Physicians.
To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your subscriptions or password, visit <http://www.freepint.com/subs/> or forward this email, with your request and registered email address, to <support@freepint.com>. For details about contributing, advertising or to see past issues, please visit the Web site at <http://www.freepint.com/>.
Please note: FreePint (ISSN 1460-7239) is a registered trademark of, and published by, Free Pint Limited. The publishers will NEVER make the subscriber list available to any other company or organisation.
The opinions, advice, products and services offered herein are the sole responsibility of the contributors. Whilst all reasonable care has been taken to ensure the accuracy of the publication, the publishers cannot accept responsibility for any errors or omissions.
This publication may be freely copied and/or distributed in its entirety. However, individual sections MAY NOT be copied and/or distributed without the prior written agreement of the publishers. Write to Robin Neidorf, General Manager, <robin.neidorf@freepint.com> for more details. Product names used in FreePint are for identification purposes only, and may be trademarks of their respective owners. FreePint disclaims any and all rights in those marks. All rights reserved.
FreePint is published by Free Pint Limited, registered in England and
Wales. Registered Number: 3754418. Registered Office: Delaport Coach
House, Lamer Lane, Wheathampstead, Herts, AL4 8RQ
Special Offer: The FreePint Volume: Business News Sources brings together recent high-value reports to help you better understand the options available, how they compare and how other organisations evaluate them. These publications normally sell for £39 or more each. Get the entire collection for only £97.50 (single site).
In the 
A more familiar (perhaps) tool is RSS, which Brian Westra uses as the centrepiece of his 
By Malcolm Coles and Martin Belam
WHAT'S INSIDE: 'Perhaps the biggest challenge facing Wave is that the initial experience of the service doesn't really answer 'What is it for?'. Even if people struggle to initially grasp what they can do with Twitter, the opening instruction on the homepage - 'See what people are saying about...' is clear.'
By Brian Westra
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