***************************************************** Edupage is a service of EDUCAUSE, a nonprofit association whose mission is to advance higher education by promoting the intelligent use of information technology. *****************************************************
TOP STORIES FOR WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 2005 Penn State Debuts P2P for Academic Purposes Information Literacy Test Now for High School Seniors Scotland Ready to Implement Intranet for All Schools ITAA Calls for National Data-Breach Notification Law Authors Guild Takes Google to Court Baidu to Appeal Ruling in Copyright Case PENN STATE DEBUTS P2P FOR ACADEMIC PURPOSES A new application developed at Pennsylvania State University at University Park puts P2P technology to use in academic pursuits. Funded in part by a $1.1 million grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, LionShare allows users to search for and access files on other users' computers, similar to P2P applications that have opened the door to a wide range of copyright violations. LionShare, in contrast, is designed for academic purposes, including sharing very large files and other educational materials among approved users. For example, faculty can restrict usage to students registered in their classes. In addition, users can attach keywords and other metadata to files, making them easier to locate and organize. Pilot tests of LionShare have been successful. Michael J. Halm, senior strategist for Penn State's Teaching and Working With Technology office, said that in courses where LionShare was used, although faculty are driving the usage of the tool, students have said they would "definitely use it too" in classes where it was available. The application will be available free from Penn State. Chronicle of Higher Education, 20 September 2005 (sub. req'd) http://chronicle.com/daily/2005/09/2005092001t.htm INFORMATION LITERACY TEST NOW FOR HIGH SCHOOL SENIORS After recently releasing an information literacy test geared toward college juniors, the Educational Testing Service (ETS) will begin pilot tests of a similar exam designed for seniors in high school. The new test will give colleges and universities a tool for assessing the technology skills of entering freshman, helping make determinations about whether students are prepared for the technology aspects of college-level work. The junior-level exam has been praised by officials at several campuses that have adopted it, including Ilene F. Rockman of the California State University System. She said the test has shown broad deficiencies in technology skills among students. "[S]tudents may know how to surf the Web, they may know how to download music and send e-mail," said Rockman, "but that does not mean they know how to analyze information." Pilot testing of the new exam will begin in January. Until enough data have been gathered to establish a baseline for scoring the exam, participating colleges will receive aggregated scores. Individuals' scores are expected within a year or so. Chronicle of Higher Education, 20 September 2005 (sub. req'd) http://chronicle.com/daily/2005/09/2005092002t.htm SCOTLAND READY TO IMPLEMENT INTRANET FOR ALL SCHOOLS Education officials said the final piece of the Scottish Schools Digital Network--an intranet connecting 800,000 students and teachers in the country--is ready to be implemented. Education Minister Peter Peacock said that the country has been building infrastructure for some time, including "a large-scale broadband network linking all 32 local councils and a content delivery network providing access to 'rich' media such as video and audio clips." The intranet, which is expected to go online by early 2007, is said to be the first of its kind anywhere in the world. It will provide students and teachers with access to a wide range of educational resources from any computer, allowing students "to do more meaningful work at home" and parents "to take a much more active role in their children's learning," according to Peacock. The system will also include tools for sharing ideas, developing online communities, and facilitating audio or video conferences. BBC, 21 September 2005 http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/4268654.stm ITAA CALLS FOR NATIONAL DATA-BREACH NOTIFICATION LAW The Information Technology Association of America (ITAA) has called on Congress to pass federal legislation that would specify the conditions under which companies and government agencies would be required to notify consumers regarding breaches of data security. According to Greg Garcia, vice president of information security programs and policy at the ITAA, 17 states have passed such laws, 8 of which have gone into effect. The ITAA recommends a federal law that would provide clear definitions of data breaches, identify circumstances under which notification would be required, and detail the ways in which notification must take place. Furthermore, the ITAA said a federal data-breach law should take precedence over state laws that might otherwise weaken the federal law. Both houses of Congress have taken up the topic of requiring notification, but so far only one bill, sponsored by Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), has been introduced. Federal Computer Week, 21 September 2005 http://www.fcw.com/article90869-09-21-05-Web AUTHORS GUILD TAKES GOOGLE TO COURT The latest challenge to Google's Print Library Project has come in the form of a lawsuit from the Authors Guild. Since Google announced its initiative to scan millions of books in several academic and public libraries and put those materials--or portions of them--online, the search engine has been roundly criticized by publishers and others who say the entire project represents copyright infringement. Nick Taylor, president of the Authors Guild, said, "It's not up to Google or anyone other than the authors, the rightful owners of these copyrights, to decide whether and how their works will be copied." Google continues to assert that it respects copyright and that the project does not violate copyright laws. Moreover, Google contends that the project will be a boon for publishers due to the broad exposure that scanned books will have online. Plaintiffs, who are seeking class action status for their suit, are asking the courts for damages and an injunction against scanning the texts in question. CNET, 21 September 2005 http://news.com.com/2100-1030_3-5875384.html BAIDU TO APPEAL RULING IN COPYRIGHT CASE Chinese search engine Baidu said it will appeal a ruling by a Beijing court that found the company guilty of copyright violations for providing access to sites that offer illegal music downloads. Baidu has a dedicated MP3 search feature that has been extremely popular, but with the search engine's success has come criticism from record companies, some of which are said to have initiated legal action against the company, though Baidu's lawyer did not comment on that. The Beijing court ordered Baidu to stop providing access to the illegal downloads and to pay copyright owners damages of about $8,500 for each of 34 copyrights that were allegedly violated. Li Decheng, Baidu's lawyer, said the verdict hinges on a misunderstanding of what the search engine's technology actually does. Wall Street Journal, 21 September 2005 (sub. req'd) http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB112725336407246620,00.html ***************************************************** EDUPAGE INFORMATION To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your settings, or access the Edupage archive, visit http://www.educause.edu/Edupage/639 Or, you can subscribe or unsubscribe by sending e-mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] To SUBSCRIBE, in the body of the message type: SUBSCRIBE Edupage YourFirstName YourLastName To UNSUBSCRIBE, in the body of the message type: SIGNOFF Edupage If you have subscription problems, send e-mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] ***************************************************** OTHER EDUCAUSE RESOURCES The EDUCAUSE Resource Center is a repository for information concerning use and management of IT in higher education. To access resources including articles, books, conference sessions, contracts, effective practices, plans, policies, position descriptions, and blog content, go to http://www.educause.edu/resources ***************************************************** CONFERENCES For information on all EDUCAUSE learning and networking opportunities, see http://www.educause.edu/31 ***************************************************** COPYRIGHT Edupage copyright (c) 2005, EDUCAUSE
