By Stephen Downes
December 12, 2003
Copyright Board Freezes Music-Media
Levies
The Copyright Board of Canada opted for
the status quo in a ruling today, maintaining (but not
doubling, as the music publishing industry had asked)
levies on music recording media. In Canada, individuals may
use such media to copy songs for their personal use, and
the levy is paid as a royalty to music publishers (who are
supposed to, in theory, pass the money on to musicians).
The industry had also requested levies on most forms of
digital media, such as DVds and hard drives, but this was
rejected by the board, which concluded that most people do
not use these for music. The Board also ruled against the
industry's 'zero rating' levy on media for music
businesses, religious groups, and education, saying that
the levy was unfair. All in all, a good ruling, though I
would like to see some of this money in the pockets of the
people who make the music. By Jack Kapica, Globe and Mail,
December 12, 2003
[Refer][Research][Reflect]
LogiCampus - New Open Source
CMS
Scott Leslie writes, "New open source CMS
that was the result of a joint project between Tap Internet
and Tarrant County College in Texas. The PHP-based system
is quite full featured and will be quickly comprehensible
by anyone who has used any of the more 'content-focused'
style CMS." By Scott Leslie, EdTechPost, December 1, 2003
[Refer][Research][Reflect]
Open Access Journals in the Field of
Education
Long and from what I can tell (I
tested a bunch) accurate list to open access online
journals in the field of education. This is a tremendous
resource. I think I should spend some time with this list
and think about how to make the contents even more
accessable... By Tirupalavanam G. Ganesh, AERA SIG:
Communication of Research, November 21, 2003
[Refer][Research][Reflect]
Patenting Air or Protecting
Property?
While some people cling to the idea
that progress and innovation can be measured in erms of the
numbers of patents granted, it is becoming clear that the
rapid proliferation of the technology monopolies are having
the opposite result. "More patents in more industries and
with greater breadth are not always the best ways to
maximize consumer welfare," said a a report released in
October by the U.S. the Federal Trade Commission. "Many
panelists and participants expressed the view that software
and Internet patents are impeding innovation." By Jonathan
Krim, Washington Post, December 11, 2003
[Refer][Research][Reflect]
CTE and Work-Based Learning
You
will want to get to this one before ERIC is shut down (I
wonder whether they did any 'scientific reasearch' before
making that decision). According to the author,
"Work-based learning represents the integration of
workplace experiences and career and technical education
(CTE) curriculum." You will therefore want to read this
item in conjunction with the work on workflow learning,
also listed here this week. The article is a survey,
identifying major aspects of work-based learning, and
hence, is a good introduction to the concept. By Bettina
Lankard Brown, ERIC, December, 2003
[Refer][Research][Reflect]
Asian
Journal of Distance Education
Just launched,
volume 1, number 1 of the Asian Journal of Distance
Education contains articles by Fred Lockwood, Tony Bates
and Kinshuk, among others. Unfortunately, only abstracts
are posted online, which means you have to purchase the
dead tree version if you actually want to read any of these
words of wisdom. I don't understand why authors continue to
support restricted access versions of journals like this.
By various Authors, November, 2003
[Refer][Research][Reflect]
Students Urged to Protect Their
Identity
The United States Department of
Education has launched a new website - http://www.ed.gov/misused - that
"includes comprehensive information for students and
families, including tips for protecting their identity and
advice on how they can detect identity theft." By Press
Release, United States Department of Education, December
11, 2003
[Refer][Research][Reflect]
Shaping Information Societies for Human
Needs
This is the Civil Society Declaration to
the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) and
consists of a statement of broad principles which are (in
my view) worthy of endorsement in general. "We are
committed to building information and communication
societies that are people-centred, inclusive and equitable.
Societies in which everyone can freely create, access,
utilise, share and disseminate information and knowledge,
so that individuals, communities and peoples are empowered
to improve their quality of life and to achieve their full
potential. Societies founded on the principles of social,
political, and economic justice, and peoples' full
participation and empowerment, and thus societies that
truly address the key development challenges facing the
world today. Societies that pursue the objectives of
sustainable development, democracy, and gender equality,
for the attainment of a more peaceful, just, egalitarian
and thus sustainable world, premised on the principles
enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations and in the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights." By Various Authors,
December, 2003
[Refer][Research][Reflect]
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